Picking the Right Gardening Tools

If you’re thinking about taking your gardening seriously and getting out

there every day to increase the attractiveness of your garden, then you

will want to get the right tools to help you in this. You might be tempted

to go out to the store and just buy the nearest things you see, but you’ll

be much happier if you put lots of thought into the styles and types of

tools you’re buying. There are styles designed just for gardening, and

you’ll be better off buying those.



You can find most of the tools you will need at your local gardening or

home improvement shop. Usually the employees will be simply thrilled to

assist you in finding the ideal tools. If you go to a shop that

specializes in gardening, you can usually get some advice in addition to

service. Gardening store employees are usually an untapped wealth of

wisdom, and they are how I learned almost all that I know about gardening

today.



If you are having a hard time finding the right tool or if you want to

save some money, you might try looking online for the supplies you need.

You’ll have to pay the shipping costs and wait an extra week or two, but

often if you buy more than one tool, the total savings will be worth it.

You should always buy from a reputable seller, though, and search around

beforehand for anything negative that people had to say about their buying

experience.



As far as basic digging tools go, you might already have all you’ll need.

There are several types that you should get though, for different specific

tasks. A round point shovel is good for digging holes for plants. A spade

is necessary for all the more intricate work. A garden fork you might not

use as much, but I have one in my tool shed and I’ve been thankful for it

on multiple occasions. Having these different varieties of digging tools

can help you to minimize the work you have to do. For example, if you try

digging a big hole with a little spade then you’ll end up rather tired.

The same goes if you are attempting to do more detailed work with a big

clumsy shovel.



A rake is an absolute necessity. You most likely already have one, but I’m

guessing it’s a lawn rake and not a garden rake. There is definitely a

difference, and if you try to use a lawn rake in a garden then you will

not be happy with the results. Same if you buy a grading or a contractor’s

rake. You’ll want to look for a bowhead rake. I’ve found these are the

best for gardening purposes. They will provide you the maximum control and

accuracy, so you don’t accidentally tear up your precious plants.



As far as hoes go, I don’t believe any gardener should have less than 3.

There are so many useful varieties on the market that I have a hard time

recommending just one, and that’s why I’ll tell you all the ones I usually

use. The one I use the most is the onion hoe, which is very lightweight

and ideal for small cultivations and weeding. The Warren hoe is a larger

model, with a pointed end. If you need to make a hole or dig out a pesky

weed, this is the one for you. There are several other varieties, but I

recommend starting with the ones I mentioned. As you progress in your

gardening savvy, you will find the need for more types.



Most people believe that gardening just consists of a simple spade. But

there are many, many tools with many more variations that you will use in

your gardening career. Usually you can start with just a few different

tools, but you’ll always find that you can use more varieties for special

situations. It’s just a matter of recognizing when one tool could be more

efficient than another.

Picking the Ideal Location for your Garden

Once you have picked what garden you want, there are many other factors

you need to decide before you actually get to work with your gardening

tools. Mainly you need to choose its location. This is usually decided by

several factors: How you will water it, how much shade it needs, etc. Some

of these questions can be very important in deciding whether your garden

lives or dies, so don't take them lightly. You need to take each one into

special consideration.



Choosing the garden's location within your yard is one of the more

important things to decide. You want to choose a location that will

provide an ideal climate for the plants in your garden. I don't know what

type of garden you're dealing with so I can't give you specific advice,

but if you do a Google search for the plant you're dealing with then

you'll find a plethora of sites informing you about the perfect conditions

for its growing. After this, it's just a matter of finding the most shaded

or most sunny spot in your yard.



Another deciding factor is how you plan on watering your garden. If you

have a sprinkler system already installed for your grass, then it could be

a good idea to put your garden in the middle of your yard. Then it will

get watered at the same time, and require no extra work from your part.

But if this doesn't provide for a good location for your garden, then you

might end up watering it by hose or dragging a sprinkler out there. In

this case, just make sure your garden is within the ideal distance for a

hose to reach. While this might not seem like a good thing to base the

entire location of your garden on, you'll be surprised at how nice it is

to plan out in advanced.



Getting the perfect amount of shade for your garden can be a difficult

endeavor. Once you have a basic idea for where you want your garden, you

might want to watch it and record how many hours it spends in sunlight and

how many it spends in shade. Compare your findings to an online web site,

and you should be able to determine whether the spot you chose is ideal or

not for planting and starting your garden in. Of course the amount will

change as the seasons change, but this should give you a good idea of what

to basically expect for the rest of the year. If necessary, later you can

put up some kind of shade to protect your garden from getting too much sun.



After you've determined the ideal place for your garden and whether it has

the right amount of sunlight, and whether you will be able to conveniently

water it, you're one step closer to actually starting your garden. Of

course there are other factors that I have overlooked here, but mostly you

should be able to decide whether your location is good or not based on

common sense. Just think: If I were a plant, would I be able to flourish

here? If you can honestly answer yes, then I think its time for you to

head out to your local gardening store and buy the necessary soil and

fertilizer to get started! Have fun!

Picking a Healthy Plant

When it comes to getting started with your garden, you have two choices; planting seeds, or buying entire plants. Both have their own benefits. If you plant seeds and care for them every day, you will find it is a much more rewarding experience when you have a full, healthy plant. However, this method is a lot more risky. I can’t tell you how many seeds I’ve planted and never seen any trace of whatsoever.



If you choose to buy the plant from a nursery and install it in your garden, it reduces a lot of the work involved in making it healthy. However, I have found in the past that many incompetent nursery workers will absolutely ruin the future of the plant by putting certain chemicals or fertilizers in. I have adapted to this incompetence by learning to choose the healthiest plant of the bunch. Here I will discuss some of the techniques I use in my screening process for plants.



It may sound superficial, but the one thing you need to check for on your prospective plants is how nice they look. As far as plants go, you can truly judge a book by its cover. If a plant has been treated healthily and has no diseases or pests, you can almost always tell by how nice it looks. If a plant has grown up in improper soil, or has harmful bugs living in it, you can tell from the holey leaves and wilted stems.



If you’re browsing the nursery shelves looking for your dream plant, you want to exclude anything that currently has flowers. Plants are less traumatized by the transplant if they do not currently have any flowers. It’s best to find ones that just consist of buds. However if all you have to choose from are flowering plants, then you should do the unthinkable and sever all of them. It will be worth it for the future health of the plant. I’ve found that transplanting a plant while it is blooming results in having a dead plant ninety percent of the time.



Always check the roots before you plop down the money to purchase the plant. Of course if the roots are in absolutely terrible condition you will be able to tell by looking at the rest of the plant. But if the roots are just slightly out of shape, then you probably won’t be able to tell just by looking at it. Inspect the roots very closely for any signs of brownness, rottenness, or softness. The roots should always be a firm, perfectly well formed infrastructure that holds all the soil together. One can easily tell if the roots are before or past their prime, depending on the root to soil ratio. If there are a ridiculous amount of roots with little soil, or a bunch of soil with few roots, you should not buy that plant.





If you find any abnormalities with the plant, whether it be the shape of the roots or any irregular features with the leaves, you should ask the nursery employees. While usually these things can be the sign of an unhealthy plant, occasionally there will be a logical explanation for it. Always give the nursery a chance before writing them off as horrendous. After all, they are (usually) professionals who have been dealing with plants for years.



So if you decide to take the easy route and get a plant from a nursery, you just have to remember that the health of the plants has been left up to someone you don’t know. Usually they do a good job, but you should always check for yourself. Also take every precaution you can to avoid transplant shock in the plant (when it has trouble adjusting to its new location, and therefore has health problems in the future). Usually the process goes smoothly, but you can never be too sure.