Heading off to the lottie one day back last year, we were walking down the last stretch of path. It was summertime and the hedges were leafy and the veg and blooming plants were going strong. At a certain moment the Bride stopped and said, “Would’ja. Look at those bottoms poking up”! It was a funny sight to see them at work, four women in different plots, their bums sticking out above the green plants. We were chuckling, the women heard us and they all stood up straight to see what was going on. It goes the same way in our garden—I work on my knees and the Bride bends at the waist to weed. Most jobs can be handled with a schoffel, but certain things need to be removed by hand. After this sight, we noticed more and more that most women bend to weed and men do that job on their knees. Have you noticed this as well?
I definitely bend from the waist. My man uses a hoe and stands up straight. When we first moved to Texas and I was weeding the lawn and trying to get a grip on making flowerbeds, our neighbors thought my name might be "Levi" since I was wearing Levi jeans and all they saw was my bottom!
I manage the gardens - hubby kindly helps where he can with moving hoses, packing items and running the goon spoon when necessary. When the pump is in the creek, he runs the irrigation system. If I'm not attached to the garden hoe, I'm on my knees - or my bottom during a long weeding day. Knee lady duties include gardens, under trucks, delimbing, and whatever needs be. (Hubby is overdue for and is waiting for double knee replacements. ) I don't know if our garden habits would change though. He's the muscle and I'm the details. A good pair.
I see the situation, Mel. Great Scott !! A DOUBLE knee replacement ! Mate, that is quite a big deal. Was your guy a athlete? What is a “ goon spoon”? I saw that you take water from the creek. We used to take water from the canal bordering our lottie. Now there is a system in place with pumps to distribute the water to all allotmenteers. Where they take the water from the canal they placed an old washing machine drum and the hose to take the water in that. It filters the water, keeping fish, salamanders, algae and so forth out. I was wondering if you guys use something like that. You two are indeed a great pair.
Yes Sjoerd, he was an athlete. He was on the Canadian National Water Polo team. He competed for many years, coached youth in water polo as well as wrestling. He says that his knees are paying the price for doing "the egg beater" swim in water polo for so many years. He calls a shovel "the goon spoon". I'm not sure if the reference is from hockey, where the strong man with the muscle defending his teammates is called the "goon", or if it comes from his years in construction in his youth. Shovels have always been goon spoons. I'm not even sure if it is unique to us or a Canadian term. hahaha We have a filter basket on the intake to the pump that goes into the creek. Small fine particulate matter still can come through, but the larger more open sprinkler heads aren't bothered by it. Small filters have to come out of hoses etc or they clog continuously. I use soaker/seeping hoses in some beds,but could not use any kind of drip or pin hole irrigation. When there is a lot of turbidity, it is more of an issue. I wondered how you accessed your canal water. That is a very good idea with the washing machine drum. Does the canal have water in it year round?
I see how it goes, Mel. Yes, I was sure that you guys had some kind of something at the creek water intake. I was just curious what. The small canal (sloot) does indeed have water in it all year round because canals are for moving water from the lower areas out to sea. the pumping system is new here, before we simply went to the sloot and tossed a bucket with a line on the handle in and pulled the line back with a full bucket of water. Heavy work on those hot and dry days. We also have city water, but we use that only to drink or use on fruit and veg that does not get cooked. Re: Goon spoon. Chuckle, I would not have guessed that. We also have a multitude of words here— aside from regular Dutch, we have West-Friesian words, Local dialectic words and of course what we call “family”- or “house language”. Goon spoon. Yeah, thanks for your thorough explanation. When you mentioned knee probs, I immediately thought of sports. Top sports can really take a toll on one’s body, reaching levels of performance and use that it was never meant to. I guess that it is like other things in life— there is a cost to demands made. Well, I am not at all familiar with your health care system or possibilities, but I do hope that he can get some help as soon as it is possible. It must not be a good feeling knowing that surgical correction has a waiting time. Good luck with that.
Oh, I know what you mean. at the height of the summer, I wear shorts with knee protecters. The problem is that little crumbles of dirt get in-between the protecter and my knee making the knees very dirty. I sometimes have to use a surgical scrub brush to get them clean— you know, elbow grease to get the knees clean. So you work on your knees as well. I wonder if bending is a Dutch thing.
I think another reason I prefer working on my knees in the garden is that biting insects don't find an open pathway to where they are not welcome. ( hanging shirt, slipped waist line etc). It's a challenge to keep them out at the best of times. Point of interest...my uncle by marriage is Dutch and he bends instead of kneels.
I used to stoop down but can't stay down after i fractured my knee 5 years ago. I bend a lot of the time but it puts a strain on my back, now I've been kneeling on a kneeling pad with my left knee up and the other on the kneeler when I'm planting, or i kneel with both knees on the kneeler if I'm weeding.
Loggie, you have had the best of both worlds, so to speak— kneeling and bending. Chuckle…but not really by choice. Well, one has to be comfortable, that’s part of the enjoyment of the hobby. I was sorry to hear about that knee of yours though. Did the fx heal alright? Mel— interesting about your uncle. There are some men in our club that bend as well, but not many. I know what you mean about biting bugs where you live. When I lived in Alaska, there were biters like I had ever seen before or since. I knew a girl there who told me that when she was hiking once the biters were so bad that when she took a break, she laid on her back and put her legs straight up in the air. The insects flew around her feet, but not on her arms or face. I had a good laugh, but she swore that it was true. Things like mozzies, nozeums and whitesocks can be relentless and I used vitamin B when going hiking. The mozzies landed on my arms but just walked around and eventually flew away without biting. The vitamins were coming out of my of my pores in the sweat. Apparently the little beasts do not like the smell or taste. I just had to find the right amount to take so that it would come out in my sweat. Vti B is water soluble which means that when your body takes up what it needs then you excrete the extra through the kidneys and pores.
thanks Sjeord yes it did heal alright, didn't need a operation on it. Always get bitten by something in the garden, even when I cover my arms and legs.
To stay free from biting bugs…Try using this cream works all day not sticky gooey or smelly.. actually stumbled onto it by accident used for sore muscles. With several ponds and water features even treating the water, there are still an abundant of biting Critters everywhere. Available on Amazon.. Pernation Gel, Green lipped Mussel. Laugh at the name all you want …it’s a life savor works all day.
Sjoerd - that is very interesting about the vitamin B. Hubby takes it faithfully and is rarely bitten. I used to but have been a slacker lately. I'll try that. He says thank you for the motivation to take my vities. I used to wear a no-see-um bug coat to avoid using bug dope. I have super sensitive skin sometimes. The bug coat is not a good combination when one aslo has pollen allergies and sneezes all of the time. I couldn't of course wear it using the chainsaw,doing firewood etc. And it was hot. Then I went to only spraying my shirt and ball cap with bug dope. That of course meant wearing a long sleeve shirt and jeans all of the time. Again...too hot in summer. Eventually about five years ago I gave up and have found an unscented bug repellant that I wear. It is better than getting bit. We also have an arsenal of mosquito coils etc to keep doors free. I'm sure, having lived in Alaska, you have seen some the critters. Where we live is very damp compared to other areas of the Interior. Biting bloodsucking are mostly small black flies, noseeums, mosquitos, deer flies, black flieshorse flies, and horn flies. I welcome the bald faced hornets when they come because they eat them. And bats and swallows. Sometimes I will put a big fan on the deck to keep the bugs at bay so we can sit outside. I'd still take bugs, bear, wolves and cougars over some of the snakes, spiders and others biting things many others have to be wary of. We had a guest from Australia once who stayed for a month. We only have one kind of snake here where I live and it's harmless. It may bite, but it's like a mosquito bite. The kids and I were driving him to town once, and saw a large one on the road. We all jumped out the car and ran over to see the snake and pick him up. The poor young man stayed in the car, and I didn't realize until later that he thought we were loons. Snakes were given a wide berth and a lot of respect where he lived. He told us some stories, and I was grateful to only have the critters that I have. He didn't agree when it came to the bears though. He preferred the snakes.
Interesting reading all of the stories. I feel like I'm getting to know you all. I work a lot on my knees. You would laugh watching me try to stand up again. There is a show on PBS about how to garden ergonomically so it is better on backs and joints. "Gardenfit". I don't know if it is available outside USA. I found the first episode that I watched, useful. They described crouching in an "armchair" position. It does seem better than bending.
