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By moving the furniture around, separating a sectional sofa to facilitate distancing, and rustling up enough side tables for each individual meal, I was able to host the first indoor potluck gathering of five in my long living room.

Dear Helen: What can be done with a Rieger begonia once the plant stops blooming? I have clipped off the last faded flowers. Is there any way to keep the plant in good condition, hopefully to bloom again? G.F.

It is a key goal to feel comfortable and at ease at home, to have rooms designed to work with you, play with you and relax with you. Take the kitchen for example. It’s possible to work around some basic flaws when you’re busy prepping meals.

Dear Tony: Our strata manager has issued notice of our annual general meeting and advised their company will only do our AGM by restricted proxy.

I hadn’t ridden my bike for some time, following a knee injury, but a few weeks ago I sensed the ancient Raleigh calling to me.

You know a house is special when the owners take care to sell it to a family who will appreciate it as much as they did — even if it means taking a lower price in a multiple-offer bidding war.

Dear Helen: A summer visitor to my garden commented on cucumber and tomato vines growing on the same support. She said the two are harmful to each other’s growth. Is she right? G.P.

Dear Debbie: During the pandemic, we have been spending a great deal more time as a family in the living room. It’s feeling a bit tired and I’d like to make the room welcoming and special.

Good things come in small packages. That’s certainly proved to be the case for realtor Chris Gillespie and his wife, home stylist Alison Graham, who live with their 11-year-old daughter, Kerrington, two dogs and a cat in a 780-square-foot home.

It won’t be long before the 2021 seed catalogues begin arriving, and online sources have their new roster of varieties listed.