YOUR PLACE.

Byline: - Compiled by Barbara De Witt 

GARDEN WHEELIES: Weekend gardeners and town-house dwellers who rarely need a hefty wheelbarrow are in luck. Two companies have created lightweight collapsible garden carts that can haul like a traditional model and also hang alongside a rake or shovel on the wall - and they won't rust. The MidWest glove company's wheelbarrow is a lightweight, tear-resistant woven vinyl that can hold up 100 pounds of fertilizer and can be hosed off and folded flat when finished. It's available for $32.99 at local garden centers and Ace Hardware. To order direct, call [phone]. The Allsop Home Garden's version called the Wheel Easy is longer and more shallow in design (great for raking leaves into it) and has an all-steel construction so it can hold up to 350 pounds, but it's an investment at $129.99 at garden centers. For more information, see www.allsop.com/garden.

CLASSY TOMATOES: Learn all the gardening tricks to harvesting plump, juicy tomatoes at 9 a.m. today at all Armstrong Garden Centers, including Sherman Oaks, Glendale and Thousand Oaks locations. The class is free, and the class agenda is the care, feeding and watering of tomatoes, with tips on the different varieties, including hybrids, which are the first generation offspring of controlled parent lines such as Beefmaster tomatoes, and heirlooms, old varieties known for excellent flavor that includes Brandywine.

VAROOOOM VACUUM: The first cyclonic bagless rocket-shaped vacuum cleaner that doesn't lose suction, removes hair, dust mites, cat hair and pollen has landed on U.S. soil to give Hoover the heave-ho. We haven't tried it, but the Cyclone, which is created by British industrial engineer James Dyson, is supposed to be able to easily reach the tops of a staircase, zip under low furniture, never fall over and keep you from sneezing due to its built-in HEPA filter and Bactisafe screen. The high-tech appliance comes in three snazzy colors - racing yellow, scarlet and lavender, priced from $400 to $460 depending on the attachments. It's available at Best Buy stores and at www.dyson.com. For more information, call [phone].

DON'T BEAT THEM TO DEATH: There's a rush to update floors with natural-fiber rugs such as sisal and sea grass - but these trendy types take special cleaning care. Unlike traditional wall-to-wall carpeting that is easily cleaned with steam, natural fibers can lose their color with water and also become victims of mold and mildew, according to Geoffrey Greeley, spokesman for Racine Industries Inc., maker of the Host dry-extraction cleaning system. When using a dry-cleaning system, Greeley suggests vacuuming the rug first in every direction, then spot-cleaning heavily used areas before cleaning the entire rug. Let it dry before vacuuming again. For more information about cleaning natural fibers, call [phone] or visit www.hostcarpetcleaning.com.

PUT A SOCK ON IT: Country singer Faith Hill was recently entertaining the troops, and she topped her ensemble off with a little knit cap that provided warmth and style. Once limited to ski apparel, knit sock hats with tassels and colorful patterns are now fashion-forward, and you can learn how to make your own in Gwen Steege's ``Knit Hats!'' (Storey Books; $14.95). The book starts with easy projects, working up to designer styles, and is packed with large diagrams of stitches to make sure yours look like hers.

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(1) no caption (Hoover Cyclone vacuum)

(2) no caption (Wheelbarrow)

(3) no caption (Knit cap)

(4) no caption (Book: ``Knit Hats!'')