TOOLS TO GIVE AND GET

by Barry Ballister

Issue 34 (Dec 06-Feb 07)

[Copyright © 2006, The Valley Table]

It takes a lot more ingenuity and imagination to wrap a shovel than it does to wrap a pair of socks; a garden cart isn't easy to hide behind the coats in the closet. But if someone on your holiday gift list is a garden bug--serious or casual--he or she has probably accumulated a shed full of mis-matched, B-grade and worn tools.

Veteran gardeners appreciate tools with purpose that help them manipulate and prepare their soil and plantings for maximum effect. New gardeners without a full complement of tools that they really need will be encouraged by new, high-quality tools--they'll become trusted friends that will assist them for many years to come. They are all relatively inexpensive--a $20 to $50 gardening gift can last a lifetime.

No matter the soil, every gardener needs the basic earth-working tools: spades, shovels, forks, hoes, cultivators and rakes. These basic garden tools come in three sizes: long-handled (5 to 6 feet long), shorter shafts with D-grip handles (3 to 4 feet long), and smaller hand tools designed for close, "down-to-earth" planting, transplanting and cultivating. Most modern garden tools come fashioned with either hardwood or metal handles; most metal-handle tools are lighter, but wooden-handle tools have better balance. Many long-handled tools have rubber-wrapped shafts for grip and cushioning. Forged steel blades are stronger and keep their cutting edge longer than stamped blades.

If your gardener/giftee has a large plot or expects to expand the growing area or landscape beds, then shovels, spades and rakes are perfect gift choices.

Shovels have a pointed blade edge and are the tool for digging holes to plant large-balled shrubs and trees. They are made in both long-handled and shorter D-grip models. Steel stamped-blade shovels begin at about $12; forged steel-blade shovels with hardwood ash handles (smooth as a baseball bat) will be double or triple that price.

Spades are rectangular blades with a straight, sharp digging edge. Some spades have curved side edges for gravel or sand work. There is also a tool called a drain spade--its long, narrow, slightly concave blade is for ditching and deepening furrows. Spades, like shovels, are priced from under $20 to $40.

Of all the shovels and spades available, most impressive is a line called Razorbacks--blackened, sharp-edged, forged-steel blades deeply inserted into thick, smooth handles. They are lifetime tools that start at $26.

Pitchforks are used for turning the soil, breaking new ground or double-digging (removing and saving the top foot of soil from the bed, removing the second foot of under-soil, then rotating the layers to create a fresh, more fertile planting ground). The pitchfork is not an easy tool to master, but it works the soil deeper than a cultivator or garden roto-tiller. Short-handle D-grip pitchforks are the only style worth considering--they'll cost you about $25.

Hoes and cultivators are cousins. Long-handled tools, they are available with either hardwood- or metal-handle models. Quality hoes and cultivators should have an extended steel "wrap" joining the blade to the handle: The force of use impacts the handle about eight to ten inches above the blade/handle joint. Hoes have a "rectangular" sharp edged blade and are used to break up clods, cut out weed clumps and loosen soil around plants. Hoes are also used to "hoe-up" around tuber plants like potatoes and create hills or mounds for squashes, pumpkins and corn rows. A cultivator has three or four slightly curved 6-inch tines that really dig into the soil, removing weed clumps, stones and clods while leaving clean, aerated soil. High quality tools are priced at less than $20.

Rakes come in two designs. The basic garden rake, also called a Kodiak rake, has a straight steel horizontal spine with 12 to 14 4-inch tines. It is always long-handled in either wood or metal and is often wrapped in rubber or latex for comfort and grip. The Kodiak rake is used for cultivating, finishing and preparing soil surfaces for seeding or raking out unwanted growth. High-quality garden rakes are priced under $30; lesser quality examples go for under $20. Get the best.

The bow rake, also called a Dutch hoe, has a bowed spin and curved tines. The bow rake is more useful as a cultivator tool and works the soil loosely. It seems to have a lighter touch and more "bounce" than the Kodiak rake. It is also useful for garden cleanup and spreading mulch. Dutch hoe rakes also check in under $30.

Leaf and lawn rakes are different than garden rakes. They are lighter, with thinner handles and are designed with a spring or bounce action to rake up lawn clippings and leaves. There are several sizes and styles in metal, bamboo and plastic. A shrub rake is an interesting, narrow, very long rake with 8 to 12 tines, perfect for cleaning out leaves from around landscape shrubs where larger, wider leaf rakes cannot maneuver. It's a wonderful gift for less than $10.

Look for a traditional bamboo rake, especially for leaf work--it is very light, easy to maneuver and seems to work best controlling the elusive fall leaf pile. A giant rake with a 28-inch spread and smaller bamboo leaf rakes of excellent quality all sell for less than $30.

Metal spring rakes are the workhorses of lawn rakes. They clean up clippings, wet waste and lawn undergrowth and leave a soft surface for seeding. With metal or wood handles they are long-lived, must-have tools for any gardener or caring homeowner, especially at less than $20.

Plastic tools are nobody's idea of a lifetime gift, but there are some well-made plastic lawn and leaf rakes. An extra-wide, 30-inch red plastic samurai of a rake that could cut a swath through heavy fall leaves with minimum effort sells for $12 (get one for everybody at that price).

Hand tools probably are the easiest garden gifts to wrap, and the most indispensable to the gardener. The four basic garden hand tools are the wide pointed trowel, the narrow pointed trowel, the fork, and the cultivator. There also are hand tools designed for very specific garden work, such as the crevice trowel (with a very long, narrow blade for rock gardening), a springy claw-like thing called a scratcher, and a D-grip bulb planter that looks like a cookie cutter. Quality is determined by the blade: Again, forged is better than stamped. (There also are stainless steel blades, alloy combinations and very durable plastic inventions. Tin is never acceptable.) The depth to which the blade is inserted into the handle also is a critical clue to quality: The Garden Tools of Maine brand (one of the best) features forged steel blades inserted deeply into hardwood ash handles--all blade edges are beveled and can be resharpened. They can be found in many Hudson Valley hardware stores and garden supply outlets from about $16. Springhill also makes a very high quality set that includes a trowel, fork and transplanter. Look for their stainless steel blades and inserts, rosewood handles and leather straps for $35. You can find cheap, stamped steel, short-stemmed hand tools almost everywhere. They're not durable. Pass.

Pruners, loppers and shears are welcome additions to any gardener's arsenal. Pruners are produced in two different designs for two purposes: The bypass pruner has scissor-like blades (usually curved) that are designed to cut green, growing branches and flowers without bleeding; the anvil pruner is for cutting woody or dead growth. A really well-made pruner feels good in your hand; it works without effort and leaves the cut stems and branches clean and neat. They're invaluable for the gardener. Prices start at about $7 but can top out at $40 to $60.

If your gardener/giftee has shade or fruit trees to deal with, maybe a lopper should be on your gift list. A long-handled, heavy-duty pruning tool with strong steel blades, a lopper can cut branches up to an inch-and-a-half thick. Varieties are many: Some have wood handles, some metal; Some even telescope. Almost all have handle grips. The impressive Gilmor brand lopper comes with heavy-duty shock absorbers (an important aid to reducing fatigue and shoulder injury). A telescoping handle design allows the gardeners to work higher, with less ladder use. Excellent loppers are priced in the $30 range; even the very best are less than $50.

Landscape gardening with shrubbery requires pruning with shears. Again, variations abound: There are long-bladed shears with wood handles as well as adjustable, metal-handled shears with cushion grips; several brands tout high-quality steel blades with life-long edges. Pay from under $20 up to $50. Another excellent landscaping tool gift is a folding pruning saw--excellent saws, beautifully designed, boxed or unboxed, start at less than $25.

Watering cans may be impossible to wrap, but they're useful, delightful and indispensable. There are many designs in plastic, galvanized, copper, brass (or both), painted and plain, from 2-quart to 2.5-gallons capacity. (Remember: A gallon of water weighs 8 pounds--a 2.5-gallon can filled with water weighs over 20 pounds, way too heavy for grandma.) Superior watering cans have a no-spill flange across the fill hole, a horizontal brace from can to spout arm and a double trundle (a two-position hand-hold) handle. The traditional galvanized water can with a 2.5-gallon capacity sells for about $25; a 1.5-gallon brass-and-copper beauty is a $65 to $70 item. Plastic watering cans are available for less than $10. Top-of-the-line Haus watering cans feature extra-long spouts with flat rosette sprinklers.

Hoses, sprinklers and nozzles seem totally utilitarian (they are), but they are always welcome and are on every gardener's replacement list. Hoses come in all materials. "Flex" materials and "all-weather" compositions are good choices. A good quality 50-foot hose costs $12.99; 100 feet cost less than $25. Why not give the flower and vegetable gardener a soaker hose? Laid out in a garden just into the soft soil, the hose seeps water gently into the plant roots--a silent, easy and effective way to water. A 50-foot length is only $13. On the other hand, keeping hoses of any sort neat and accessible usually means investing in some sort of hose reel or winder. Static reels can be had cheap, though fancier, painted-steel models can be up to $100. Winders are more complicated and troublesome--really good ones that last, and work, start at $50 and go way up.

Every gardener and homeowner has a favorite hose-nozzle design. Green Thumb makes a four-unit package sold in many good retail outlets. It contains two different pattern nozzles, a "Y" spigot attachment with flow-control valves and a power nozzle for washing asphalt, siding and the car. Excellent quality, the full set is under $25.

Right next to the hoses and nozzles are sprinklers. Their designs, spray patterns and mechanics are ingenious and varied. For watering the lawn I prefer the circle spray with an adjustable spray pattern from "rain" to "mist." The unit should have a "ski" frame bottom for easy positioning. For garden watering, the adjustable back-and-forth design works fine. Look to pay from $12 to $40.

Wheelbarrows are dead--leave them to the masons and cement jockeys. Welcome the yard cart. Yard carts combine the carrying capacity of a wheelbarrow with the versatility and mobility of a big-wheel flat cart. There are several variations on the yard-cart design, but the general structure is based on two 8- to 10-inch wheels forward (for easy rolling) and either two large rear legs, or rear legs with smaller wheels (for stability and maneuverability). The front is designed to allow the gardener to tip out waste materials, dirt or compost, even small stone; some models have a tool-storage area built into the handle and/or hangers on the side to carry bags with small tools, seeds or bulbs. Even at the low-end price of $30, these carts are tough, lightweight and stable. They can easily transport a heavy, balled shrub or tree or several bags of mulch, soil or compost. A yard cart is an excellent investment and a replacement for the limited, difficult, tipsy wheelbarrow or the flat, high-sided (and expensive) "Vermont" cart. Hard to wrap, easy to love.

Garden gloves were made to be gifts, and the choices are endless. From the common Dickies cotton glove ($1.79) to the Bionic Gardening Rose Glove that covers everything from tip to pit ($65), gloves abound. Look for leather palms and stretch lycra backs from $13, snug-fit leather gloves with nylon mesh at $10, mud gloves to keep the hands clean, comfortable and dry ($12), pigskin work gloves (from $6), unlined suede leather gloves ($10), or split pigskin gloves with the smooth side inside for greater grip outside and no calluses ($18). The Guard pigskin glove is especially designed for winter work, with a fleece lining and vented fingers ($18), and John Deere makes a work and garden glove from tough, flexible split cowhide with a snug wrist ($16). Maine Garden Products retails latex-dipped cotton gloves that resist thorns, thistles and woody stems (in four colors—$9 a pair). Give the whole set, or keep one for yourself.

There are gloves and then there are Foxgloves--the best gardening gloves in the world. Made in Beacon (right here in the Hudson Valley) from seamless, breathable, tight-knit fabric that repels dirt and resists water, they cover well past the wrist and are fully washable and can be low-heat dried. They make great winter gloves--$25 a pair in red or purple. (Try them for evening wear and driving beautiful cars, as well.)

If there are gardeners on your gift list this holiday season, don't sweat it. Just tie a ribbon on a great rake or get a big box and fill it with some of the little things that can cheer a gardener's heart. When the holiday glow is gone, the snow and dark winter days pass and the first soft days of early spring arrive your gifts will lift your gardener's spirits all over again, and again.