It’s time to look at some more specialized tools!

Loppers

Much like large pruning shears, these are good for cutting thicker stems or thin branches. They’re particularly useful for hedges, if you’re the landscaping type!

Pruning Saws

Pruning saws fit a niche between handsaws and loppers: they’re good for cleaning up some trees or woody bushes, but sacrifice precision, and don’t quite cut through large woods quite as easily as a handsaw might. For your garden variety landscaping (pun intended), it may do the trick!

Edger

• Not to be confused with a lawn edger, which is used for cleaning up your lawn rather than plotting out your dirt!

An edger is pretty simple; it has a wide and squat shovel-like blade, and it’s used to mark straight lines in your garden! It’s great for helping to visualize your square foot gardening, to bring your Planter garden plans to life!

Hori-Hori Garden Knives

Hori-hori knives are a fairly new edition to the western gardening scene, but its versatility has made it a popular addition to many a gardener’s toolkit! This small, flat, polished blade resembles something between a trowel and a knife, and can be used for either function; it’s great for use as a small trowel for digging, or as a knife for cutting roots or weeds, making harvesting a breeze!

Kneelers

This one’s in the name! There are a couple of types of kneelers; the most common type is a thick foam piece that supports your knees when you’re getting down into the dirt of your garden. Some are collapsible stools, made lightweight but sturdy for use in the garden for sitting or kneeling on! It could make a good tool table too, if you’re not afraid of staining the knees of your pants.

Watering Wands

Watering wands, used in conjunction with a good long hose, can make watering hanging pots or flower boxes easy! They’re similar to a shower head, which makes them great for reaching higher-up plants.

Soil Monitors

This handy soil sensor is great if you’re growing less hardy vegetables! Depending on what kind you get, these can give all sorts of information such as the pH of the soil, how moist the soil is, or how many hours of sunlight that it’s getting!

Soil Blocker

Used to create seed blocks, these tools are becoming more popular due to their reduction in waste! Soil blockers reduce the waste caused by fragile plastic seed trays, by making any tray a receptacle for seeding blocks.

Flamethrower

• Use these with extreme caution, if at all! Make sure your area allows them! These aren’t for playing around with!

Flamethrowers may be a surprise on a list for gardeners, but used correctly they can save a lot of time! Used mostly to burn off weeds, they could be used just before seeds germinate if you’re careful, or to just clean up weeds on dirt or stone. Not for use on any sort of wood mulch, naturally- don’t use a flamethrower on anything too flammable!

Still looking for more?

Are these tools a little out of your league? Well, no worries! The part 1 of this posted pair might be just what you were looking for! Head over to our post, “Unlock Your Garden’s Potential with the Right Tools!” to find more commonplace tools that might be just right for what you need! If you’re looking for something other than garden tools for your repertoire, we have another post you might like to check out: 2022 Gardener’s Gift Guide!

Armed with your brand new toolkit, it’s a great time to start preparing for the season! Check out Planter, on web or the app, to find the growing calendar in your area and start planning your garden journey!

Let’s start first with the basics!

Spades and Shovels

These two tools are very similar, but have some different strengths in the garden! A shovel has a pointed, rounded blade, and are great for general movement of soil; on the other hand, spades are squared off with straight sides, so are great for edging or for straightening the sides of holes!

Trowels

Trowels are small, handheld shovels that are great for more delicate soilwork. If you’re planting in window boxes, pots, or generally working with small plants like seedlings, these will be your best friend! Some of them will even have a serrated edge for cutting roots, if you need!

Rakes

You might have used a leaf rake before in your yard or garden, but there’s also another kind of rake that’s useful in the garden! Leaf rakes are lightweight, and great for removing light things from the top of your soil such as sticks or, of course, leaves. They’re also good for spreading mulch!

On the other hand, we have bow rakes! These rakes are more heavy-duty, and are very useful if you need to clear rocks from your soil or aerate and smooth over the top layer.

Garden Hoes

This tool has a long handle like a rake, but with a wide flat blade instead of teeth. They come in various sizes and shapes, and they’re great for breaking up soil, making furrows, or pulling up shallow rooted plants! If you need to clear out an area of grass for a new garden plot, a hoe will come in handy!

Cultivators

Hand cultivators are to rakes as trowels are to spades! This digging fork is useful for removing small weeds from your garden and roughing up soil.

Hand Weeders

If you have some stubborn weeds that bounce back from pulling or cutting, try out a hand weeder! Push it under the soil, under the roots of weeds, and lever the whole plant out! It’s great for dealing with weeds like dandelions, which have pretty frustrating root systems to deal with.

Pruning Shears

These handheld, specialized shears are great for work in the garden! They’re a perfect size for pruning and harvesting your crops.

Gloves

Gloves seem like a simple thing, but they’re an important inclusion in any gardener’s repertoire! Keep your hands clean, and protect from thorns, rashes, scrapes, cuts, and blisters! Some gloves are even made with hard, claw-like fingertips made for digging with!

Wheelbarrows and Carts

This tool will need some storage space itself, but a wheelbarrow is valuable for easy transportation of anything you need- plants, dirt, mulch, or other tools! If your garden is large, or a distance away from your mulch/shed/anything, this is for you!

Hoses

A good hose is indispensable, if you have more plants than a couple trips with a watering can can cover! Cut down on your trips back and forth to water, and pair your hose with an adjustable spray nozzle to control the amount and method of water use!

Some hoses are made to be laid out in your garden, too; these are called soaker hoses, and act like sprinklers. Lay them out around your garden amongst your crops, and they’ll slowly and steadily release water through their porous material to keep your soil moist!

Still looking for more?

Can’t get enough of garden tools? Well, never fear! Keep an eye out next week for this post’s partner, which will feature some less common and more advanced garden tools! If you’re looking for something other than garden tools for your repertoire, we have another post you might like to check out: 2022 Gardener’s Gift Guide!

While you wait for Part 2, it’s still a great time to start growing! Check out Planter, on web or the app, to find the growing calendar in your area!