Time Waster
Veteran
Just tackling the upper garden AKA the woodland. It has never recovered from having a few 50 year old leylandii chopped down by some pros and then cleared by some amateurs (us). In fact it's almost two or is it three years since we had the trees cut down and the wood isn't completely cleared away.
It saved us something like £1500 iirc as it was two big trees, a third tree and another with the crown lifted as it's called. A massive job and after several months of taking most of our weekends up we took a break.
So everything not wanted grew up. It was no longer as covered by wild garlic and bluebells but somehow the snowdrops, hellebores and daffs survived and did well. So did the brambles. In fact they did too well. They grew over and through everything else. Sometimes on top, sometimes low down spreading across the garden.
So all that is a preamble to why gloves are my most important gardening tool. Currently I wear a non-thornproof lightweight pair in summer. That handles bindweed, nettles and even thistles if they're not that nasty. They have a non-warm weather use pair of gold touch winter tough or winter touch gloves. Made by Jayco they are leather fingers and palm, extending a little into the back where there's a heavy duty fabric. Inside is a waterproof membrane and inside that thinsulate insulation and a light liner fleece. These are also my summer brambles glove.
Today I have been pulling brambles out of the ground. They've grown I've way but if they touched the ground they rooted the other side too. A bit weird when the leaves are growing one way but the tip has roots on it. Anyway, I've been pulling on these brambles, proper tugging hard, without a single thorn being remotely felt through the gloves. I did however get a very fine thorn tip in one finger pulling the second glove off. Must dust my hands off before taking them off to make sure nothings in them
I liken the winter touch gloves to schwalbe marathon plus tyres in how tough they are wrt thorns.
So I wonder what gloves you use? How tough is your gardening? Any major bramble or thorny jobs that they are good for?
Reason is my partner has never had any good gloves before and gets thorns and the like often. She's tried the same make of gloves as my winter / autumn / thorny job gloves. Doesn't like them. Too thick and she couldn't feel anything wearing them in the shop. I'd like to find something completely thornproof but lightweight and you can feel what you're holding.
I admit mine shaped to my hand and I kind of don't move my hand / fingers much in them. They get wet and dry out making them very stiff at first before softening again with a few minutes use.
I think gardening gloves are simply the most important tool to get right. So it's good to hear what others think is right
It saved us something like £1500 iirc as it was two big trees, a third tree and another with the crown lifted as it's called. A massive job and after several months of taking most of our weekends up we took a break.
So everything not wanted grew up. It was no longer as covered by wild garlic and bluebells but somehow the snowdrops, hellebores and daffs survived and did well. So did the brambles. In fact they did too well. They grew over and through everything else. Sometimes on top, sometimes low down spreading across the garden.
So all that is a preamble to why gloves are my most important gardening tool. Currently I wear a non-thornproof lightweight pair in summer. That handles bindweed, nettles and even thistles if they're not that nasty. They have a non-warm weather use pair of gold touch winter tough or winter touch gloves. Made by Jayco they are leather fingers and palm, extending a little into the back where there's a heavy duty fabric. Inside is a waterproof membrane and inside that thinsulate insulation and a light liner fleece. These are also my summer brambles glove.
Today I have been pulling brambles out of the ground. They've grown I've way but if they touched the ground they rooted the other side too. A bit weird when the leaves are growing one way but the tip has roots on it. Anyway, I've been pulling on these brambles, proper tugging hard, without a single thorn being remotely felt through the gloves. I did however get a very fine thorn tip in one finger pulling the second glove off. Must dust my hands off before taking them off to make sure nothings in them
I liken the winter touch gloves to schwalbe marathon plus tyres in how tough they are wrt thorns.
So I wonder what gloves you use? How tough is your gardening? Any major bramble or thorny jobs that they are good for?
Reason is my partner has never had any good gloves before and gets thorns and the like often. She's tried the same make of gloves as my winter / autumn / thorny job gloves. Doesn't like them. Too thick and she couldn't feel anything wearing them in the shop. I'd like to find something completely thornproof but lightweight and you can feel what you're holding.
I admit mine shaped to my hand and I kind of don't move my hand / fingers much in them. They get wet and dry out making them very stiff at first before softening again with a few minutes use.
I think gardening gloves are simply the most important tool to get right. So it's good to hear what others think is right
