Garden Tools

Garden tools help to make a good gardener, and without them you cannot give of your best. While there are many opinions as to which garden tools are essential, it is generally agreed that you should buy the best quality that you can afford. With good quality tools you will complete the tasks quicker and with less effort, but with unsuitable tools you will find yourself frustrated and delayed at every turn.

 You will certainly need a shovel, fork, rake and hoe together with a hand pruner. These basic tools come in a large variety of designs and sizes.

For digging the long handled round point shovel is the basic tool. A garden spade is also useful for digging but can be employed for trimming lawn edges. Neither of these will be suitable for moving loose materials such as sand, gravel and topsoil for which a square point shovel will be required.

For weeding the basic tool is the long handled hoe. Several different designs are available, some of which can be more accurately described as cultivators for preparing the soil for planting. The spade fork comes into this category and can also be used for splitting perennial plants in the fall.

For cutting back plants and shrubs you will need a pruner. Hand pruners are either bypass or anvil design. Both types can handle stems up to three quaters of an inch thick but the bypass pruner gives the cleaner cut. For thicker branches you will need a lopping shear or pruning saw. A pole tree trimmer with both a blade and a saw will enable you to prune high tree branches from the ground.

For watering your plants the basic tool is, of course, the watering can. Holding anywhere from half a pint for use with house plants to two gallons for general garden use. When more extensive watering is required a hose is the answer with its storage reel or hose cart depending on size.

For moving all types of material around the garden a wheelbarrow is the first choice. There are many alternatives such as carts, wagons or trolleys but none are so versatile as the standard wheelbarrow.

Finally you will need a means of keeping your grass in trim. Here again there is a wide choice ranging from a hand mower for a small lawn to a ride-on machine for a larger acreage. Follow this link for advice on dealing with your leaves in the fall.
For merchants with a large selection of garden tools take a look at Gardener's Supply Company or Nature Hills Nursery.