A gardener’s work is a labor of love. We care for plants, get inspired with new projects and make what we have better. And who doesn’t believe that there’s something special about the kind of therapy it provides? But after many long summers of backbreaking endeavors, I finally decided to garden a little smarter – to bring back a little more satisfaction in my work and reinvigorate my enthusiasm for my dirt-digging passion.
This pergola was my design idea, but a carpenter turned my vision into reality.
Photo Credit: Lynn Means
What was once a ragged stretch of overgrowth is now a new shrub bed filled with happy young plants, thanks to the help of a professional who hauled all the rubbish away for me.
Photo Credit: Lynn Means
Just think of all the backbreaking work and valuable time a hired skid-steer loader can save with your bigger garden projects!
Photo Credit: Lynn Means
It all started a few years ago when I got stuck, mentally, trying to come up with a new design for my very tired and worn-out front yard. Poorly planted old shrubs languished in a disorganized landscape and plagued my resolve to come up with a stylish alternative. Finally, I decided to hire a landscape designer. By the end of my $50 consultation, I had a simple sketch, some new plant suggestions and a whole new attitude. I was thrilled to be back on track, and those hours of frustrating doubts had been transformed into the joyful bliss of sweat equity. Problem solved!
Next, I decided to add a pergola. Drawing the design and finding a local source of red cedar was easy. Before I knew it, my order was delivered – the wood precut, stained and ready to go. Instead of agonizing over the installation or going out and spending a fortune on new power tools, I had a carpenter make my dream a reality in less than day – with skilled perfection that impresses me to this day! His construction talents far outweighed mine, and the result was a thing of beauty, enhanced by the final landscaping details. Partnering with professionals made this project a real showstopper!
My run with the experts didn’t end there. The following spring, I got a great deal on 15 large shrubs at our local big-box nursery. The idea of spending several days on the business end of a shovel brought to mind too much backbreaking labor – not the most pleasant option for this gardener. So I staked out the location for each shrub and hired a landscaper with a power auger to come over and drill the planting holes for just $35! He brought 20 bales of pine straw mulch on his trailer – at no additional charge – making the final installation a breeze. Even better, the cost more than justified what I saved in time and effort.
And just last year we faced the daunting task of cleaning up a fence line that straddles a dry creek bed. Varmints of all kinds lived throughout the piles of old wood, fallen limbs and dead trees. Just the thought of working our way through it all made me queasy! So we hired a tree-removal company. Workers came with chain saws and a tractor, and they made short work of it. In less than 3 hours they got rid of the dead trees and hauled away two truckloads of debris! As a bonus, they gave me a load of freshly chipped pine mulch that I spread over the area to prevent new undergrowth. What remained was a clean slate that was a joy to work in!
As rewarding as doing all the work in the garden on your own can be, there are some jobs that may be better off left to the professionals. And I can assure you, hiring that kind of help when needed is worth every nickel – and you can learn a lot from the folks who do those jobs for a living! I’ve found that building relationships with professionals is a lot like finding a great gardening tool, and the final outcome is just as pleasing, if not more so, because it was your ingenuity that made it happen. So it’s okay to slip off your Wonder Woman bracelets, fold up your cape and let the professionals rescue you from the DIY quicksand of tedious (or too strenuous) gardening tasks from time to time. What’s more, you’ll be a happier gardener because of it!
