Photo: Just in…my two hoes will keep me occupied in the garden for quite a while…..
FIRST DAY ON THE JOB
I have just left school and started my first job as a parks gardener for the local council. “There’s a patch of ground just near the pavilion that needs a bit of attention.” Alex, my co-worker tells me as he gives me my first job to do. “It’s a bit of a right of passage as it hasn’t been touched for years.” He continues.
I have just left school and started my first job as a parks gardener for the local council. “There’s a patch of ground just near the pavilion that needs a bit of attention.” Alex, my co-worker tells me as he gives me my first job to do. “It’s a bit of a right of passage as it hasn’t been touched for years.” He continues.
Alex wasn’t joking. We walked over to the spot in question to see that in between the shrubs and dotted perennials there are mountains of creeping buttercup, nettles and ground elder. “If you can clear that, you are one of the boys.” He tells me walking away to concoct more ingenious ways to build up his productivity bonus whilst drinking tea in the cricket pavilion. I was happy with the arrangement as some of my friends started working in engineering companies and their induction ceremony consisted of far worse treatment, usually involving the nether regions and copious amounts of old grease…...
I try to pull out the unwanted plants with my bare hands, but they have too much of a hold on the ground. More drastic measures are needed. I decide to head over to the shed for some tools.
COMPANY VEHICLE
I jump onto the works tractor that was offered to me to get around the park. The tractor was actually a ride on mower with the blades taken off and a 5foot by 3 foot trailer attached to house all of the grass clippings, tools.
I jump onto the works tractor that was offered to me to get around the park. The tractor was actually a ride on mower with the blades taken off and a 5foot by 3 foot trailer attached to house all of the grass clippings, tools.
I start it up and set off to the shed and soon have the trailer filled up with a spade, shovel, hoe, mattock and anything else that I could lay my hands on to make my life a bit easier. I soon get distracted from my quest on the way back to the unruly bed. It’s the summer holidays and the park is full of young children looking for a bit of excitement.
EGGED ON
“Hey mister.” A young lad stops me by jumping out in front of the tractor. “That bloke over there (he points to Alex, who is sunning himself near the bowling green and scribbling tall tales onto his bonus sheet) always lets us on the back of the trailer…. go on, give us a ride.”
This is pre- health and safety common sense for me so I find myself saying yes without much persuasion. Within a second the trailer has six very excited young lads in it who have just appeared from no-where. They are all scrambling around for a bit of room. I am powerless and continue down the park paths on the company vehicle.
This is pre- health and safety common sense for me so I find myself saying yes without much persuasion. Within a second the trailer has six very excited young lads in it who have just appeared from no-where. They are all scrambling around for a bit of room. I am powerless and continue down the park paths on the company vehicle.
“Faster!” I am being egged on. “Come on mister…we usually go loads faster than this.” I put the machine into top gear and put my foot down…. this is fun. The lads love it, there’s a lot of whooping and hollering as we feel the wind in our hair.
All is well until the final corner. There is an almighty crashing sound from behind me. I hear screaming and look around. The mix of tools and top-heavy children have pushed the trailer to its limits and over it went. I stop and run behind to see that the tools are not damaged…. It’s my first day - and I don’t want to get into trouble.
NEW DELIVERY
I have just been testing put my latest new tools, which is why these memories have been awakened. It’s not very often that I splash out on new things so it’s a bit of a ceremony when I do. I have bought two hoes, one for small areas around the developing plants and a larger oscillating hoe for clearing larger areas. Both have fantastically sharp edges for a clean cut and extra long handles so that I can work without bending my back. John and Mary from Greenhill Farm in Malin sorted me out with them and they should last a lifetime as long as I don’t use them for prizing rocks out for the ground. The sharp edges slice cleanly through the stems of the unwanted plants and I have just left them on the soil surface to dry in the sun and let the worms take them.
NEW DELIVERY
I have just been testing put my latest new tools, which is why these memories have been awakened. It’s not very often that I splash out on new things so it’s a bit of a ceremony when I do. I have bought two hoes, one for small areas around the developing plants and a larger oscillating hoe for clearing larger areas. Both have fantastically sharp edges for a clean cut and extra long handles so that I can work without bending my back. John and Mary from Greenhill Farm in Malin sorted me out with them and they should last a lifetime as long as I don’t use them for prizing rocks out for the ground. The sharp edges slice cleanly through the stems of the unwanted plants and I have just left them on the soil surface to dry in the sun and let the worms take them.
It’s always a good idea to buy the best tools you can afford. There are a lot of substandard tools available and some are actually dangerous as they are not strong enough to do the job. Even good tools will need looking after so after use, clean them and hang them up if possible so they are out of the way, especially if there are children about…. sometimes the two don’t go together very well…….
