Garden

Dragonslayer

Hi Everyone
Can anyone help me?
I have a small garden. But because of my condition I can no longer cope with the upkeep and the work needed to keep it in good condition so it is overgrown. I would like to have it cleared and paved but can't find anyone to do the work. I will of course pay the going rate for this.
Anyone know of anyone suitable?I
Alan

woodbine

it would usually be somebody local, but most of them might not be doing any work atm due to CV19, have a look at "rated people" in your area, or maybe people who have good reviews on facebook, and even then if possible get 2 or 3 quotes to make sure you aren't being ripped off, and NEVER pay until the work is finished to your safisfaction.
An extra thought you could always ask your local council for recomendations, in fact our council do jobs like that (for a charge).

Dragonslayer

Hi Woodbine
Thanks for the info. I will take a look.
Hopefully someone on here will maybe have a contact for me, someone they have used and can recommend. But I will take on board all you have said and follow your good advise. 
Stay safe and Thanks again
Alan

April2018mom

Hello and welcome @Dragonslayer! 

A good way to find a local gardener is to ask around for some personal vetted recommendations. Alternatively you can use this website to find some trustworthy gardeners in your area. Make sure to check out the reviews carefully however in case. Also make certain that you get quotes to compare as well. 
https://www.bidvine.com/gardening-services
Have you checked the Yellow Pages? You might be able to find a gardener that way. Be upfront about what you want. Do not hesitate to ask questions either to learn more about the applicant. Or you could always look at the adverts in a few what's on magazines in addition and then make a informed decision based on your gut impression.
I once hired a gardener after a two step process. I looked at a printed colourful mini advert in a local magazine in a supermarket. Unorthodox but I kind of liked what I saw in the advert. I then emailed them with a few gardening questions to make sure that I could trust them alone for a while. If you do go down this route, I recommend either conducting a short professional interview over the phone at least to talk about the skills and qualifications of the candidate no matter what before hiring them or emailing the person a few questions regarding their experience, skills, reviews and qualifications. I hope that you do manage to find someone. Good luck! Oh and make notes of their answers. 

Chloe_Scope

Hi @Dragonslayer, here is Rated People that @woodbine mentioned.

Also, there is some information about if you would qualify for garden help from your local council. 

Please do let us know how you get on and if there is anything else we can do to help.

Dragonslayer

Hi there
Thanks to all of you for your help and advice. I have followed all you have said and posted a request on rated people. We will see how things pan out. I will let you all know.
Dragonslayer.

Adrian_Scope

Have you had much interest so far @Dragonslayer?

Dragonslayer

Hi Adrian
So far I have had no response to the advert I placed on Rated people. Whether this is due to the virus or people not being able to get supplies I'm not sure!  But my wife has found someone that we are hoping will be able to take it on. But again I think this is subject to the virus. I will have to persevere and keep looking and see how things go.
Dragonslayer. 

Adrian_Scope

I imagine a lot of people are holding fire taking on jobs at the moment as no one is sure what the rules will be or making many plans for the future. I hope you get something in place soon though @Dragonslayer.

Dragonslayer

Hi there everyone
I am still having big problems finding anyone to come and pave my garden! So much so I am losing all hope for the working community of this country. Is no-one interested in working for a living anymore? 
The internet is a great thing, especially in these hard times, but it seems to be full of people using it for things other than what it was invented for!
Maybe it has just become a haven for scammers and people pretending to be genuine, or qualified in things they have no idea about?I
Or is it me? Just having a hard time and looking in the wrong places?
Thanks
Dragonslher.

Chloe_Scope

Sorry you haven't had interest @Dragonslayer, were you able to contact the council to see if they could offer any support?

Dragonslayer

I have only had one response to doing the garden and he is coming to take a look on the 20th, so we will see how that pans out. The council does not cover our region for helping, so no hope there. I will keep on trying.

Chloe_Scope

I hope they are able to help you! Please do let us know how you get on @Dragonslayer.

Dragonslayer

Chloe_Scope said:

Hi @Dragonslayer, here is Rated People that @woodbine mentioned.

Also, there is some information about if you would qualify for garden help from your local council. 

Please do let us know how you get on and if there is anything else we can do to help.

Finally it's looking good to have a part of my garden paved.
I had a guy come today to have a look and I am confident he will be OK. So now I am just waiting for a quote.
And the funny thing is. He is the grandson of one of my former neighbours and I got his contact from my next door neighbour. It shows just what you can find on your own doorstep.
Dragonslayer.

Chloe_Scope

Amazing news! I really hope it goes okay.

CJ61

Hi @Dragonslayer
I have had the same problem as you. Need help with house work and garden. I'm in East Sussex and on their website is a section called care with confidence. It has lists of self employed people who have been vetted by them and each person lists their services and prices and lists the ones closest to you by postcode. I found several men and ladies who list many things all at approx £15hr. I'm in the process of emailing or texting some of them. Hope you find something similar. Good luck. 

Dragonslayer

Hi there
Well it looks like I have been let down yet again. The guy I pinned all my hopes on to pave my garden has not been in contact yet and that's over a week ago!
My only hope now rests with one other guy who has been and measured up, he is staying in contact and is sending samples of the kind of stone I like. I think he will be expensive, but at least do it right. Problem is I will have to wait 5 months for him to do it.
After all the phone calls and e-mails I have sent to workers over the last 4 months I am losing my faith in British
workers!
Anyone else had similar problems. 

Chloe_Scope

This must be frustrating @Dragonslayer! I hope someone is able to help. 

Dragonslayer

Finally, I am just a few weeks away from having my garden patio and pathway paved! 
After five months of searching, phoning, e.mails, googling and head scratching someone is coming to start the work in a couple of weeks time. Thanks to all for comments and helpful advice and I have enjoyed reading all that is going on in your gardens and the projects you are involved with.
Keep digging, planting, hoping and growing, it will be all worth it in the end. 

Dragonslayer

Oh, and by the way my wife's tomato plants and the flowers she has planted are all doing well. It is time I think to raise a glass. Or maybe two!

Chloe_Scope

Dragonslayer said:

Oh, and by the way my wife's tomato plants and the flowers she has planted are all doing well. It is time I think to raise a glass. Or maybe two!

Sounds like it's going well @Dragonslayer! 

Dragonslayer

I am now only 2 to 3 weeks away from finally getting part of my garden paved after trying for 6 months to do so. Thanks to all our there that have given support and help over this. I appreciate it all and glad I joined the community.
Last week I also had my MIR scan that was put back from March because of the virus and next week I'm having a CT scan. So my operation to take some of my pain away gets closer. 
One sour note is someone over the last day or so dug up and stole some newly planted plants from the garden, things my wife bought to brighten up the garden to help with the overall look of it.
What is going on in the world today? Do people really have to stoop so low? The plants were costly, but the effort to improve things far greater. She now wonders if trying to improve the garden is worth it and it makes us both wonder what next!! Because we also had our garden bench stolen a while ago. I

Stay safe
Alan

kaiasparrow

Dragonslayer said:

I am now only 2 to 3 weeks away from finally getting part of my garden paved after trying for 6 months to do so. Thanks to all our there that have given support and help over this. I appreciate it all and glad I joined the community.
Last week I also had my MIR scan that was put back from March because of the virus and next week I'm having a CT scan. So my operation to take some of my pain away gets closer. 
One sour note is someone over the last day or so dug up and stole some newly planted plants from the garden, things my wife bought to brighten up the garden to help with the overall look of it.
What is going on in the world today? Do people really have to stoop so low? The plants were costly, but the effort to improve things far greater. She now wonders if trying to improve the garden is worth it and it makes us both wonder what next!! Because we also had our garden bench stolen a while ago. I

Stay safe
Alan

I'm glad to hear you are closer to your surgery, I hope it all goes well. 

People are awful, we used to have plants stolen all the time in the area I used to live! Is there any way to secure your garden more? Have you looked into indoor gardening, might be a bit more secure for you? Plenty of things you can grow on a windowsill like herbs, and there are some tropical plants that grow well indoors. I have an African violet, a peace lily, and lots of ivy plants. In winter I bring my chilli pepper plants inside and they do well near a window. It is horrible when you find something that makes you feel good and then people are selfish! I hope you can find a way to enjoy it again

Chloe_Scope

This week is National Allotment Week! I've put together some information about accessible gardening which you might be interested in.

Dragonslayer

Finally I have been given the 20th of this month as a definite date to start having part of my garden paved. So after 6 months of trying we will be able to sit outside on a nice stone patio, and I will be able to stop banging on about it. Thanks to all for advice, support and help in achieving this and I will raise a glass in thanks when I finally get to sit out there.

Tori_Scope

That's really great news @Dragonslayer! Let us know when it's all finished so that we can all raise a glass too (any excuse!) 

Dragonslayer

Tori_Scope said:

That's really great news @Dragonslayer! Let us know when it's all finished so that we can all raise a glass too (any excuse!) 

Thanks Tori.
I will raise a glass (Or probably 2)  And think of all of you doing the same, It is after all,  as you say a good enough excuse 

 

Chloe_Scope

Amazing news @Dragonslayer! I can't wait to see it. I bet you are really excited to be able to sit outside. Please do let us know how it all goes. Garden party to celebrate? 

Dragonslayer

Hi @Chloe_Scope
I have a set of golf clubs I no longer use, complete with bag and trolley. My wife hates the room they take up and would like me to get rid. I have no idea where to sell them, or for how much. I kept them in the hope that one day I would play again. But have to concede I wont. I never played competitively or good actually and just played for fun and only seldom. They are in excellent condition, the bag and trolley are still as new.
Anyway do you know anyone that has a use for them? I am not looking to make a lot of money out of this, just looking for someone that could make good use of them. Any ideas? 

Dragonslayer

Next Monday 9.00am is the start day and time for my patio to start getting !aided. I know that doesn't mean a lot to many, but to me after 6 months of trying I am finally getting there.

66Mustang

I’m really glad to hear about that @Dragonslayer

Dragonslayer

Hi there
I have had several Bonsai trees over the last few years. The one I have now seems to be struggling to survive!
Not sure if I am over watering or not! Anyone. Know about them, or what to do? 

Dragonslayer

@66Mustang
Thanks for that mate, It looks like the wait is over, finally. I will raise a glass to all on here for all the help I have been given. 😀

66Mustang

If you are planning on giving the golf clubs away I have a little bit of advice. My experience is that even if you want to give something away for free, it’s worth putting up an advert that the item is for sale for a small fee. This weeds out those who just want free stuff and don’t care what it is as unfortunately there are a lot of people like this. Then, when a genuine buyer who really wants the item comes to pick the item up you can give them a nice surprise by telling them to keep their money.

bekindalways

I've been really surprised at getting rid of stuff using Gumtree.  So long as it's advertised at a competitive price you will get something. However sell them soon as many golfers are fair weather and sumer is practically over now. (Like I used to be) lol. Good luck selling them. Xx

Dragonslayer

Hi fellow gardeners.
Great news. 😀
Patio and pathway in my little garden has been prepared and the hardcore spread and is now ready for the paving stone to be laid.
Bad news. 😕
Weather looks awful over the next few days.
Whatever happened to summer? 😮

Dragonslayer

Hi Everyone
I need help with keeping cats from invading my back garden.
I would like to do this in a humane way. I say this because my wife is close to getting a shotgun LOL. 
We have security lights and the cats, or cat? Set these off and my wife always sees them come on, even from the adjoining room. 
We have one of those solar powered 'sonic signal cat scare thing's ' That does not help, Or not with this particular cat anyway. We also have Lavender in the garden, doesn't help! 
Any Idea's?

Chloe_Scope

Hi @Dragonslayer, how is your cat-proof garden going?

chiarieds

Sorry @Dragonslayer - I meant to reply to this before. I've found the following effective, & bought from this seller.

Please see: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Silent-Roar-Cat-Deterrent-Repellent-Lion-Manure-Pellets-Garden-Fertiliser-500g/182197015245?ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

Dragonslayer

@Chloe_Scope
My new garden paving is just a day away from being completed.
And would you believe it! The cat is all over it. It seems we have disturbed it's 'habitat' 😬    
Sorry to all cat lovers, but I hate the thing. It even got to walk on it before we did.
Maybe they really are Gods like the Egyptians believed! 😕

Dragonslayer

@chiarieds
Interesting. I had a look at what you sent me.
Thank you I will definitely look into that further.

Dragonslayer

Hi there
Finally after 8 months of trying my garden paving is complete. 😃 
It looks great. It may be small and costly, but it is lovely. Now at last there is no more of me going on about it. I can just enjoy it. All I need now is a bit of decent weather!!!
Thanks to all for the he!p, guidance, support and advice. I value it all. 😀

chiarieds

Hi @Dragonslayer - I'm pleased you're pleased with your garden. I'm sure you're hoping for an Indian summer too after more rain than our gardens needing, & it turning so much cooler. Great to read your garden looks lovely, & more manageable now.

66Mustang

Well done

Any pictures? 

Dragonslayer

Hi there
Pictures of new garden paving. We still need to have the resin sprayed on to fully complete it. 😃

66Mustang

Wow that looks really neat thanks for sharing the photos.

I’m glad you got it sorted

Dragonslayer

@chiarieds .
@66Mustang
Hope you like the photo's. All we need now is some good weather so we can enjoy it 

Cher_Scope

@Dragonslayer Swit-swoo! That paving is looking good 

chiarieds

That looks excellent @Dragonslayer - thank you for the photos.

Dragonslayer

Thanks to all for the comments.
It took time but we got there in the end.

Chloe_Scope

Dragonslayer said:

@Chloe_Scope
My new garden paving is just a day away from being completed.
And would you believe it! The cat is all over it. It seems we have disturbed it's 'habitat' 😬    
Sorry to all cat lovers, but I hate the thing. It even got to walk on it before we did.
Maybe they really are Gods like the Egyptians believed! 😕

It looks great @Dragonslayer!

Dragonslayer

If the weather is going to be as good as they predict this weekend , then maybe, just Maybe my wife and I will be able to sit on our new patio and enjoy a glass of wine. 😊
Here's hoping.  😉
And of course I will toast you all.
Have a great weekend 😁

Tori_Scope

Yay, finally @Dragonslayer! It's pretty grey where I am, so I hope the weather is a bit better for you