Backyard Gardening

By Carol Lugg

“Twas the night before Christmas and all through the shed, the visions of new tools danced in the gardener’s head. The holidays are here and if you have a gardener on your gift list or a gardener who wants to clip this article and drop a hint, the ideas below may help you wrap up your holiday shopping or plant some ideas for your wish list. 

When purchasing tools for your gardener, don’t assume that higher costs are associated with exceptional quality, however, carefully selected quality tools are worth the higher price tag. Do spend time researching your purchase so that you are purchasing a tool that will provide years of gardening use. Based on the material in the tool, ongoing maintenance may be needed to keep the tool in top condition, so do spend time evaluating the material and requirements for keeping the tool in top shape. Design of the tool is also important, as tools made with a longer shaft add leverage for weeding and digging and you’ll want to be sure the tool fits your gardener’s physical ability and size.

 If your gardener has a row of gasoline-operated tools, cordless electric tools may be a welcome replacement. Cordless battery-operated power tools once lacked the power in power tools, but improved battery technology has made the tools an attractive option. Maintenance and ease of use, as well as a reduced carbon footprint, are a benefit to the battery-operated, cordless tools. If a new or replacement leaf blower is on the gift list, Penn State Extension recently released suggestions for cool tools for gardeners (https://extension.psu.edu/cool-tools-for-new-and-seasoned-gardeners) and recommends cordless electric leaf blowers. Many come with two nozzles including a shoulder strap, so it should be a cinch to wrap up your late fall clean-up. 

Pruners are often the core of any gardener’s toolbox, and with the number of options available, it is easy to be overwhelmed. The basic types of pruners include bypass or anvil, with bypass pruners typically the preferred pruner. If your gardener does a lot of pruning of dead branches, then the anvil style may be preferred as they are less likely to jam but this style does crush the stems of the plant (https://hortnews.extension.iastate.edu/guide-pruning-equipment. Bypass pruners make a sharper, cleaner cut. Penn State Extension reviewed the Okatsune 101 Bypass Pruner as an option and noted its light weight and ease of use. The spring-type pruners are made of Japanese steel (think Samurai swords!). This pruner can handle stems and branches up to 3⁄4 inches. The pruners are available from various distributors.

While new pruners and other clippers may be an oft-requested gift for the gardeners in your life, a lesser-known tool, the hori hori, or soil or garden knife, may become your gardener’s new favorite tool while you’ve become their new favorite elf. The tool can be used to dig, plant, weed, and depending on the style, may have depth markings (https://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=45816).

Most styles will have a serrated edge on one side and a slicing-edge on the other. Some models will feature a notch that will cut twine. Ergonomics, or the design of the tool for the user’s comfort and safety, plays an important role in tool choice and an avid gardener will be quick to share the importance of a well-crafted tool for day-long use. 

While a shovel is often seen as a workhorse tool, if your gardener enjoys perennial gardening, a spork may be a welcome gift as the tool helps with digging, dividing plants, and transplanting. Penn State Extension recommends DeWit’s Perennial Spork as the boron steel, hand-forged tool is designed to be a lifetime tool. Similar to the culinary spork that combines a spoon and a fork, the perennial spork blends the spade and a fork into a tool that will help your gardener work in harder soils 

The Dutch hoe is another lesser-known tool that reinforces the work smarter, not harder adage. Rather than the chopping movement used with a typical hoe blade, the Dutch hoe uses a push movement that works just below the soil’s surface. The razor-sharp teeth remove weeds while the back-end of the hoe has a hook that catches the weeds. Penn State Extension recommends the Sneeboer Royal Dutch Hoe, and while it is one of the pricier Dutch hoes on the market, it’s designed for longevity with proper care. 

If back pain or other physical limitations are impacting your gardener’s enjoyment, tools that are designed for various physical gardening are highlighted in Purdue University’s, AgrAbility site, a database devoted to accessible tools for farmers and farm workers with disabilities The site includes a category devoted to gardeners in need of tools that will accommodate the physical limitations affecting the gardener’s enjoyment in the garden (http://www.agrability.org/toolbox/?mode=browse&sect=16#l1_16).

If a small stocking stuffer is on your list, and a tool that I only recently acquired but as an avid flower gardener didn’t realize what I’ve been missing over the years, is a pair of long-bladed scissors or snips The small size with the sharp blade is great for a clean-cut when deadheading, making small cuts when trimming shaggy perennials, cutting flowers for bringing into the home, and when snipping plants for root cuttings. The scissors come in a range of price points, and after purchasing a low-end range of scissors this summer, and given my frequent use of the tool, I’ll be upgrading to a higher quality. This small tool is on my gift list for my favorite gardeners and I’ll be researching before purchasing I am currently looking at doubling up and purchasing a pair of pocket snips along with a pair of snips with longer blades. 

While you may think your gardener will enjoy another Chia Pet to keep their green thumb moving through the winter months, a well-constructed heirloom tool may better express your gratitude and admiration and leave visions of spring gardening dancing in your gift recipient’s head. Further information about the tools that are suggested by Penn State Extension and additional gift ideas may be found at https://extension.psu.edu/cool-tools-for-new-and-seasoned-gardeners. 

 

Carol Lugg became a Penn State Extension Master Gardener in March 2022. She can be reached at clintonmg@psu.edu or through the Clinton County Master Gardener Hotline at (570) 858-0198.