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Experience of using a Tertill

HatfieldChrisHatfieldChris Posts: 8
in Tools and techniques
I have a sister with several physical problems that limit what she can do in the garden.  She already uses robots to clean floors and mow lawns.  I was wondering if a Tertill might be of any use.  Has anyone actually tried one?  Thank is advance for any replies.
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  • Bee witchedBee witched Posts: 1,295
    I also had to google it.

    How does it work out what are weeds ... and what are plants you want to keep?
    Or is it just for clearing ground to get it ready for planting up?

    Bee x
    Gardener and beekeeper in beautiful Scottish Borders  

    A single bee creates just one twelfth of a teaspoon of honey in her lifetime
  • HatfieldChrisHatfieldChris Posts: 8
    Yes, I am in the UK.  The do not sell direct over here, but they can be obtained.  They are designed by the same people as the floor cleaning robots my sister uses.  Has anyone any experience of using them?
  • HatfieldChrisHatfieldChris Posts: 8
    As to how it works out what is a weed - basically anything small that has not been given a proctive collar.  So it is only useful for keeping on top of seedling weeds.  Which is what she needs, as every time she gets someone to do a major dig of her veg patch up the little blighters pop and in a trice they are trifids.  Has anyone any experience of using one?
  • Papi JoPapi Jo Posts: 4,254
    Already discussed on this forum here: https://forum.gardenersworld.com/discussion/1009649/tertrill-the-garden-weeder-robot/p1
  • HatfieldChrisHatfieldChris Posts: 8
    I found that discussion before I asked my question.  It seemed to consist of people giving an opinion based on the video and sales literature plus people stating that people who would be interested in it are 'not proper gardeners'.
    I asked my question in the hope that anybody with real first-hand knowledge would reply.  This is about helping a person with significant physical problems, who has to constrain her activity in order to manage pain, to continue to maintain her independence.  So what might seem a waste of time and money to an able-bodied person might not be to her.
    Which is why I am seeking people who have real experience of the device.  The other conversation did not include such people.
    Sorry if this sounds a bit grumpy or severe, but this is a serious question I am asking, not just idle chit chat.
    I can see that I am probably going to have to find a forum in the USA or Canada to get an answer.
    If the information I obtain suggests that it is worth getting the device, then I will post my sister's experiences of it on this forum.  Perhaps the 'not real gardeners'  will be interested as well as those with significan physical probelms.
  • debs64debs64 Posts: 5,184
    Maybe a better way forward would be to use pots to grow in? Much easier to keep on top of weeds and lots can be grown in them. 
  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    I can't see it working in a densely-planted garden with not much bare soil showing, where many self-sowers are welcome - I can only weed borders by hand. It's tricky even to get a hoe in. And I'd need hundreds (or more) of the collars to put one around every plant. But for the kind of garden with a lot of space between a few large plants/shrubs and no large weeds etc already there, maybe it would work to keep it clear of seedling weeds in the same way as regular hoeing does.

    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • rossdriscoll13rossdriscoll13 Posts: 234
    @HatfieldChris there are reviews on the Amazon US website from people who actually have it and also there are review videos on Youtube.  By the looks of it you need a lot of room between plants for it to be effective. 
  • thevictorianthevictorian Posts: 1,279
    edited December 2022
    The no dig approach for growing vegetables and thickly mulching the ground so the weed seeds find it much harder to germinate, may also help in this case. If you can cover the ground with a membrane as well then that could do a lot of the work. It's another option that may be worth looking into. 
  • HatfieldChrisHatfieldChris Posts: 8
    rossdriscoll13 said:
    @HatfieldChris there are reviews on the Amazon US website from people who actually have it and also there are review videos on Youtube.  By the looks of it you need a lot of room between plants for it to be effective. 

    Yes, and I thought that a couple of them even looked genuine!  I think you are correct about the distances.  I am thinking fruit bushes at the moment. 
    She has a fruit cage, a tunnel, a veg patch, trees, not very long heavily mulched borders that are sparecly populated (because she does not plant them up densely because of the weeds) umpteen plants in pots, Very old wisteria growing against the walls of the bungalow, a raised planter thingy, hedges (both formal and field), small-ish lawns inhabited by a robot mower plus enough grass outside of the garden to keep a ride-on mower and the odd flock of sheep happy.  She is not one to give in to her physical problems, although she does have someone come in once a week to help with digging our the chicken house, hedgecutting and other heavy tasks.  Did I mention chickens?  He is a Good Egg, but does need a lot of supervision.


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