Pontotoc Homes June 2019

JUNE 2019

Real Estate Guide to Pontotoc County & the surrounding area

FEATURING (Page 10)

WASHINGTON HOLCOMB TRACTOR COMPANY

PONTOTOC HOMES |3

TABLE OF CONTENTS 3 5 5 5 6 6 7 9 10 18 20 22 23 25 26 28 32

Patty Turk Properties, LLC First Choice Insurance Pickens Pest Control Distinctive Design Matthews Real Estate Washington Holcomb Tractor Company Southern Hills Realty & Appraisal, Inc. Hamilton Mortgage Washington Holcomb Tractor Co. feature Crye-Leike Realtors, Beth Walker Rooms can serve double duty Compost is part of the circle of life in gardens Dennis Cox, Tommy Morgan, Inc. How to help flowers withstand heat waves Mossy Oak Properties 12 ways to maximize vertical space First Choice Bank

10

20

Advertising Consultant: Angie Quarles • Designer: Chelsea Williams Pontotoc Progress • 13 Jefferson Street • P.O. Box 210 • Pontotoc, MS 38863 • 662-489-3511

4| PONTOTOC HOMES

PONTOTOC HOMES |5

Did you know?

I

nvesting in a home renovation project not only requires money, but also time and patience. While contractors, architects and designers can estimate how long a project may take, it is impossible to anticipate all of the scenarios that can affect that estimated timeline. Information from the real estate firm Keller Williams indicates an average kitchen remodel involving installation of new countertops, cabinets, appliances, and floors can take three to six months. But if ductwork, plumbing or wiring must be addressed, the job may take longer. A midline bathroom remodel may take two to three months. Adding a room to a house can take a month or two. The home improvement resource Renovation Junkies offers similar estimates, with the average home renovation taking between four and eight months. Homeowners need to consider time when planning their home projects.

6| PONTOTOC HOMES

PONTOTOC HOMES |7

8| PONTOTOC HOMES

PONTOTOC HOMES |9

Washington Holcomb Tractor Company 10| PONTOTOC HOMES

Joey Holcomb is a life-long tractor and parts man, who owns Washington-Holcomb Tractor Company, located at near the four-way stop in Pontotoc.

continues proud tradition PONTOTOC HOMES |11

Story & Photos by

GALEN HOLLEY Pontotoc Progress

J Billy Howell, left, and Danny Chumney discuss repairs on a tractor part.

12| PONTOTOC HOMES

oey Holcomb is proud to carry on the legacy of quality and fair dealing long associated with the tractor company that today bears his name.

“Earning and keeping the customers’ trust, selling them what they need at a fair price, and backing it with quality service is how we do business,” said Holcomb, who last year partnered with Danny and Gerald Washington to purchase the former Stegall Ford dealership.

Before the Stegalls, J.B. Nanny owned the business and, before him, it belonged to the Turner family, all names associated with quality and honesty in Pontotoc, Holcomb said.

Today, Washington Holcomb Tractor Company serves mostly smaller-scale cattlemen, ranchers, and small-acreage farmers, according to Holcomb. The landmark dealership on Hwy. 15 carries tractors, up to 140 horsepower, by New Holland, Kioti, and Bush

Hog, as well as implements.

Holcomb also carries line-trimmers and mowers, including the popular zero-turn-radius models, by brands like Bad Boy. New additions this year include a full line of garden implements, such as row-hippers, middle-buster and sub-soiler tillage implements, and disks.

“Everything you need to get the ground ready to plant,” Holcomb said.

Holcomb and company are also proud of their new line of ATVs and side-by-side vehicles. Holcomb’s Can Am four-wheelers start with the base 450 model, ideal for work and hunting. He also carries more amped-up models for trail-riding and mud-racing, like the XMR Outlander.

The Can Am Defender sideby-side comes in three and six-passenger models, and features power-steering, indepen-

Joey Holcomb, left, and Rocky Browell examine teh suspension system of a side-by-side vehicle.

Service Manager Billy Howell with an antique tractor he’s restoring.

PONTOTOC HOMES |13

“We take pride in standing behind our products, offering friendly, low-pressure salesmanship, and we’re here to help the customer get what’s best for them.”

Joey Holcomb

Washington Holcomb Tractor Company

dent suspension, four-wheeldrive, and a convenient dump bed.

Like his late father, Woodrow, service manager Billy Howell has worked on tractors and mowers all his life, and takes pride in being a trusted mechanic to generations of local customers.

“I grew up turning wrenches and serving customers, and that’s what I love to do,” said Howell. He and other technicians work on machines inhouse as well as making service calls.

All-in-all, Holcomb said he considers himself more a consultant than a salesman.

“I like dealing with the public,” said Holcomb. “You can buy a tractor or a mower anywhere, and eventually, it’s going to break, then you find out what kind of dealership you’re dealing with. We take pride in standing behind our products, offering friendly, low-pressure salesmanship, and we’re here to help the customer get what’s best for them.”

16| PONTOTOC HOMES

Danny Chumney works on a tractor engine.

PONTOTOC HOMES |17

18| PONTOTOC HOMES

PONTOTOC HOMES |19

ROOMS CAN SERVE

Double Duty 20| PONTOTOC HOMES

Double duty space ideas LIVING ROOM/GUEST ROOM

Entertaining guests is easier when there’s a dedicated space where visitors can feel at home. When furnishing a living room, keep the guest room in mind. A sofa that opens up to a bed or a convertible sectional can be a comfortable place for guests to lay their heads. Side tables provide guests with places to store their belongings, and an empty storage chest can house bed linens or guests’ clothing.

DEN/PLAYROOM

M

any homes do not have space for guest rooms, kids’ play areas and home theater lounges that are possible in homes with substantial square footage. But they may not be missing out at all.

While large homes remain popular, many people are embracing the benefits of smaller residences. Small homes help homeowners save money, require less maintenance, have smaller environmental impact, and reduce the temptation to accumulate “stuff.”

Owners of small homes or apartments can still enjoy the benefits of larger spaces, they just need to equip rooms to perform double duty.

In smaller homes, homeowners may be forced to turn rooms into dual purpose areas.

Children tend to accumulate toys and games. And as kids grow from children to young adults, their list of must-have items — from video gaming systems to other electronics — grows along with them. Storage can make a room functional for both adults and children. Devote an entire wall to a closet or drawer system where toys can be stored out of sight when necessary. Storage ottomans can be used for extra seating while also providing somewhere for homeowners to stash stuffed animals or games for easy access. When choosing furniture, look for fabrics that are resistant to stains and modular pieces that can be moved around as necessary to create room for playing or entertaining.

BEDROOM/HOME OFFICE

In 2015, 24 percent of employed people in the United States did some or all of their work at home, says the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Bringing work home means men and women will need a space to work. In tight quarters, bedrooms may be the only available area. An armoire-style desk will blend in with the decor and can hide paperwork and electronics behind doors. Otherwise, a makeup vanity can serve the dual purpose of providing a place to get ready for a night out and a ready space to house a laptop during the day.

PONTOTOC HOMES |21

COMPOST IS PART OF THE

Circle of Life IN GARDENS

Here are some kitchen-related items that can go into the compost material:

• Eggshells • Fruit peels • Vegetable peels and scraps • Coffee grounds • Shredded newspaper

T

he season for fresh fruits and vegetables grown right in the backyard is upon us. Warm weather breathes life into fresh berries, tomatoes, eggplant, cucumbers, and many other delectable fruits and vegetables.

Home gardens can be supplemented with delicious finds from the supermarket or farmer’s market, including melons, corn and more.

The bounty of the garden can be made more abundant and fruitful with the addition of the right soil amendments. Compost is a key element of rich, nutritious soil.

Scraps from items that have been grown in the garden can then be reused in the production of the compost that feeds that same

22| PONTOTOC HOMES

garden. It’s a continuous circle of garden life.

Getting started with compost is relatively easy. Homeowners should choose an outdoor space near the garden but far away from the home so that it won’t be disturbed by kids or animals. Some people opt for an open compost pile, while others choose closed bins to contain the possible smell and to camouflage the compost. A sunny spot will help the compost to develop faster, according to Good Housekeeping.

The next step is to start gathering the scraps and materials that will go into the compost. Better Homes and Gardens suggests keeping a bucket or bin in the kitchen to accumulate kitchen scraps.

In addition to these materials, grass and plant clippings, dry leaves, bark chips, straw, and sawdust from untreated wood can go into the pile. Avoid diseased plants, anything with animal fats, dairy products, and pet feces.

A low-maintenance pile has an equal amount of brown and green plant matter in the compost plus moisture to keep the bacteria growing and eating at the right rate.

Aerating the compost occasionally, or turning the bin when possible, will allow the compost to blend and work together. Compost will take a few months to form completely, says the Planet Natural Research Center. The finished product will resemble a dark, crumbly soil that smells like fresh earth.

Compost will not only add nutrients to garden soil, but also it can help insulate plants and may prevent some weed growth.

It is a good idea to start a compost pile as a free source of nutrition for plants and a method to reduce food waste in an environmentally sound way.

PONTOTOC HOMES |23

24| PONTOTOC HOMES

HOW TO HELP FLOWERS WITHSTAND

Heat Waves

H

eat waves are an inevitable part of summer in many places across the globe. While humans can escape indoors to air conditioned rooms when heat waves hit full swing, flowers planted around a property have no such luxury, putting their survival in jeopardy whenever the mercury rises to especially steamy heights.

Wilted flowers that have succumbed to the summer sun are a sight many gardening enthusiasts can recognize. But there are ways to keep flowers safe and vibrant during periods of extreme heat.

Water at the appropriate times of day

The National Gardening Association notes that it’s best to water in the early morning and evening because less water will be lost to evaporation during these times of day than during the afternoon, when temperatures tend to be at their hottest.

Choose the right watering method

It’s not just when but also how you water that can affect flowers during summer heat waves. Aboveground sprinklers might be great for lawns, but the NGA notes that such sprinklers can encourage the spread of disease on certain plants, including roses.

Many gardening professionals recommend soaker hoses when watering flowers because they promote deep watering that can help the plants withstand the summer heat.

If you must use an overheard watering system, set the timer so plants are watered in early in the morning or evening.

Routinely check the soil moisture

Soil moisture can help gardeners determine if their flowers have enough water to withstand the heat. The NGA advises gardeners to dig a 12-inch deep wedge of soil from their gardens to determine its moisture levels. If the top six inches of the soil is dry, water. If that area is still wet or moist, the

plants have enough moisture to withstand the heat. Check these moisture levels more frequently during heat waves than other times of year.

Avoid overwatering

Novice gardeners may be tempted to water more frequently when they see wilted leaves on their flowers. But wilted leaves are not necessarily indicative of suffering plants. Plants release moisture to protect

themselves from excessive heat, and that release of moisture can cause leaves to wilt as the plants try to protect themselves by providing less surface area that can be exposed to the sun. So long as soil moisture levels are healthy, the flowers should be fine, even if their leaves have wilted.

No gardener wants to see their flowers succumb to the summer heat. Fortunately, there are many ways to help flowers survive heat waves.

PONTOTOC HOMES |25

26| PONTOTOC HOMES

PONTOTOC HOMES |27

12 WAYS TO

Maximize Vertical Space

28| PONTOTOC HOMES

W

ho hasn’t, at one point in their lives, lamented a lack of space and organization at home? A lifetime’s worth of items have to be kept somewhere, and without the right organizational strategy, clutter can quickly take over.

The home improvement site Home Therapy says that, when square footage is limited, tapping vertical walls is the fastest way to maximize and multiply the space available. Hooks, rods, shelving, built-ins … the sky is the limit when it comes to finding additional storage and adding a bit of personality to tight quarters. Even homes that may have adequate space can benefit from vertical solutions.

Vertical Space Ideas 1. Hang wire or plastic file organizers on the inside of kitchen cabinets to easily store cookie sheets, trays and cutting boards.

2. Save on counter or cabinet space with hanging spice racks. These can be hung directly on walls or on the inside of cabinet doors.

3. Stack all the stuff you can, including washers and dryers, beds (with storage drawers underneath) and even stacking nesting tables.

4. Choose furniture that is tall rather than wide. This can mean swapping out a dresser in a bedroom for an armoire or vertical chest of drawers.

5. Canvas bags hung on a towel bar on a wall can keep dirty clothes wrangled until it’s time to wash them. This also eliminates clothes hampers on the floor.

6. Add a second rod or shelving to the inside of closets to create more space for clothing and other items.

7. Take kitchen cabinets all the way to the ceiling. Store lesser used items on the uppermost shelves and the items you use each on the most accessible shelves.

8. Install a shelf over the entryway to a room to utilize this seldom-used space. Shelves also can be custom cut and placed in oddly shaped areas, such as in attic rooms under the eaves or on slanted walls.

9. Dowels or curtain rods and some fabric can be used to fabricate slings to hold books or magazines.

10. Invest in some magnetic boards that can hold keys or notes by the front door or store knives on a kitchen wall.

11. Install two towel bars parallel to one another on the wall of a bathroom. These can hold extra toilet tissue or rolled hand towels.

12. Use rope plant hangers to store potatoes or onions near prep areas. The same plant hangers can wrangle stuffed animals and small toys in kids’ rooms.

Utilizing vertical areas in a home is a great way to increase storage capacity and keep rooms more organized.

PONTOTOC HOMES |29

30| PONTOTOC HOMES