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Watering the garden, en renting garden tools


Marjolein

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Hello Everyone,

Hope one of you can help us. We are a dutch couple who bought a
little house in the Champagne Ardennes. We feel very luky.
We also have a lot to do.
One of the things thats worries us is how to water the plants while we are away. Does anyone of you have any suggestions? We dont want to leave the electricion on, so
we are looking for same selfsufficient system. As citypeople we are amateur gardeners. We like to be great gardeners, hopefully we will learn quik.

The other question, we need some big garden tool to make
a big part of the garden a garden. Its all clay now and a lot of
weed. We are looking for a 'freeze' , as we call it on dutch. Is a tool that is a kind of plough.
Does anyone know were we could rent this?
Thanks for all your help.
Marjolein
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Hello;

Here in Brittany we have a company called Loxam - they rent rototillers and other such useful items! Try the yellow pages for the same firm in your area. Or I believe the Yellow pages now has an English option - perhaps it has a Dutch option too.

As far as watering - have you a friendly neighbour?

Julia near Redon
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I agree with Alexis about planting in Autumn, this applies also to lawns. I have always found the best time to sow lawn seed to be early September. The ground is warm and there is the prospect of Autumn rain to keep it going.

When we had our present house as a holiday home I planted the garden with shrubs that would probably not need much watering after the first planting. If they did not survive they were out and others that are more able to cope with the conditions brought in. I think you have to be pragmatic when it comes to gardens in holiday property. A mulch of Forest Bark (Ecorce de Pin) or other materials, even lawn clippings, is very useful for preserving moisture around young trees and shrubs.

Regarding tool hire, do you have a Magasin Vert nearby? The ones round here hire out a small selection of motorised garden tools.

Liz (29)
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Hi there

Most shrubs and trees require "watered-in" when planting and require an ample supply of water in the first few months of growing irrespective of when they are planted. The best time for planting is during the plants actual growing season when all its energy is put into establishing new growth both above and below ground. GARDENA, make a full range of tools and equipment for the garden and indeed have a irregation system which uses a battery powered time clock fitted directly to the outside tap and a series of hoses distributed around the garden...ideal for ensuring that there is ample water in the garden although this year that is not a problem...drowning will be the most likely cause of death to new plants.

Good luck

Sasha
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