Secateur madness

Josieann

Crikey Witzend grass is usually very forgiving so he must have gone at it somewhat!

He was infamous for cutting things down and digging them up,*Josieann*. The beds in their garden were invariably immaculate - but consisted largely of an expanse of totally weed-free earth, just dotted with a plant here and there.

He did the edges of the lawn so often - very neatly! - that the lawn gradually shrank, while the immaculate (but largely empty) beds, grew ever wider.,
When my poor Mil was once away for a few days, he cut down the pear tree she loved.
I don’t think she ever forgave him.

OH

Oh does most of the pruning, he is safe with secateurs it is when I hear the chainsaw start that I get worried. Most of my stuff is soft herbaceous which he leaves alone which works quite well. He does the hard work, I potter around the flower beds.

Oh dear. How sad. Never try to cut any shrub back in the nesting season without a thorough investigation.

Never again for me!
One year I went berserk with the secateurs and chopped into my lonicera nitida the messy relation of honeysuckle shrub only to find there was a blackbird's nest with several eggs beautifully hidden in the centre. As soon as it was exposed, squirrels, cats or crows finished it off

Crikey Witzend grass is usually very forgiving so he must have gone at it somewhat!

My FiL was a nightmare with secateurs or garden shears. We had to hide them whenever he was visiting.
He once raked our back lawn so hard that it never recovered - we had to get it re-turfed.
Luckily it’s very small!

My husband is the demon pruner round here. Never happier than when wielding the secateurs. I’m forever saying No, you can’t prune that one yet! Nothing’s safe but I’m grateful for the help. He did a good and very restrained job on the roses last week.

Yep, that's me too Lizbethann55. The plants tremble and shrink back when they see me coming! I love my secateurs, loppers, tree saws and hedge trimmers. DH groans at the amount of 'garden waste' I create in just a few hours. Fortunately we have a chipper though I wish I'd got a more powerful one. As I write this I'm looking out at the hedge that needs cutting back before the birds start nesting. But it's safe for the moment - it's cold out there and I've got some sewing to finish!

I lashed out on long handled loppers - I keep them near the back door and constantly find something I can chop off! I really am dangerous once I’m on a mission with them!

I need a couple of trees and a few shrubs pruned but I'm not touching them. Not sure what to do and will be round to my friendly gardener to ask for a price for doing the jobs.
I have no problem taking out a few small branches but anything which might ruin a lovely plant I keep well away from.

So glad to hear that I am not alone! Though I do fear for the gardens of Britain!!?

I'm a demon with secateurs or loppers.

Your roses will be fine but I'm not so sure about conifers!

I went mad with my secateurs today too. For thicker pieces I
love my Bosch electric ones.

I inherited a very large leggy lavender when I moved into this bungalow and have had great fun using my secateurs on the spent blooms today. I didn't have the 'garden bin' facility at my old house but have paid for it here, lovely to put the cuttings straight into it.

Think..

Thanks, no arthritis and I have a birthday looming, perfect excuse.
Your comments above made me thing of Edward Scissorhands!

I have found ratchet Secataurs much easier to use in my arthritic hands and I have a pair given by my late mil that also can be adjusted from large to small hands.

Jaxjacky

Recommendations please, mine sorely need replacing. Thank you.

The Rolls Royce of the secateur world are Felco. A bit expensive but robust and long lasting. If they do get a bit jaded you can send them off to Felco with £25 and they come back as good as new. I have 2 pairs and would be very upset to lose them.

The only problem I can see with them is if you have a weak grip. I don't know if they do a version for people with, say, arthritis.

(I've actually got 4 pairs of secateurs but the Felcos are the best)

I get snip happy, too.

I love love love chopping and pruning so much I have decided to come back as a tree surgeon.

you need to feel them in your hand to decide what suits you
Good point.

I like these best -WolfGarten aluminium blade professional secateurs. It’s a very personal thing though, you need to feel them in your hand to decide what suits you. It always puts me off when they are in those impenetrable plastic packs.

Recommendations please, mine sorely need replacing. Thank you.

In total agreement! I sort out the world when I have my secateurs in my hand, any thing that has annoyed me takes on the persona of a branch and off it goes.
No wonder gardening is good for the soul!

I too have been busy with my secateurs on shrubs today. I have 3 prs and I brought them in for a clean up and oil. I also have my favourite pair that no longer springs open when I use it so I the bin it went.