Gardener

We now have help in the garden one afternoon a week. Our garden is too large for the two of us to cope with everything, especially digging and clearing up hedge prunings etc. We pay £10 per hour and I justify it by telling myself I've never had a cleaner. The housework goes to pot at this time of the year anyway!

We have also invested in as much equipment as we can afford to make life easier. A ride on mower is essential as we have four lawns and a one acre field. We have also converted an old ride-on into a garden tractor by removing the cutting deck and buying a little trailer which is great for moving compost, logs, bark mulch etc. DH refuses to give in to his disability so we also have a petrol driven strimmer, long arm hedge trimmer, brush cutter and leaf blower but all these are of no use whatsoever if the weather's crap!!

Long may this sunshine last.

How I would love and Afghan elf. Just one would do.

My small garden at the front is attended to by my two Afghan elves, under close supervision. They simply dig the borders and turn the weeds over when directed. The back garden is also quite small, but has a pond, raised bed, grassed area, patio with wooden seating area, recycling shelves, log store, bin store, brick BBQ area with seating......and about ten surf boards, windsurfers, kayaks as garden ornaments!!
I tend to ignore everything but the raised flower bed and the planted arrangements; occasionally I mow the grass.
The allotment though, that's a another story.....that is usually kept in quite good order and keeps my husband really busy from about April onwards; with me acting as trusty 'gofer' and chief harvester. Today he tells me he's been invited to go on a cycle trek across Europe to Russia at the end of May, so I guess I shall be promoted to head gardener for a couple of weeks.

Goodness, I sound like I have acres and acres. I have a fairly small garden. He charges £10 and hour and loves his work. He often works beyond the booked hours. He has transformed my friend's garden. I love gardening but, like I have said, our little plot has become neglected with minimal attention for two years. We also live on clay soil which needs a lot of attention to make it suitable for planting.

I am dreading that time, I must say, and yes Anno, I really do appreciate it. Back and knees hurt like crazy, but I ignore it and actually, the more I do, the better I feel. I am thinking of finding a young person to train myself- so they know how I want things done, and to help me a bit- before they need to take over. I exchange a lot of services actually, teaching French, English or German in exchange for help with housework, decorating and perhaps soon- gardening.

I am thankful - husband has given up because of back problems.
We can't afford to employ a gardener - if I give up too the garden will just revert to the wild.

He is very reasonable and as soon as I have informed him of the importance of not using certain bins for clods of earth he should be ok. Just needed him to get garden into shape after 2 years of semi-neglect due to mine and DHs ill health. (why am I justifying myself?)

Some of us used to be able to cope like you do, TriciaF, just be thankful that you still can.

Amazed at this thread, apart from granjura.
What's a gardener?
I planted a row of potatoes today - preparing soil etc it took me nearly 2 hours and I was k.......d.

Hey- it works- thanks

type

granjura, you could copy and paste the word and its brackets from the list below if you want to add flowers etc. to a post!

Been digging out a new raspberry bed today- back breaking work- then attempt to get as much soil as poss from the clods of grassy earth to return to the bed- and the rest went into the wheelbarrow and spread among 2 compost bins for a good layer- quite a few worms too, so they will begin to work straightaway-bless their non-cotton socks.

merlotgran

I am rather thrilled with my newly dug beds though. Lavender hedge and spring plants. We only have a small front garden but it does make a difference. I may forgive Mr Gardener.

I'm chuckling over the fact that Mr. FOTW complained to you that he couldn't move the bin because it was too heavy when he was supposed to be keeping an eye on Mr. Gardener while you were in Lyme Regis.

MEN!

LOL- I can't do drinks, flowers, etc- as my keyboard does not have square brackets but I can do smilies

Not a chance, I was sunning myself in Lyme Regis with my friend Liz. Mr FOTW was at home keeping a not too successful eye on Mr Gardener.

Ooops Flowerof the west, I thought it was YOUR Mr sunning himself in Tenerife without you, not Mr Gardener Ah, well, maybe next year ;)

sticy sticky

My Mr Gardener hoed up a lot of sticy weed last week and has a whole lot of work to do on those pestiferous Spanish bluebells. He was rather taken with my masses of hellebores - I seem to have about a dozen, having started with two.

I did mean 'when' dear Mr Gardener was in Tenerife,and not 'with' I was in Lyme Regis with my dear friend Liz and my DH was at home supposedly keeping an eye on Mr Gardener.

Hope this is all clear now.

Because we have only just met granjura and we are only on speaking terms. I 'borrowed ' him from my friend who says he has transformed her garden which is 3x the size of mine. I live in hope.

And now for the million dollar question- what is he doing sunning himself in Tenerife without you ???

No bins for anything here- we have to take bins and all recycling to the local bins- no collection at all. So composting makes a lot of sense for one more reason. And all our waste is weighed at the bins and weight registered and billed accordingly (hey this is Switzerland after all)

Ours are for garden waste, maybe that's what confused the poor guy.