Making Yardwork Easier

Some people are gardeners. They like toiling in the soil, making beautiful things grow. They like being out in the fresh air, getting a tan in the sunshine. They like to stand back and admire their manicured lawns and their blooming flowers. Yes, yard work, for some people, is an enjoyable hobby. Then there's the rest of us.

We're the ones who get our tans by the soft glow of the television set, and whose hobbies don't require a shovel, rake and pruning shears. Yes, when we have to do yard work, we just want it to get done - and we'd love it if someone could make yard work easier. So what makes yard work easier and quicker?

Set a Time Frame and Be Prepared
If you intend to spend hours and hours in the yard until every task is finished, you're going to dread it, and it'll feel like drudgery. Make yard work easier by setting a time limit so that when you've put in the work, you're done for the day. To make yard work easier, pick the most important task, get out all the tools you'll need, and make sure to dress for the work.

Wear comfortable clothing that's warm and not too bulky. Nothing that you'd worry about ruining with dirt or mud, and nothing you'd mind your neighbors seeing you in. And make sure to wear gardening gloves - they make yard work easier. Hands often get cut, scraped, or infected when working outside. Gloves will not only protect you from injury but also keep your hands from getting so dirty that you're afraid to touch the doorknob. If you're working alone, consider bringing some music out to entertain you. Maybe a radio on the porch, or an mp3 player with earphones might do the trick. It'll make yard work seem easier and quicker, even if it isn't so.

Have The Right Tools
Overgrown plants and shrubbery make your life more difficult. First of all, as the plants get bigger, their branches become thicker and more unmanageable. Secondly, thick greenery often keeps you from being able to weed underneath them or to get to the parts of your hedge that you need to tend. If you prune by hand, you're likely to get picture perfect results - there's a reason no one ever takes a hedge-trimmer to a bonsai tree. But to make yard work easier, hedge-trimmers are exactly what you need.

You can shape your bushes easily, get rid of offending hedge protrusions, and neaten up the appearance of your yard while saving hours of manual labor. You don't need anything fancy or bulky. Some of the best hedge trimmers under $80 are lightweight, easy to handle, and compact for storage. It makes yard work easier because it goes through your shrubs like butter, and all you have to do is rake up the cut leaves.

Another tool that will make help make yard work easier is a collapsible wheel-barrow. For less than $10 you can pick up one of these at Bed, Bath & Beyond. Made primarily from nylon, its extremely lightweight, but sturdy enough to carry all the leaves and yard debris you can fit into it. It's super easy to dump, and has convenient pockets for other tools that you might need like garden shovels or claws. Best of all, it folds flat for storage. It'll make taking it out and putting it away a breeze, and you won't dread those trips into the back with all your raked up leaves.

Better Living Through Chemistry
Weeding is a hassle because as much as you pluck and pull, the weeds always come back. This is because you're not getting to the root. To make yard work easier, attack your weed problem at the source with a chemical such as Round Up. This comes in a normal spray bottle, and you use it as you'd use a household cleaner. Spray it directly on the leaves of an offending weed and it'll be dead, all the way to the root, in twenty four hours. This will surely make yard work easier for you, since you won't have to kill the same weed twice. The only drawback is that you have to try to make sure it only gets on the weeds, and not on your legitimate plants.

Hopefully, these tips will make your yard work easier, and give you more time to play in the leaves or indulge in the hobbies you love. So get outside and get it done!