On Tue, 01 Mar 2011 12:21:15 GMT, Baz wrote:

I went up to see a friend on his allotment this morning to help a bit with
things that need to be done like have a chat over a cup of tea and all
that.

Because its a nice day, but cold, there were lots of like minded gardeners
there, and as it is Tuesday it's meeting day and the gates are open.
In comes a salesman trying to sell things like a cherrywood dibber which is
graduated in inches and cm for £15, a fork thingy to take up perennial
weeds made of stainless steel £10, some plastic coated wire £7.50 to use as
one would use string to tie in say a tomato. And more and more.

Would you pay for a dibber when you can use your old wooden spade or fork
shaft? or some magic tool that can do to weeds something we can't by
digging? or some wire, coated with plastic we can't do without and use good
old fashioned string?

To be fair to the guy, he had some fine petrol/deisel rotovators and
mulchers. BUT you could buy any at less than half price online.

What tips have you for 'making do' with tools?
Baz


Going back many years, one of my best digging tools was a sock!

Not any old sock, mind you, it had to be a sock that I had worn. My
partner in crime was a dog who, if he got his jaws on one of my socks,
would bury it in the garden.

If I wanted to plant a shrub, all I had to do was lay a smelly sock on
the ground where I wanted the hole dug. Dog would then oblige, digging
merrily just in front of the sock. I simply removed the sock and gave
him a "Bonio" once the hole was deep enough. He never threw the earth
too far - it usually collected in a reasonable pile nearby.

The only downside was unwanted diggings if he got his snout into the
laundry basket and tipped it over. In those days I had a lot of odd
socks!

Jake