The speaker makes a odd, half-rueful wish: that "our work" be sent out to sea, "green as a drunk / on an apprenticeship." The image is of something unfinished and queasy, work made by beginners who are still learning, now left to the waves. The title, "Limited partnership," suggests a shared effort, perhaps between two people making something together, with clear boundaries on what each can give.
The second stanza explains the hurry. Before anyone lists "the many defects," the "small charities," and "the joy still dying," the speaker wants the work gone. The phrase "joy still dying" is the most striking, because it sounds slow and ongoing rather than finished. The mood is tender but wary: a mix of embarrassment, affection, and fatigue. The speaker seems to prefer letting go over a careful accounting of flaws, as though the work is better launched, imperfect and seasick, than picked apart on shore.