Milan is not a goer, but the garden could be!

I'm afraid to say that the Milan client and I can't see eye to eye on contracts so it's not a goer. As much as I'd love to pledge myself to 4/5 weeks of work in Italy, I can't sign a contract that imples I am an employee and gives up my intellectual property on completion of the job before payment. So, it's not happening and I'm not going. The recruitment agent who brokered the deal is shocked and annoyed that it isn't happening (and of course neither do they get their fee) and the client is puffing out their chest and saying they don't really need anyone anyway, but I know the truth and so do they. I smell a rat, or rather I smell a lot of work and a massive struggle to get payment for months on end.

Oh well. C'est la vie. So I went back to the client with the 60+ page website, told them I'd be around after all and in a few days time I start that job. And they had no problems with the contract and neither did their legal department. They signed yesterday, a deposit is on it's way to my bank account so everything's cool.

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So, today I went out and treated myself for pulling in that substantial contract by buying two hanging baskets from a local garden centre - one for the back (above) and the other for the front.

It sort of makes up for the fact the garden has got on top of me of late and turned into an unsightly heap. Then suddenly this afternoon I had a brainwave - I could Flylady the garden! I'm sure I'm not the first person to come up with this, but I think it could work.

Just as you split the house into zones (one zone to concentrate on per week) and tackle specific 15 minute tasks in each zone on daily basis, so I'm going to do with the garden but lengthen the time to 30 minutes.

So, Zone 1: Patio, Bed1 and Bed 2

 

 

Bed 1 from the front

Bed 1 from the back

 

Bed 2 (the back of bed 3 adjacent on the right)

Zone 2: Bed 3 and rest of main garden (mostly grass and the odd hillock)

 

Bed 3

Zone 3 - Bed 4 and 5 plus pergola

 

Bed 4 at the back stretches right to the greenhouse

Zone 4 - front garden

 

Beds on two sides

 

Plus area under windowsill. The actual driveway will have to wait until we have saved enough money to have it done properly.

Zone 5 - Kitchen Garden

 

Hard to see but potatoes front left, peas and brassicas behind and beyond that onions. To the right wilderness.

 

To the far left of the garden, blackberries and wilderness.

I've set myself a small routine for the morning and evening of things that need doing every day, such as watering, harvesting food, deadheading flowers and sweeping up.

Once a week, the main chores of mowing the lawn and edging will be done, which would be equivalent to the main one hour clean in the Flylady programme.

What do you think? Anyone else Flyladyed their garden? Did it work?

Comments

[Jennyff]

Che sera sera, Milan would have been a great experience but you've obviously got plenty to occupy you work and homewise. I had to look up Flylady on the net, new to me, I can see the logic of dividing your garden into manageable zones. Nice to have so much potential even if it means lots of hard work it will be truly rewarding and now you have the whole summer and currently with Italian weather.