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Gardening

When does the gardening bug decline?

(49 Posts)
Gin Sat 13-Apr-24 12:17:56

I began gardening as a small child following my gardener mother around our patch, picking up skills. Now in my eighties I am still planning and planting. Today I have a clematis montana and some perennials to plant out and am in the middle of redesigning a bed. I only work for short periods, arthritic hands and back pain do not make these tasks enjoyable anymore so why do I carry on? As soon as spring I have to be out and getting the smell of spring and dirt on my hands.

BlueBelle Sat 13-Apr-24 12:30:31

I had my own little salad patch when I was 7 with lettuce radishes and spring onions Dad loved his garden and mum too Dad did all the vegetables, mum the flowers and tomatoes.
Dad was still gardening up to his late 80 s
I have an allotment and two gardens front and back
Love gardening but none of my children or grandchildren have any interest at all 🙃

BlueBelle Sat 13-Apr-24 12:31:25

I love the soul on my hands too and rarely wear gloves I can’t feel anything through them

BlueBelle Sat 13-Apr-24 12:31:44

Soil not soul blooming predictive text

Georgesgran Sat 13-Apr-24 12:39:15

I’ve given up (at 73) for mine to kick in!!
My parents didn’t garden - Dad worked a long week and Mum had RA - so we just had a lot of grass and huge hydrangeas.
However, both Granddad and Uncle were competitive vegetable growers - huge leeks and brassicas - so there was always plenty going spare.
My DH wasn’t a gardener either, but ok cutting grass. Once he started working away, we got a chap in - different ones over the years, but I’m more than happy with the crew I have now. I do tweak, tidy and potter, but leave most jobs to them. It’s a necessary expense I just have to factor in for 9 months of the year. I do like to see a nice garden though.

petra Sat 13-Apr-24 12:48:06

Love it.
At the moment I have to sheds to paint but I just want to garden ( and sew)
But hey, I’m thankful that I can still do it.

kittylester Sat 13-Apr-24 12:54:10

I have never had a gardening bug and both DH and I find looking at a garden that needs attention extremely stressful. So, we have a super woman gardener who we found when she redesigned our front garden and made it fabulous. She has redesigned a few beds in the back and now maintains it all.

Our garden in small, with no grass, and completely private. We both love it - so long as we can sit in it and enjoy it.

loopyloo Sat 13-Apr-24 12:55:37

That's beautiful Petra.
My gardening bug is still there, despite painful knees and hip.
Just want to grow tulips peonies and roses.

Germanshepherdsmum Sat 13-Apr-24 13:14:01

I like looking at the results but am fed up with doing it - probably not helped by being behind due to the weather.

hazel93 Sat 13-Apr-24 13:16:27

Certainly not declined but moving to Cornwall in 2022 hose pipe ban so no chance of having the garden I envisaged. Hose pipe ban lifted since when it seems to have rained non stop ! Whole plot sodden, simply not possible to do much at all. Hate it !!

Whitewavemark2 Sat 13-Apr-24 13:22:11

I shall never get fed up with the garden, it gives me so much pleasure and I like the challenges every year brings.

We’ve just had lunch in the garden surrounded by tulips, primulas and bluebells.

crazyH Sat 13-Apr-24 13:25:44

That’s beautiful Petra

MaizieD Sat 13-Apr-24 13:35:28

I'm feeling decidedly twitchy at the moment because severely arthritic hip is making the kneeling and stretching needed to weed (I do like to get down and close up to the buggers) just about impossible. You don't realise how much the bug has taken hold until you physically can't do stuff!

I can still do hacking and pruning, and pots at a reasonable level, so it's not all bad, Just frustrating...

Germanshepherdsmum Sat 13-Apr-24 13:41:23

I can’t kneel due to arthritis in my knees, BMA little gardening stool is a godsend as I too like to get close to the buggers.

Esmay Sat 13-Apr-24 13:44:53

With me , it all began by planting packets of mixed seeds in the borders .
I marvelled at the result .
Our garden was beautiful - brimming with flowers ,which my mother grew so easily .
It won prizes and so did her floral displays .Much as I love gardening , I've never put as much effort into it as she did .
I do enjoy hybridising and propagating - so I'm into experimenting .
The flower beds are huge and I'm looking at ways to limit time spent weeding .
At the moment , I'm doing two hours a day and not enjoying it .

SueDonim Sat 13-Apr-24 13:50:32

Wow, that’s amazing, Petra! Here in Scotland things are only just starting to bloom.

I taking great pleasure in having a small but very usable garden after having had a house on the side of a hill for 25 years. It was difficult to access the garden but now I can take a step outside my French doors and I’m in the garden. I’ve had to start from scratch and keep the cost reasonable but last year for the first time ever, I grew roses, which brought me great pleasure and now I have bulbs coming up in raised beds, two garden troughs in which I’ll grow veg and a range of plants I’ve mostly picked up from supermarkets that need putting in the ground. Not right now, though - torrential downpour!

My MIL gardened and had house and conservatory plants until the years before died, aged 93, and my dad’s last conversation with me was about growing dahlias, when he was 92.

I think if you enjoy gardening the bug never goes away.

Siope Sat 13-Apr-24 13:56:34

I have a smallish garden and an allotment, but, like others, can’t do a fraction of what I want at present due to arthritis and the weather.

Witzend Sat 13-Apr-24 13:57:38

Germanshepherdsmum

I like looking at the results but am fed up with doing it - probably not helped by being behind due to the weather.

Me too.
Once it’s properly warm I’ll find it less of a chore, but an hour is usually enough - just as well our garden is small.

GrannyIvy Sat 13-Apr-24 14:20:12

Wow that looks lovely Petra. I love gardening and spend hours out there. Just having 5 mins rest with my feet up and then out I go again! My front is looking a bit untidy due to all the spring bulbs finished and waiting for the leaves to die down.

GrannyIvy Sat 13-Apr-24 14:24:07

My tree peony

GrannyIvy Sat 13-Apr-24 14:25:10

Oh dear pic didn’t attach🤷‍♀️

GrannyIvy Sat 13-Apr-24 14:25:53

Trying again

BlueBelle Sat 13-Apr-24 14:31:35

I have a wild and free garden everything comes up where it fancies and I m in awe the way the plants wander around year on year 🤣

ferry23 Sat 13-Apr-24 14:39:51

I've never really taken to gardening and for the past 24 years I've lived in a flat. However, I'm moving to a bungalow which has a lovely back garden, A lot of it is paved but there is bedding, a small lawn and a large raised planter along the back fence. There's also a small greenhouse and a little potting shed, I shall be having a gardener for the lawn cutting and general maintenance but I'm actually looking forward to pottering around in the greenhouse and seeing what happens! I took myself to a "Growing under Glass" workshop a couple of weeks back and it got me quite excited. So I'm hoping I've got a new hobby.

JaneJudge Sat 13-Apr-24 14:46:00

we have planted a tree today