Does anyone know of a place where I can hire a small 'ride on' mower by the day ( or weekend) would need to be delivered and collected as I have no trailer...
I regularly watch my aged voisines wizz around their patches 'par de problem' and I realise that I should have invested in a ride on mower too (and maybe I will eventually), but ideally, I would like to try out different models in order to find out which is best for me (and my bumpy terroir!), rather than possibly making an expensive mistake...
Monbazillac is also very good with foie gras and rich terrines. Cava is good when it's good but headache in a glass when it's not. French consumption of wine has dropped but I suspect that is largely accounted for by the move away from vins ordinaire and the Dieppe mélange. I don't drink New World Wines the really good American ones are largely beyond my pocket, the Australian ones far too jammy and over alcoholic and the NZ ones are rarely seen here.A little known neighbour of Monbazillac is the appelation Saussignac very tasty reds.
Monbazillac, superb, third the price of overrated Sauternes; beats me why anyone bothers with Champagne when Cava is its equal any day of the week; so much snobbery where wine is concerned. Only thing you really need to know is whether you like the taste, simples. French plonk is highly overrated in any case, even the native consumption has dropped dramatically last ten years. New world wines, far superior.
I haven't yet explored the Montbazillac area...keep meaning to because out of the new (to me) wines that I have tried since spending more time over here, I am a real fan of fruity Monbazillac...I tend to prefer 'peppery reds' and rasberry-like rose...dislike a lot of dry whites...and I didn't think I'd take to what I suppose is a dessert wine, but I'm a real fan...
Will, (with your permisssion), try to add y'all as 'friends'...and perhaps repost this as it's off topic, to start a wine discussion....
Try any of the rent-a-machine places like the one on the Zone Artisanale at the bottom of the Monbazillac hill. They might have such a thing even though they tend to have diggers etc as their main rental machines.
at these prices cheaper to buy used.If you drive from Bergerac towards Ste Foy there's one sitting in an orchard/ garden with a for sale sign. On the right as you drive. It was there on Saturday.
Also, I use a heavier extendible type of 'strimmer' with a branch cutter and hedge trimmer attachments and 3.6m possible with extension, even with the broken shoulder. It is the harness that makes all the difference. Not only a good one but getting the balance right so that the weight is dispersed rather than a tiring dead weight, we have several after the demise of various strimmers so can pick and choose by weather or job, which does make a considerable difference.
(Strimmer wise, it's essential to have a good harness and everything set up for your size. The harness should carry all the weight of the machine. If you get a good "senior", they'll be happy to help.)
I brought over a 2nd hand Stihl brushcutter (good, but hard to start and a bit heavy) and I have a little very lightweight cordless battery operated strimmer, I can cope with half an hour at a time bursts using these....but it's hard work and I feel the effects on my back after a while...
Just did a bit more 'googling' and have found and signed up for this....
I'll second that. Lajarthe's branch in Lalinde are really good. We have our big mower from them, they service it, at present have a brushcutter in being serviced and they offer very good advice. As Alex says, this is a hellish rocky area. I have a severely buckled blade compartment and twisted blade on our lawn cutter, small mower but for a larger, sit on mower it may be cheaper to hire somebody to do it rather than pay out for drive belt la courroie Alex, blade and potentially the blade compartment guard. A couple of hundred replacing parts can tot up faster than you imagine. Look for a paysagiste who offers lawn cutting, they are usually far better at removing rocks as they go along that a straightforward garden service.
You could ask at a Lajarthe. But if you want to hire one, you might as well pay someone to come and cut it for you with their machine. This may cost about €25 an hour and may work out cheaper, without the risks of ownership.
....but I did/have looked at the 2nd hand option......but it's as risky as buying a 2nd hand car......risky, why are they selling it if it functions well and they still have ground/grass to cut ?
I'm practical,..but not a mechanic....it would be (yet another), source of frustration if it was tempremental and I couldn't fix it....
Surely someone, somewhere, hires these things out ?
Hi Hilary. The grass will need to be ankle high for a sit-on mower, so you might need to get someone in to strim it first, which will cost around €20 an hour. Take a look at used mowers - it won't matter too much which one - and expect to pay around €350. Buy it over the winter as prices will go up in the spring. You'll be able to sell it for the same price in the future, so it's worth the investment. And if the land is bumpy, take it slowly - the land will become better over time (the more you cut it), but charging around on bumpy ground could cost you a few rubber bands (can't remember the name for the belt that drives the blades).