Gardening tools for beginners

 Gardening tools and tips for beginners 

1.  Gloves

Gardening is a good hobby and enjoyable past time. Free time can be transformed into a fruitful time through this useful and healthy hobby but it can cause injuries without the right pair of gloves.

• Gloves should be light weight, durable and easy to handle the seed and small saplings.
• Gloves should fit in your hands so that you can easily do your work without any blisters or any wounds.
• Fabrics used in gloves should be water resistant and breathable so that it gives a dry and comfortable feel after hours of work.
• Longer cuffs covers your wrist and forearms thus preventing water and soil getting in.
• Prefer supplex nylon gloves as it combines the comfort of cotton with durability of nylon.

2. Garden Fork

A garden fork is a gardening implement, with a handle and several (usually four) short, sturdy tines. It is used for loosening, turning and lifting over soil in garden.

• Prefer spines with stainless steel, which makes the items sturdy, do not bent, durable and lasting anti-corrosion.
• Choose soft, contoured handles that are comfortable to hold to prevent hand strain to make garden work a breeze.
• Find a garden fork with hang hole on the handle for easy storage after use.
• Select a square tines over a flat tines as they are stronger which prevent them from bend when they hit a hard surface or root.

3. Loppers

Loppers are a type of long scissors used for trimming twigs and small branches, like pruning shears with very long handles. They are one of the largest type of garden cutting tool. They are usually handled with two hands, and comes typically between 30 centimetres and 91 centimetres long.

• Loppers should be easy to use and can also be used by weak arms like of aged person.
• Like hand pruners, take care of its blades. It should be high quality blades so that it can last longer and don’t need frequent sharpening. If possible, go for Teflon coated blades as it prevent sticky material on the blades.
• Loppers are available in different lengths so as per your garden need choose the right one for you. Don’t select longer handled loppers as it can be heavy to tackle.
• Choose any loppers with good rubberized grip and light weight  [aluminium one].

4. Hand pruners

To get rid of unwanted portion of plants or dead parts, a best quality of hand pruners is a must.

• Hand pruners should be powerful enough to deal with a variety of small plants and should be easy to handle.
• While choosing pruners take care of its blades. It should be high quality blades so that it can last longer and don’t need frequent sharpening. If possible, go for Teflon coated blades as it prevent sticky material on the blades.
• Hand pruners should be comfortable to use and should work even with less strength.
• For cleaner cuts and less injury to plants, pruners should be sharpened regularly. 
• Finally, it should not create soreness in hand even if used for long hours.

5. Hand Trowel

It is usually much smaller in comparison to a spade or shovel, but, mainly crafted for use with one hand. It is used for digging and making small holes, especially for planting and to remove weeds, mixing in manure or other essentials, and transferring plants to pots.

• Hand trowel should be made with steel. It should be lightweight yet hard in performing any tasks in the garden without staining and stressing your arms.
• Hand trowel of steel will be rust and corrosion free and helps you to use the tool for almost all your gardening needs. It can be used in wet surfaces without any difficulty.
• Prefer a hand trowel with broad blade to take out more soil or a narrow, long trowel to deal with rocky soil, hard surface and to dig out weeds.
• Grip should be comfortable enough to be used for long hours.

6. Hoe

Hoe is a hand tool used for digging, removing weeds and forming raw ground soil.

• Blade should be of hardened metal so that it remains durable and long lasting.
• Blade should be sharp so that it can perform its work of digging and balancing perfectly and its makes the work easy.
• Prefer a wooden handle as this wooden portion absorbs jerk and shock.

7. Spade

It is designed for the use of removing and lifting up dirt. This can be used for digging a planting hole, or a ditch or to break up lumps in the soil. Usually the blade or digging end is made of metal and is sharp. In gardening, a spade is a hand tool whose upper edge is dull, and is where the digger can keep his foot to force the sharp end into the soil. 

• Blade of spade should be of hardened steel for rough and long lasting work.
• Wooden handles of spade absorb shock and durable too.
• Upper edge of blade can be used to put extra force with foot. So, choose the spade with flat upper edge for such work.

8. Rake

A rake is a broom like tool for outside use; a tool consisting of a toothed bar fixed or tines fixed to a handle, and used to collect grass, leaves, hay etc., Rakes comes in different sizes and shapes.

• Different size helps to do the broom perfectly. Smaller size helps to take out dirt between and under shrubs or cleaning small areas of the lawn whereas when the width is increased, it can be used in large yards and makes the work easy.
• Go for a steel tines with aluminum handle as it will be lightweight and rust free.

9. Garden Hose with Sprayer and Adjustable Nozzle

Hose is essential in garden to provide water to every corner of garden. A hose with attached sprayer can be used for multiple purposes in the garden and even for domestic work.

• Good quality hose is must so that it can last for long and does not require frequent repair. Another issue with hose is of weather change. Usually rubber used to expand or shrink as per the weather condition which results in spoiling the hose.
• Varieties of sprayer are available in the market. There are many patterns rotating garden hose nozzle. More the pattern, more flexibility it provide for different work.

10. Watering Cans

Watering cans are most commonly used irrigation objects in a garden, because they are multipurpose and easy to use. 

• It is available in metal as well as in plastic.
• Plastic cans are light weight, easy to carry but not so durable.
• Metal cans are heavy, difficult to carry but they are long lasting.
• Choose the size of cans according to your capability to carry it.
• Select a dual-handle design which accommodates multiple hand positions for better maneuverability and control. This help watering more accurate, and reduces stress on your wrists while carrying it.

11. Watering Wand

Garden watering wands are basically a wand-like tool used for watering the plants. They are usually made to attach to the end of a hose and water then flows through the wand to a water sprinkler head or sprayer nozzle where it is sprayed out like shower to water plants.

• Watering wand offers you a variety of length (around 92cm to 141cm). Choose as per your need.
• Reach hard-to-water areas of your gardens and homes with a super-simple mechanism of watering wand.
• Go for a comfortable grip and sliding thumb valve.
• Prefer lightweight for reducing fatigue and rust-proof aluminium shaft for durability.

12. Wheelbarrow

Wheelbarrows are used for moving a variety of things, such as disposing of garden debris, moving fertilizers or compost to the garden, moving small or large shrubs from one place to another, taking bricks, rocks or even for mixing manures or fertilizers.

• Prefer two wheels cart as they have good balance and easy to carry heavy loads.
• Choose single hand cart as they can be moved with single hand.
• After use, clean the wheelbarrow and dry it to prevent from rusting.
• Keep the wheel inflated for easy movement of wheelbarrow.

By investing in these essential gardening tools, your shed will house everything it needs to keep your garden beautiful and growing.

Let us know on Twitter if you like this article and read our next announcements on our Telegram Channel.