Detroit Free Press from Detroit, Michigan • Page 23

Summer mortgages: Dorothy Weddell says mortgage lending was up and down this summer. Real 'Country': Jessica Lange (left) talks about her new movie. See Shirley Eder's column on the Feature Page, 7C. Saturday, Oct. 6, 1004 REAL ESTATE MORE NEWS FEATURE PAGE estate, Page 2C.

Can homo: 222-661S 4. DETROIT FREE PRESS i R. Lcn Grossmen I i jm i gh-flyin' bromeliads: 1 vv Bromeliad known as Guzmonia orange "I'm fascinated by ail the ways living things adapt to their environment," said Patrick McKown of Preter Tellus Nursery in West Bloomfield. "That's why I find bromeliads so interesting." Most bromeliads (pronounced (bro-ME-lee-ads), natives of tropical and subtropical areas, absorb food and moisture through their leaves rather than through their roots. Some grow rooted in the ground, but many grow on trunks of trees or high up in the branches.

They often are known as air plants. Some bromeliads are as small as a pea and others are 15 or 20 feet tall. Some have stiff slender leaves and look like little tufts of twisted wires. Others have broad strap-like leaves that are soft and fleshy or thin and leathery. Many are covered with minute scales Betty Frankel VT i 7i: 1 gardening Go after the ants upstairs and down QWe are troubled with ants, large and small, up to the second floor of our house.

Can we get rid of them? A The best way to eliminate ants is to spray an insecticide indoors and out. Spray the attic, too. Probably one of the best exterior chemicals is Diazinon, followed by Malathion. Both are available at yard and garden shops. Qln order to slant the water away from my basement walls, I need to fill in higher than the window wells.

Do you have suggestions for accomplishing this? A If you have shallow corrugated steel wells, dig down, pull them up and reset them higher. If that is not possible, install the next size larger wells right over them, so they extend higher than the existing wells. If the window wells are brick or block, you'll need to build them up using brick or block and ready-mix mortar. It is important, whenever you place dirt against the side of the house, to make sure the exterior wall is coated with waterproofing sealer, such as waterproofing tar, even if the house is brick. The brick and mortar are porous and will act as a wick, drawing moisture into the house unless the wall is sealed.

Have a question about home improvement or repairs? Write Lon Grossman, Box 828, Detroit 48231. that give the leaves a beautiful silvery sheen, and on some the scales form handsome striped patterns. According to McKown, who owns the nursery with Samuel de Fazio, the bromeliad's form depends where it evolved. Those that grow in deserts have adapted to conditions of high light and low humidity by developing thin, wiry leaves. The natives of forests, where it is dim and humid, have soft broad leaves.

LEAVES OF MANY bromeliads overlap to form a central cup or tank that holds moisture. Rainwater and dew collect in the cup and the plant draws water from this reservoir during dry periods. Tiny insects and bits of plant debris that fall into the cup add nourishment to the liquid. Bromeliads have striking, brilliantly colored flowers. Some are borne in showy clusters on tall stalks, but others: have no stems, and their blooms are hidden inside the cup.

The leaves of those with hidden flowers turn red or purple while the plant is blooming. This bright coloring is thought to be nature's way of attracting insects and birds that pollinate the flowers. See BROMELIADS, Page 3C t. house detective -antique chandeliers i 1 V1 mm Free Press Photos bv RICHARD LEE The Neo Tricolor, with colors of green, white and red, is one bromeliad in which the flower grows from the center. Patrick McKown, co-owner of the Preter Tellus Nursery in West Bloomfield, tends to the bromeliads.

For 150 years, this chandelier held candles at St. Peter's Basilica in now it hangs in Old St. Mary's Church in iGreektown a gift from a parishioner on 'the church's 150th anniversary. The move was possible because Jacob-. son's bought a number of the 841 antique! fixtures recently after officials in the Vatican modernized the cathedral's light-1 ing.

The original chandeliers included a six-light fixture as well as one that held several hundred lights. All are Louis XVI style, made of iron covered with gold leaf and hung with Bohemian and Irish crystal. They are being wired for American electrical current and shipped from Italy to Jacobson's homes stores in Michigan, where this nine-light version recently sold for $3,000. Judy Rose Folk artists display their handmade wares pegboard ''f nil- 1 1 nil. it)i I'll'' iii i ci' nun 'in ji 'oiiiiiiii ii rii in.

mi inriti tnn linn iw nil By JUDY ROSE Free Press Homes Writer Some 85 folk artists from 15 states are gathered near Davisburg, this weekend for a country folk-art show, a semi-annual event in the rural town for the past three years. The show's specialty current examples of old country craftmanship will attract about 6,000 people to Davisburg, "a few miles west of Clarkston, by the time the show closes Sunday, organizers say. Visitors will be looking for primitive-style paintings, carvings and toys and for such country crafts as handwoven baskets and rag rugs. "People can't buy enough of the old things anymore," said Betty Long, one of the organizers. "They are learning to appreciate handmade things, and they want to complement the antiques they have been collecting." LONG AND HER daughter Rhonda Hilliker began putting on the Davisburg show three years ago, mostly as a hobby.

But it has quickly grown into' a major event. And the artisans with whom they work have invited the two to organize other shows. Long and Hilliker already have expanded to Battle Creek and Grand Rapids and soon will move the shows to Denver, Indianapolis, Nashville and Lexington, Ky. Among the artisans who will be in Davidson is Gerry Beaumont of Beaumont Pottery in Maine, Beaumont, who makes salt glaze stoneware, has been commissioned to make country-style pottery for the White House. OTHER EXHIBITORS include Jacob Ruby's Grainery of Indiana, with handmade copperware; Sullins House of Indiana, with copies of 17th and 18th century jam cupboards and blanket chests; Gris Pottery of Illinois with reproduction redware, and Make Mine Country of Lansing, with reproduction spongeware.

Still other artisans show carved whirligigs, hand-sewn dolls, painted floor cloths, weathervanes, Appalachian-style baskets, herb wreaths, stenciled pictures and colonial children's portraits. The show, which opened Friday, is at the Springfield-Oaks Center on Anderson Road, just south of Davidson. Hours are 10-5 Saturday and Sunday. Admission is $3. fm I I I Ii 1 1 nun ft mi Use one-lnch-wlde newspaper strips instead of masking tape to protect windows when painting woodwork.

Dip in water and strip off excess water by sliding between thumb and forefinger. Then mask the windowpane as you would with tape. Do only two panes at a time because the strips dry out quickly. Clean crayon and grease from wallpaper with a paste of dry-cleaning fluid and fuller's earth (available at pharmacies) or whiting (available at paint stores) Apply paste, allow to dry and brush, off. Wipe area a clean cloth dipped in Borax.

A mild mirror-glaze plastic polish cleans convertible and motorcycle windshields without scratching. It is available at auto supply stores. Clean the support ledge of a piano's music rack by using a pastry brush coated lightly with dust magnet spray. It also works for narrow blinds and paneling seams. Stitch a deep pocket on a bath 1owel to carry toilet items to the shower at a spa or health club.

Use a matching wash cloth or co-ordinating terrycloth fabric. T- The country folk art show in Davisburg, will feature hand-sewn dolls, painted floor cloths, weathervanes, Appalachian-style baskets, herb wreaths, primitive-style paintings, carvings and toys, furniture, handwoven baskets and rag rugs (above and right). 9e Press Photos bv tGH GRANNUM.