How to tackle a garden gone wild.

WillowBark · November 2023

Hi all. Frustratingly, I suffered an injury at the start of the year that put me out of action until now, and I have still got a long way to go.

This poses a problem. What was previously a fairly well ordered little garden with carefully curated bits for nature has gone almost completely over to weeds, to the extent that I can barely identify where the edges of my flower and veg beds are anymore. Some of the weeds are types that are difficult to tackle.

I am feeling a bit overwhelmed and like the previous three years' work have been largely undone. The garden feels chaotic, and I don't know where to start in order to get it back to where it was. My geographically close friends aren't gardening types, so I haven't got people I can ask for help.

So, my question is this: how do I go about tackling this challenge in a way that is productive and will make me feel like I'm actually achieving something, rather than fighting a losing battle? And does anyone have any tips on how to make gardening with an injury easier? I am finding even small bits more time consuming and energy sapping than before.

I know I can't be the only gardener who has faced hurdles like these, so I'm hoping some of you might be able to offer some sage advice from which I can build a plan of action. I don't want another year of not being able to garden!

Thanks very much x

Fire · November 2023

I'm sorry to hear of your health problems and frustrations. Can I ask how large the garden is? Is it possible to hire some help, as a one off, for the heavier work?

I have had a similar year, going very slowly after health problems. I have a small garden, but it has still felt overwhelming. My key has to been to do what I call "ten minute jobs". I do ten minutes and then rest - trying hard not to under-estimate the job. It can be helpful to break bigger jobs down into ten minute jobs. It feels very mimsy do just to do ten minutes, but it's good to get through tasks that way - five or 15 would work just as well, depending on energy levels.

Perhaps work out which tasks are easiest - maybe sitting and planning, or sorting seeds in front of the TV. And which are the hardest; which you love and which you find most tedious; which jobs you feel have to be your own and which you might be able to delegate (if that is a possibility); which you can leave for a few seasons and which are more urgent. Breaking down into chunks.

I try to allow myself to potter about - with no plan - just to do light things that catch my attention. I find pottering the least stressful - with an audiobook on the headphones; with rests; taking pics, investigating the wildlife. I find that if gardening isn't a pleasure, it's a chore, so anything to make it funner and fascinating is helpful.

Are there tools that might make life easier? A strimmer, a mower, plastic sheeting for a season to bring down weeds? Could neighbours' kids help out with the weeding? Do you use glyphosphate?

Good luck with it and keep us posted.

KT53 · November 2023

I understand exactly what you are going through, as I've had the same over the past couple of years as I waited for hip replacement. Once I was more mobile the whole garden looked like a disaster zone and, if I'm honest, I've actually done little to it this year. Plan for next year is just to attack it a bit at a time. I'll start with the areas most visible from the house as getting that back under control will be most visible. Then work on the other areas bit by bit. I have used a lot of weedkiller where weeds had basically throttled the plants I want. I'm working on the basis that it will be far easier to buy more of what I want than it would be to try to separate the weeds from the good stuff.

Waterbut · November 2023

Fire has excellent suggestions re tools. You can also buy a garden claw which is like the old fashioned pogo stick. It extracts weeds from all areas including grass. You can also buy rubber edging bricks that comes in strips to start separating your flower and veg beds. I bought some and they do not look too bad.

WillowBark · November 2023

@Fire Thanks for your reply.

The garden is about 50m2, at a guestimate, so pretty small, but right now it feels massive!

Whilst I had contemplated hiring someone to help, we have some big expenses looming that mean I can't afford it right now. And the neighbours kids, whilst lovely, see gardening as a boring chore, so that's a no go.

Thank you for the tip about the ten minute jobs; it's good to know that this is a method that has worked for you under similar circumstances, so thank you. This may be a more organised way for me to start than pottering as such - I love pottering normally, but it often ends up with me starting twenty jobs and finishing none of them, which might not be helpful for me in this scenario. Breaking stuff down into more manageable chunks definitely sounds like a good idea, though, so I will see if I can outline specific small tasks and then start ticking them off.

Also - thanks for the suggestion of a strimmer: it hadn't crossed my mind previously, but, as I am quite small, I struggled to shift our lumpy old lawnmower even when I was in good health; I have now taken advantage of the Black Friday deals and ordered something that will hopefully be much more portable! The lawn suddenly seems much less daunting.

Hope your year continues to improve after your own health problems and that you will be on the mend soon.

@KT53 Thanks for your message.

Getting the stuff closest to the door and window sorted is a really good idea, thank you. It's one of the most cluttered areas at the moment, so you're right, it's what I notice the most and would be good to get cleared.

Attacking a bit at a time sounds like the way to go, I think I was trying to figure out how to do everything all at once, which was never going to be achievable.

Thanks for your help and hope you are feeling better after the hip replacement.

@Waterbut Thanks for your comment.

I hadn't heard of the claw before, but that definitely sounds like it could be a big help, so I shall order one and start looking into edging materials as well. Much appreciated.

Thanks to everyone who's commented, I'm very grateful.

Fire · November 2023

Before both rounds of cancer I potted up some bulbs in the autumn, in the spirit of hope and renewal and possibility for the spring. It cost a lot of energy and was knackering, but so worth it to see the cheery colours in the new year - like an investment for the future. Just a few pots by the door might an encouragement.

NormandyLiz · November 2023

I have bouts of fatigue and pain due to a long term condition. What I find helpful then is to have a couple of smaller projects that require less effort for maximum impact so that you can have a sense of achievement. Focus on what you can achieve and strim the rest for the time being, then once it's in control you may be able to expand the area you can manage.

I then also look at what areas I can ignore - it was during one of those spells I gave up ironing and have never looked back! Some things we think we need to do but don't really. Are there other areas of your life, eg in housework, that could free you up for one of Fire's 10 minute spells?

One of the wonderful things about gardens is that they can evolve. Sometimes they run away with us but the damage isn't permanent. By adapting your garden to be less labour intensive, a little bit at a time you will hopefully be able to enjoy a new, different garden in the not too distant future.

Joyce Goldenlily · November 2023

I feel for you. I am in the same position. I am having to learn to live life in the very slow lane which is really frustrating. I have a fairly big garden which has run away during the last couple of years. I also do mini gardening sessions, plenty of sit-downs, cogitating, cuppas etc.
I do use glyphosate to control weeds on paths, a safety factor more than anything else.

Buttercupdays · November 2023

If your garden has gone wild then re-define it as a wild garden. Concentrate your efforts on keeping the bit near the house looking good and use the strimmer to make pathways or edges to the more overgrown bit, which shows it's deliberate!

Cut down the largest /weediest looking weeds and leave the rest for now. If you feel strong enough later in spring you could sow some suitably wild seeds or add some pretty, wildish plants.

Put up a bird box, make a mini pond from a shallow container for birds to drink or bath. Learn the names of some of your weeds and see if any have good uses. Then you can rabbit on to visitors about the value of nettles or whatever and how important it is to give wildlife a home. Which it is. Strim the wild bit once annually in autumn if possible and then let it do its thing. The rest of the time you gain can be spent enjoying the insects, birds and animals that will make your garden their home

thevictorian · November 2023

I think one of the biggest things is to change your mindset a little. It's hard to shift into a mode where you can let little things go if you have been all neat and tidy before but it's just a different way of gardening. I'm like the above and embrace wildlife gardening wholeheartedly but it's a kind of manicured wildlife garden, where I am very much the boss.

If it were me I would list the jobs I needed to do in priority order but with a main focus on one area at a time and then expand that when I was able.

Ergates · November 2023

I’m pretty much in the same position, over 9 months of no lifting, pre and post surgery, and our large garden has run amok! Luckily, I have OH to mow the grass, but I have just started trying to do a bit myself. I started with just tiny jobs that can be seen from the house, and it has made a bit of a difference. We have a fortnightly green bin collection, so I’ve tried to at least do enough to keep them filled, even if I've put whole branches in rather than shredding them all as I’ve done in the past. The bits I can’t see will have to wait, but I have designated those as ‘wildlife areas’ or forest!
As others have suggested, just do a few of the tasks that you actually enjoy, and keep it to a strict timing, rather than being tied to finishing a job. We all know how there is always one more weed to pull up, or one extra leaf to sweep, and before you know it, you’ll have been out there for an hour and exhausted yourself.

How to tackle a garden gone wild.

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