Beginner Gardening: DIRTY KNEES !!, 1 by texasgarden

texasgarden wrote:
Next is the hands-

Again, in the shower I have a routine. I use that foot scrub stuff (just the cheap Friedmanâ??s brand or whatever it is at Wal-Mart). I just put it on my hands and use it like soap. It keeps them soft and no dead skin means no trapped dirt. I also use Lava soap after working in the yard. Or that thick stuff mechanics smear on their hands works well too. You can get it at the auto supply store. Swishing your hand around in the Oxiclean solution really works too- especially for getting stuff out from under your nails.

On that topic, my issue was not just the crescent shaped dirt rings under my nails, but the dirt that gets trapped between the SIDE of the nails and the skin of your fingers. So that's a manual process. A nail brush can't get it out so I pull down the skin around the nails and hold the nail under my showerhead. I put the showerhead on the back message setting that blasts a really hard stream of water so it sort of power washes under and around my nails. Works on the toenails too!

I do garden barefoot most of the time but I have started forcing myself to wear gloves. Blah. This is more to prevent breaking fingernails than anything else. So if you keep 'em short that isn't an issue. I tried guys; I just can't give up my nails! Ha! :) I hate knee pads so my husband got me one of those kneeler pads. I use it about 80% of the time but often I am in one place and I have left it across the yard somewhere. LOL!

Last tip for keeping hands soft- after all that scrubbing and power washing, I put a tiny bit of olive oil on my hands and rub it in really well. Then I just put on my regular lotion.

I sure hope this helps someone because it is embarrassing to confess!!!! It does sound like a lot of work, but seriously, being consistent really made a difference for me. Letting everything get all rough and dirt stained and ragged, then trying to "fix it" in one sitting wasn't working. But a routine has really helped and while it sounds time consuming, it really isn't! Promise!

Jamie