In article ,
jane wrote:
~
~I can't imagine any blower capable of handling wet leaves that
~wouldn't blow loose soil into the air and damage plants. If one
~can't handle wet leaves, then it is of pretty restrictive use in
~the UK!

I have a cheapo electric Black and Decker which can be a blower or a
hoover. ...
... I tried cleaning the paths etc
with a broom for the first couple of years here which was a backbreaker
then the sister out law gave me her old slightly dodgy B&D as she was
emigrating.

Brooms aren't good at removing wet leaves, I agree. When I need to
do that, I use a spade, followed by a broom to clean up. But even
a spade isn't ideal.

Yes you have to empty the bag a lot, but one bagful is about 3/4
binlinerful so it' a fair number of leaves. It's easier on the lumbar spine
to shake leaves out into the binliners while standing upright than to keep
on bending over! And I defy anyone to clear a rockery with a rake or broom
without damaging things.

I'll defy anyone to blow wet leaves out of a rockery, too :-)

From your posting, it sounds as if you use it in vaccuum mode most
of the time, and my muttering was specifically about blowers. I
can see that a garden vaccuum could be useful.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.