You're in Portland, so this won't help you, but in Seattle we've had good luck getting laborers from Casa Latina. They're a great organization.

http://www.casa-latina.org/

Here is a link that might be useful: Casa Latina

I have had trouble too.

Neighborhood kids didn't work out well, they left half the weeds. Friend's son wasn't any better.

We had a friend who used to be a huge help but he is now on drugs and was useless last time we had him over. I lived in fear that one of his creepy friends who showed up was going to rip us off.

I am physically unable to keep up with everything (Fibromyalgia) DH has had some health problems too that have prevented him from helping me. I'm starting to stress. Gardening is starting to be a chore instead of fun. I desperately need weeds pulled and compost spread.

I don't have a lot of money but if you find someone maybe I can use him/her too.

I think weeding is one of the hardest things to trust a helper with. My neighbor children weeded out the baby's tears I was trying to get established. Ouch!

buyorsell, the new testament kid was actually very sweet and a very good conscientious worker, with references. I left him a message. If he's available to work I'll send you an email.

It breaks my heart to think you're not enjoying your beautiful garden.

Have you all checked out local community college horticulture programs? they should have a job referral system for their students, and hort students should be eager to learn the finer points of gardening from knowledgeable adults. I know I was when I was a hort student.

The good news is you are not alone.You described it well.Any help you try to hire these days you really have to watch out.We hired electrician who was going to charge travelling time to come for his money..He was going to add one more hour just for that.I pointed out that I can deliver his payment and then he waived it.When he was working he took many cigarette breaks and beer breaks at the same time.He was recommended.He completed the job, but what a nightmare.
As for garden help I have had my share also.Sometimes they are not just not educated enough or experienced enough just want to make some quick money.
I have had the same person for years now.He comes occasionaly to help out.His English is very poor , but somehow he is able to convince everyone that he fully understands you.So I have to to help him out and make sure things are done properly.I feel blessed with him because other than his luck of English he is a good person and always shows up for the job.Its not easy to find proper help...Good luck

I have horror stories too! Enough to say that I finally got fed-up and bought myself an electric lawn mower..... and my "help" (!) arrived and looked so despondent that I offered him $50 to clip my hedge (which I can do myself) because I felt so bad. He is totally unreliable and always seems to be broke..... but he reminds me so much of a character on a British TV show called "The Last Detective" (Mod is the character's name) that I can't bring myself to disappoint him! How dumb can I be!!!!

Finding good gardening help is tough. Most of the businesses that do skilled garden maintenance are in very high demand and often won't take on new clients. And the fly-by-night outfits you CAN find often don't have a clue what they are doing and/or don't speak English well enough to be able to communicate clearly with them. They think because they drive a pickup and have a few tools, they are automatically landscape artisans and can pick up some easy money :-)

I had a friend that did small installations and regular maintenance and when she was in the area, would stop by and put in a few hours of work. I'd come home and an entire bed would be weeded and mulched! And we'd work together from time to time - an extra set of hands seems to make the work go so much faster. But she moved too far away, quit her gardening business and bought horses instead :-( If you have gardening friends, organizing work parties can be effective and lots of fun - one day at one garden, a second at another and so on. Have a list of chores prepared ahead of time and assign them to specific individuals. You can get an amazing amount of work done in a relatively short time and enjoy the company of fellow gardeners while you do it.

Now I hire the Guatemalan caretaker at my nursery for a day every so often. He works faster and more thoroughly than any six other workers you could put together and knows his stuff. We communicate in a pidgin Spanish/English blend, although his English is better than my Spanish :-) And I also hire out the pruning to other friends in the industry as I simply don't have the time nor all the equipment to do a proper job myself, at least on the bigger stuff.

The local hort school is a good source - they all have job boards with local postings and the students tend to have pretty flexible schedules. The hort industry tends not to attract a lot of young people and many of the students at these schools are quite mature, often entering a second career. The skill set is variable, but it would be a mistake to assume all are rookies - you can locate some very talented gardeners via this method, including some that are extremely accomplished and are building up a future business and client base while they attend classes.

I needed some sod ripped up and a pile of rocks moved and of course, lots of ivy ripped out.

I work four days a week, so one week that I didn't have anything else planned on my "day off" (in quotes because it is more like "chicken minus head running around day"), I got the jobs lined up and called the Millionaires Club. I told them what work I had and asked for two people.

The two fellows arrived on the bus. One in his 20s one probably in his late 30s. I got the two of them started ripping up the sod and hauling back to the compost heap.

Soon, one of them asked if there was something different he could work on. I suggested that one rip and the other haul. That still wasn't working. So I got one of them to work moving the rocks.

At lunchtime, I tossed a frozen pizza in the oven. I cut it up and took it out with some paper plates to the picnic table on the back patio. One of the fellows put half the pizza on his plate and left to go sit on the front steps.

One or the other said something about their "issues" with each other starting on the bus that morning. I thought about delivering a lecture on learning to work with people you don't really get along with, but I decided that would be not so well received.

After sod was ripped up and moved, I put the fellow to work ripping out ivy. After a while I went to see how he was doing and realized he was cutting the ivy off at ground level and winding up the vines. He wasn't ripping out the roots and runners below the surface -- that's the hard part and that's what I was willing to pay someone else to do.

Then rock guy told me he had an appointment mid-afternoon, so he'd be leaving at 2:00. I paid him, pretty generously, and he wandered off. He had moved about 80% of the rock pile, and managed to dump one load into the compost heap instead of the rock heap.

Ivy guy stuck around for a couple more hours, mostly working in the shady areas and still not getting much of the roots. At the end of the day, I paid him. He said something about his drug habit, and I suggested that the sooner he breaks the habit the better.

When I'm ready for another round, I'll try Casa Latina.

I have a lot more ivy to be ripped out.

Oh I hear all of you. Too many horror stories here. Never done gardening and didn't know the scoop at all, but learned some stuff fast. Next door was a professional landscaper who had a huge Mexican family and he was about to move to Hawaii so 'lent' me his crew as he was doing other stuff. They were good, especially Felipe, who was quiet and respectful and worked hard when the others leaned toward goofing around a bit. Felipe was the only person who ever came here who could use a level and get cottage stones inlaid perfectly level.

But then they got some big last-minute jobs so I used craigslist. OMG what freaks showed up (although most never showed up or called). One huge bald muscular white guy talked big and insisted nobody else was necessary. He spent hours putting his gloves off and on. We asked him to lay cottage stone and he couldn't even after we did it with him for an hour. Then we asked him to help cobblestone the pond, He placed about 2 medium rocks in an hour then said he had to go to an appt.

Had awful luck with "Jasons." 3 Jasons and they were all strange and worthless. Had a couple come over, very strange and wiry, girl pouted whole time while guy threw stuff around with an attitude. Bunch of ppl came by and said oh we thought it was easy stuff like pruning; we don't move dirt or nothing dirty -- and they had advertised as expert landscapers. Hhhhhnmmmm. It was so unbelievably awful, day after day a parade of the oddest unproductive misfits. Finally I had to use LaborReady and they weren't any better.

I ended up praying to God for an intense session that Felipe become available. He had moved to Salem and got a full-time job at a saw mill. There's an Amtrak station nearby so I found out the schedule and bought him economy tickets. He is able to come on Sundays and sometimes extra days when the mill is down. He's a legal resident and speaks enough English to function, plus his wife speaks English fluently. He is completely honest and polite and works very efficiently and is awesome with the plants. He just does an amazing job. He worked in a nursery for 14 years and then did landscaping and really knows his stuff. He was getting $10/hr from the neighbor landscaper so that's what we did, just raised it to $11/hr. Needed him a lot at first but now months go by with the yard holding its own. We were lucky the landscaper left his tools here for over a year for Felipe to use as Jerry got settled in Hawaii.

The yard is designed to be basically maintenance-free once it becomes established after 3 years, just pruning every winter and gathering the leaves to the compost pile by any means every fall, so we've needed him less and less. He's a gem and I thank God literally every day for him. If I were rich I'd buy 40 acres with a house for him and his wife and hire him as a regular full-time employee. I have had adult-onset asthma (from the stress of my (ex) husband going beserk) and got weak bones from it but am getting better and more able to do heavier work every day.

Anyway Felipe is looking for Sunday work and comes in on Amtrak from Salem and we pick him up at the Oregon City station around 7:30/a. If anybody reasonably close by is looking for excellent yard help email me
Cascadians@comcast.net
and I'll call him and find out his availability.

I pray I NEVER have to use craigslist again! Should have taken videos ...

Hi.

Except for the lucky break of Sweet New Testament Boy, it sounds like the two of you in Portland have not done so well using Craig's List. I, on the other hand, have hired FABulous folks off Craig's List -- both for garden-variety grunt work and to work in my firm in a professional capacity.

After 7 or 8 hires, this has become my four-step strategy (if one can call it so grand a term):

1. Place your ad in the correct category. Do you want regular, on-going help? Place an ad in one of the jobs sections. Just occasional weed-pulling, rock-lifting, slug-stomping? List it under "gigs" (hate that word). You have to pay to place regular employment ads in the Seattle area, but a listing is free under "g*gs." Don't cheapen out and hope to get a long-term, like-clock-work employee under your "g" ad, 'cause those types won't be looking there and you will be disappointed with whomever you hire.

2. Tell then how much you'll pay. No one expects a huge hourly rate, but they shouldn't have to guess at what you're willing to part with. It's manual labor, folks, stuff you can't/won't do, so offer something reasonable. Cascadians' 10-11.00 per hour is about right. Oh, and plus drinks (hugely important when they're sweating out under a hot summer sun), maybe even snacks if you're channeling Lady Bountiful.

3. Pay close attention to the replies you receive. You are an employer. Like any good employer, you'll want to weed out(chuckle chuckle groan) any "resumes" that contain misspellings or inappropriate language -- which might include the skullandtats type of email address, as well as those that are nonresponsive or just plain wierd. Yes, we live in an informal age, but when someone looking for a job sends me something like this: "i am good at worker and hoping 4 a job with you sound pretty kewl" (an exact quote, yikes), I politely forward a no, thanks response and look elsewhere.

4. Think about who is likely to respond to your ad: Many a high school and college student answer ads for part-time/short-term positions. Would you have the nerve to go out to some stranger's house as a 17 year old? I always include a little bit about myself to try to show that I'm not an ax murderer (or at least am a NICE as murderer who pays decently) and mention that they're free to bring a friend, parent or dobie with them to check me out.

That's it. I'm climbing down from the soapbox now, but do urge everyone to give CL a solid try.

Rain

There are some really great suggestions here. I never thought about calling the hort school, which is weird, having been a hort student myself many moons ago. I guess it's because all I ever have to offer is pure labor type work which isn't that interesting. And the work party idea is great. Sometimes it's dispiriting to look at all the work to be done, and having another person makes me prioritize what needs to be done, & get motivated.

Blameitontherain, you are right, Craigs list is a wonderful resource. I never knew about posting on the gigs area. I have hired some wonderful people from Craig's List. Note that my worst experience was with a licensed tree service I got from the yellow pages, not CL people. And you're right you can't expect them to come back, they are often people who move on to other things. Because of that I try to have a full day or two of work, so that it's worthwhile for me to call references, etc, & for them to take the job. A couple of the people I hired actually thanked me for teaching them things about gardening.

I don't really have the heart to pay anyone less than 12 an hour, & I usually tip if they do a good job, but that's just me. I had one guy from CL though who was going to charge 20 an hour because he had a truck & trailer (a real plus), which I agreed to, but then when he showed up he announced it was going to be thirty an hour. I tend to be a wimp, but in that case I sent him packing.

And I'm sure that for every nightmare story about hired help there is an equally horrible story about an employer.

I'm so blessed to have a 15 year old grandson and 12 year old granddaughter who are my 'hired help.' The boy likes to do macho things on ladders, like cleaning gutters, and hauling load after load of rocks in the wheelbarrow. The girl loves digging holes and planting things, although she gets sidetracked easily (like giving names to worms.) They take longer than adults would but that's partly because we have deep, philosophical conversations while we work. Both were proud of the fact that they earned money for their school clothes. (Do have to get creative, however, to motivate them to rake leaves!)

Like Blameitontherain wrote...I've seen some fairly reputable outfits post in Craigslist, as well.

In college, requests were sent to landscape program instructors. Not sure if that's current now.

Labor Ready has never backfired on me yet. But I don't let them use our home facilities and expect that they have transportation for their breaks. That means they are covered with insurance too.

Personally, when I'm ready to hire a full-time employee, I WON'T use Craigslist, and I'll explain why....

Anybody really serious about landscape or tree work, will be looking EVERYWHERE for positions - not just on a free advertisement source like Craigslist. Depending solely on Craigslist for finding an employee, cuts the employer off from a majority of the creme of workers. So an ad in the paper (example) should find the attention of those putting forth every effort to advance and serve in a trade.

In Seattle, it's pretty much to the point where the 5 dollars per hour of yesterday is now 15 dollars per hour. Skilled workers, with businesses are getting more than double that and up. Certified professionals like landscape architects now charge hundreds per hour.

mdvaden

You make a good point, but a lot of us home gardeners don't need professional help. I don't think it takes much knowledge or experience to rake leaves, move piles of compost, etc. Proper weeding & planting can be picked up easily by anyone who's willing to learn. If some neighborhood young person in my area were to offer these skills & act in a reasonably professional manner, they would have more work than they could handle.

I can understand your reluctance to allow people to use your "facilities", but I feel that if I have someone working at my home I'm obligated to provide the basic courtesy of a bathroom, access to drinking water, and a place to wash up. You have to play it by ear. In no circumstances should you invite someone into your home if you don't feel safe.

My next-door neighbor & I have had good luck hiring people to work on both our yards at the same time. I have a six foot tall husband, & she has a huge dog. They're both completely harmless, but our hired help doesn't know that.

If I were looking for a landscape professional I would probably rely on referrals from nursery professionals rather than Craig's List.

Misslemonverbena,

I know what you mean about needing to feel safe! My SO is an economy-sized 6'4". We also have a big, sloppy, golden retriever who has convinced herself she is a cute little lap puppy but who darn near outweighs me.

As with you and your neighbor, both man and dog are gentle giants who manage to encourage respect (or instill sheer terror). I just stand close and smile.

Feeling lucky,

Rain

Egad, this sounds terrible! I'm almost glad I only have a balcony!

That said, my experience trying to find someone to paint my condo has been similar to everything I've read here. :0P