Basic garden tools for the beginner

Shears and pruners

These two are the basic tools for trimming the hedges and taking off dead shoots and branches on the plants. For a person interested in pruning their own hedge, a good pair of shears will serve you for years.

So if you are planning on starting work on your garden, first arm yourself with the above tools and watch as the work of your hands thrives.

Gloves

No need to ruin a perfectly good manicure because you chose to tend to your favourite plants. A pair of heavy duty gardening gloves will keep the dirt from embedding itself in the nails and chipping them.

Leather or cotton gloves with a protective plastic coating are the best alternative as they stop the hands from blistering as you work and also stop thorny plants from piercing the skin.

Watering can

This is a nice accessory to have right next to the flower bed but is also very handy for watering individual plants. They are made of plastic or metal in various colours and designs to suit one’s tastes.

Wheelbarrow

Whether for moving seedlings around, carrying compost and mulch or just ferrying soil and tools, the wheelbarrow is the means of transport in the garden and the one equipment any gardener worth his salt must have.

Garden hoe

Probably as old as gardening itself, this is a tool that is used for cultivating soil and removing weeds. When buying a hoe, you will have options from flat blade, heart-shaped, diamond-shaped to pointed blade hoes among other types.

Trowel

If planting bulbs and seedlings, then a trowel is the tool to use. The serrated edges along the side of the blade also make it ideal for digging out shallow rooted weeds as the blade cuts through small roots.

For container gardening, trowels and soil scoops are some of the essential tools for planting and moving soil into the container.

Hose pipe

A hose will stretch on for a longer distance and using nozzles that are available in shops, you can turn it into a sprinkler and control the pressure for watering the plants.

Shovel or spade

These two top the list as basic requirement for any gardener. A shovel can be used for, not only moving soil around, but also digging out plants.

Sharpening it every few months makes the digging much easier and keeping the handle well attached keeps the shovel and your hands from suffering any damage.

A spade, which is more of a flat square blade usually has a shorter handle and is good for slicing through ‘hardened’ soil. It is also a good tool for edging. The best type of spade is one that is made from stainless steel as it is resistant to rust.

Rake

Mulching, smoothing out soil, collecting grass after slashing; these are all things you can use the rake for. They can also be used for collecting debris or breaking up clumps in soil or manure.

A leaf rake, which a more flexible version of the rake, is good for clearing leaves and small stones from the lawn.

A garden fork

This is used for turning and aerating soil. It also comes in handy when trying to break down chunks of manure. It is essential for mixing nutrients in the soil.