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You are here: Home / DIY Articles / tools of the trade

tools of the trade

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garden tools

You don’t need many tools to create a bountiful garden. Gadgets call us from every side, but it’s seldom a lack of the right equipment that prevents us growing successfully. Start where you are, with what you have. Friends and family will be delighted to have a ‘wish list’ for gardening gifts if you still want that special pair of secateurs or longed-for digging fork.

Here are the tools I use most of the time.

1. Cutting

  • kitchen knife – an old one just for the garden for harvesting and also for pricking out seedlings.
  • scissors – string, potting mix bags, seed packets.
  • secateurs – I like Fiskars
  • loppers – the longest lasting ones I’ve had. ‘Westminster’ brand -they came from The Warehouse and were really cheap. I’ve got some loppers with extending handles but I think I’ve used them about twice
  • garden shears – quicker and quieter for trimming small hedges than a hedge trimmer.
  • wood saw – I wore out a pruning saw and now I have a hand-me-down wood saw.

2. Digging

  • trowel – mine’s a seemingly indestructible synthetic one
  • hand fork – my weeding companion, gets oxalis out really well
  • big digging fork for turning compost, aerating soil and digging out big weeds.
  • ‘border fork’ is my luxury digging tool. Somewhere between my digging and hand forks.
  • trenching spade is my favourite type of spade for planting trees but I use a fork in the garden much more often.
  • broadfork – a beloved beast of an implement for aerating big garden beds without the back ache.

3. Carrying

  • willow basket for carrying small tools, string, seeds and for harvesting produce.
  • Gubba trug
  • wheelbarrow (and a spring rake and shovel for collecting)

4. Watering

  • 10 litre watering can
  • watering wand for accurate gentle watering
  • hose and sprayer head
  • Dial-a-mix hose-end sprayer for spreading effective micro organisms, activated worm tea, fish emulsion or seaweed tea.
  • hand held sprayer for misting seedlings

I will also include my Masport mulcher. I don’t use it as much now as I did when I had a bigger garden but it turns prunings into mulch very quickly and means that everything possible is retained to add to the organic matter of the property.

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Meet Rachel

I'm an enthusiastic gardener who loves eating things I've grown. Initally I grew and sold boxes of homegrown produce. When I couldn't satisfy the demand, I started teaching my customers how to grow their own. I teach, write, sew and cook. I'm also catching up on learning to play piano. More...

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