Team Hand Weed, or Team Tool Weed?

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Posted by @Trish on
There's no question - we gardeners must weed if we want gardens. The question is: Are you on Team Hand-weed or Team Tool-Weed?

2011-08-06/dave/c02380Weeding. It's a fact of life for a gardener. We must pull out the grass and unwanted plants to make way for our preferred plants in the preferred places. As far as the act of weeding goes, I'm pretty sure there are only two teams: Hand and Tool.

Those who bat for Team Hand Weed pull every plant up one at a time, or perhaps clumps at a time! Those who prefer to hand weed may enjoy the satisfaction of pulling out each individual unwanted weed or plant, or they may have very small gardens! Hand weeders may find it therapeutic to carefully walk around their gardens pulling a weed here or there. Another possible explanation is that there is no room in the garden for a tool, and this type of gardener must use hands only!

It seems to me that those who are on Team Tool just like to get in and get the job done. If you have weeds, well, there's a tool for that. Get in, dig up, get out, and get back to enjoying the garden. There are better things to do than weed, that's for sure.

Trish said:I am 85-90% Team Hand-weed. I enjoy weeding my gardens. It is part of my daily ritual to walk around and admire what is blooming, what needs pruning, and what just wants to be looked at. Walking around helps me plan my day. While I'm at it, I might as well stop and pluck a weed or two out. When market days are in full swing, and life is non-stop, I like to take one day a week and have a large hand weeding time. I feel it keeps me grounded. So, what about the rest of the time? Well, life happens, and weeds take over. Not usually in the flower gardens, although sometimes they do. When the weeds look like they are going to win the war, it is time to bring out the big guns and I run for the tools!

Dave said:I don't mind pulling weeds, but I don't get a lot of pleasure out of the job, so the quicker I can get on with it, the better. I own nearly every kind of weeding tool there is, up to and including the infamous Weed Dragon, which uses a propane tank to blast weeds with a wide jet of roaring blue fire. I once cleared the grass from a garden spot using the front end loader on my tractor. The boxblade is my annual tool for clearing out our 2 acre "grain area". Although I'm not a huge fan of tilling, I admit there is some major satisfaction of going over an area and leaving behind a weed-free clean bed ready for planting.

Yes, now that I think of it, I am firmly 100% an official member of "team tool". :)

Over to you - which side are you on?

 
Comments and Discussion
Thread Title Last Reply Replies
Both ways by gingin Aug 25, 2015 2:38 PM 11
Team Hand Weed or Team Tool Weed? by flaflwrgrl Jul 2, 2013 9:49 AM 67
How about Team No Weed? by patrob Aug 8, 2011 3:07 PM 3
Mainly team hand weed but not for nettles! by okus Aug 8, 2011 1:49 PM 2
Against my will, I was traded to the Tool Team! by CindiKS Aug 8, 2011 11:28 AM 5

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