"Keith (Dorset)" wrote in message
"Farm1" please@askifyouwannaknow wrote in message
"Keith (Dorset)" wrote in message

Perhaps you just need to look at some things in a different way?
For
example, having had cancer treatment last year, my veg garden got
right on top of me. I had a huge pile of weeds that needed to be
got
rid of, but then I realised that if I could grow spuds under
straw, I
could grow spuds under weeds. I now have a thriving extra patch
of
spuds under weeds (in addition to the spuds under straw).

By doing this I'm effectively turning the weeds into compost by
sheet
mulching. It works and works well, but then I have a big garden
and
another garden on another farm and I have to do things that work
within the time constraints. Live is too short for me to run anal
gardens.


Hi Farm 1,

By concidence I have an extremely good idea about how cancer can
disrupt
things. My wife, who I look after, and who lives at home, has needed
24 hour
care through a brain tumour that took a hold many years ago.
Needless to say
my gardening time is somewhat limited. The consultant told me back
in 1988
that she might be fortunate and have around another ten years to
live. We
too therefore have been aware of how short life is... for a very
long time.

Anyway, I'm sorry if you took offence at my post. (re, your comment
about
'anal gardens'). The purpose of my comment 'Have fun whatever'
followed by
the wink smiley was to indicate that that my message was not
intended to
cause offence - merely to start a lighthearted and topical thread.

Hi Keith

I didn't take offence at your post at all in any way, shape or form.
If I ever do take offence, I go direct for the jugular and there will
be no doubt that I am in attack mode (I am an Australian after all and
our national reputation is certainly not one of being subtle in any
way).

I have a BIG garden (in fact 2 gardens - the one here is big and
another on another farm which is only about a quarter of an acre, but
I know that is considered big by comparison to many UK gardens).

I am the sole gardener and as an woman in later middle age who has 2
bouts of differing primary cancers, I don't have the time or the
physical strength to be as fussy as I could be. Not that I'd want to
either.

I think that gardens are so diverse that it's just about impossilbe to
really talk about any garden as satisfying or meeting any sort of
"standard" and that includes what is one man junk. Standards are for
setting for garden competitions where if one enters, one knows how the
judging is done.

I personally don't like super neat gardens or those that are full of
annuals and lots of colour that I consider to be garish, but that
doesn't mke them any less enjoyable to their owners or the efforts of
the owners any the less valid than my own efforts or my own garden.
The skills and knowledge involved in gardening as well as the constant
"doing" are something we all share (or try to learn) and what works
for one may not work for anyone else or in anyone else's location. We
are all unique as are our gardens.

I make use of "junk" as do most other gardeners I know. I use
polystyrene greengrocer boxes from the tip for propogating plants and
have found nothing better for protecting the plants in a hot climate.
I have another friend who uses an old bath to hold her potting compost
and she has a propogating area which I think I'd almost kill to own.
I have another friend who uses a bath as a worm farm with a bucket set
up under the drain hole to collect worn liquid. I'm envious of that
set up too.

It's horses for courses. What works for me and turns me on won't do
that for another gardener. If you don't like junk, then I don't mind
if you don't see the value of junk then it's just more junk for us
other gardeners who like it :-)) (I added the emoticon specially even
though I generally don't use them).

I hope your wife is doing well and that you are managing well. I know
it can't be easy for either of you - cancer in all its forms is a
mongrel thing.