How To Keep Your Vegetable Plot Tidy and Save Money, Too!

John Hoad, Askham Bryan College alumni and keen chilli grower, shares his advice on keeping your allotment or garden in order this autumn.

When I was at horticultural college, one of my teachers, Mr Rose (appropriately named for a gardener) taught me a lesson I still practice to this day. It’s to keep your plot of land, no matter if it’s just a back garden or large allotment space, as neat and tidy as you can. It sounds obvious, but turn your back for one minute and persistent, unwanted plants try to take hold of your outdoor space.

However, Mr Rose was an old fashioned teacher and would encourage us to use hand shears to trim the edges of the plots and cut back the trees with hacksaws. He wanted us to learn the traditional ways first, before we all ran to the nearest DIY shop to buy our first chainsaw.

Luckily, now there is a power tool for just about every job. Below are three suggestions for products that will save you time, and using idealo.co.uk to compare the prices, will also save you money.

Leaf Blowers

Don’t break your back raking up leaves, make life a little simpler and blow the leaves back into the hedgerows, or vac them up and add them to the compost heap. These simple devices will do the job in a few hours, no matter the size of the land you are caring for.

Hedge Trimmers

Sometimes a beautiful allotment can be dominated by an overgrown hedge, so make your borders look truly Elizabethan with a power hedge trimmer. Whether petrol driven or electric, these products give your vegetable garden a more professional look with a sharp looking hedge.

It is worth noting it is against the law to intentionally destroy or damage any birds’ nests, so trimming hedges during autumn and winter is the best time, and if you share a hedge with a neighbour discuss any proposed work with them beforehand.

Strimmers

Time to get rid of all the unsightly long grass and weeds that have grown out at the edges of the plot. You could do this all by hand, but why not treat yourself to a power strimmer? You’d be surprised at how reasonably priced some are, and it’s a great investment as you can use it all year round!

The time you save by using these power tools can be spent looking after your prized harvests.

Find deals for these products at idealo.co.uk

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