"I'm looking for a plant lover who might be interested in helping with my plants while I'm gone.

Except no. Don't say, "interested". It's a favor.
Instead, "I'm looking for a favor. A plant lover who would have time to water my plants."

Anonymous wrote:As long as you’re ready to return the favor, sure! Make it easy. Feels good to be part of a community. Everyone doesn’t have to be your best friend.

Oh, without second thought!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't think it would be a burden for someone who likes gardening.

Same here. I don't and wouldn't like to do hassle with a hose etc but for someone else who appreciates gardening and presumably gets enjoyment out of your nice yard I don't think it's a big ask.

OP here. The faucet valve is right where you enter the yard, and I do plan to pull out and leave the hose in the yard, so she won’t have to reel it in/out, and then turning off the valve will be right on her way out. Super simple!

If you're occasionally going out to dinner with this neighbor, that's close enough to ask for this favor, especially if she already enjoys taking care of her own garden. Of course you would return the favor or buy a small gift or something to show your appreciation.

As long as you’re ready to return the favor, sure! Make it easy. Feels good to be part of a community. Everyone doesn’t have to be your best friend.

How old is the granddaughter? You could offer to pay her to do it (even if she’d need to be supervised). It would be a way to offer payment without offending your neighbor.

Anonymous wrote:I don't think it would be a burden for someone who likes gardening.

Same here. I don't and wouldn't like to do hassle with a hose etc but for someone else who appreciates gardening and presumably gets enjoyment out of your nice yard I don't think it's a big ask.

Anonymous wrote:I would not be bothered at all. I don't think payment is appropriate. I'd give her a nice thank you gift when you get back.

+1

Fine to ask and can give her an out "not sure if you'll be around this week or have time..."

$ is weird, please don't

A small gift from the place you traveled to is very thoughtful

Just make it really convenient and show everything in advance. I had a neighbor once ask and it was very hard to access the hose valve behind a bush and then the hose didn't quite reach one plot so I had to track down a watering can and the "just five minutes" was a lot more.

Anonymous wrote:I have done this for neighbors before, no pay, and did not mind at all.

And yes it was a fun activity for my DD when she was little.

Ask in a way that makes it easy for her to say no. This is a skill that is good to cultivate to maintain good relationships. What you do is frame it as something you only want her to do if she might enjoy it. That way if she has zero interest in plants or it sounds like too much, she can easily say "oh yeah, not my thing." So frame it like "I'm looking for a plant lover who might be interested in helping with my plants while I'm gone." It gives her an easy out.

I would have loved this little side trek when my kids were younger. The days are long, and it’s always nice to have something different to break up the day.

Good you aren’t mentioning it, but it’s likely true that she’ll bring the kid along to kill time and keep them busy.

Anonymous wrote:Do not say, "granddaughter might like to do this". No. This is a favor. Always ask for a favor humbly.

I remember a neighbor calling. She said she had a "volunteer opportunity" for my teen. She meant a favor. We/my teen declined

OP here. I WAS NOT going to mention this, it was just an observation.

I have done this for neighbors before, no pay, and did not mind at all.

And yes it was a fun activity for my DD when she was little.

Ask in a way that makes it easy for her to say no. This is a skill that is good to cultivate to maintain good relationships. What you do is frame it as something you only want her to do if she might enjoy it. That way if she has zero interest in plants or it sounds like too much, she can easily say "oh yeah, not my thing." So frame it like "I'm looking for a plant lover who might be interested in helping with my plants while I'm gone." It gives her an easy out.

Not a burden since you are friendly and she is a gardener and won't be intimidated by the chore. I agree that offering to pay may be interpreted as a little rude, but if you want to thank her with more than words you can say something like "thank you! the next bottle of wine for porch drinks is on me!" if/when she accepts. You then, of course, execute on that.

Definitely ask. Do NOT offer money (either up front or later) that's super tacky. Giving a thank you gift would be nice but it's not necessary - the real gift is that she now knows that she can ask YOU for a favor.

If you don't want to be a burden, one way to ameliorate that concern is to think about what you would do if she says no, and tell her that as an option. Would you hire someone? Then say:

"Hi Larla - totally fine if this doesn't work for you, but I was wondering if you'd be willing to water my garden each day on X week. If you can't, it's no problem, I have a gardener I can hire, but if you'd be willing, that would be wonderful."

That gives her an easy out, because she knows there's an alternative. Much easier to say "oh, you'd be better off with the gardener, I've got a lot going on next week" than to say "oh, no, sorry, I've got a lot going on next week." Makes it feel like more of a choice.

Anonymous wrote:Do not say, "granddaughter might like to do this". No. This is a favor. Always ask for a favor humbly.

I remember a neighbor calling. She said she had a "volunteer opportunity" for my teen. She meant a favor. We/my teen declined

Very true.