Plant Gardens 101

Helping you create a greener future for our children
Subscribe

Archive for the ‘Tools of the Trade’

A Brief Explaination Of Gardening Tools

October 15, 2011 By: Jasper Sayer Category: Tools of the Trade

I think you know very well about the rules and regulations to keep your plants to grow healthy in your garden. For getting sustainable growth of your garden plants you do require good soil quality, sunlight and sufficient water. Although these items have been gifted by nature, you ought to require modern gardening tools to upkeep your garden in a good state. Gardening tools help a lot in taking care of your plants as well as the good growing conditions and positive effect on your plant’s health.

Defective gardening tools might have cause injury on your plants or cut your plants or totally plug your plants from the soil. In order to prevent the occurrence of such untoward incident, it is a must to look for the best gardening tools, which will provide your plants loving tender care. Once you called a tool as ‘Best gardening tools”, it refers to a tool, which will permit labor saving methods and that allows energy efficiency.

Here you can see some of the best gardening tools available in the market to provide a better care than ever for your plants in the garden. (more…)

Word of the Day: poacher’s spade

October 08, 2011 By: Garden Dictionary Category: Garden Dictionary, Tools of the Trade

A spade with a narrow blade, useful for digging out a plant from a crowded flower bed without disturbing neighboring plants.

You Should Choose The Right Gardening Tool For Your Garden

September 30, 2011 By: Jasper Sayer Category: Tools of the Trade

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. (more…)

Word of the Day: Spading Fork

September 09, 2011 By: Garden Dictionary Category: Garden Dictionary, Tools of the Trade

A broad-tined fork, useful for digging into sod, for harvesting potatoes or root crops, or for mixing amendments into the soil.
spade

Word of the Day: spade

September 05, 2011 By: Garden Dictionary Category: Garden Dictionary, Tools of the Trade

A sturdy digging tool with a thick handle and a heavy flat blade that can be pressed into the ground with the foot.
spading fork

Word of the Day: pole saw

August 11, 2011 By: Garden Dictionary Category: Garden Dictionary, Tools of the Trade

A short pruning saw attached to a long handle, useful for pruning overhead branches.

The Range Of Gardening Tools Available

June 09, 2011 By: Cindy Heller Category: Tools of the Trade

If you have ever been in a home improvement store and strolled past the aisles filled with gardening tools, you will probably understand this. Here are some descriptions of the common gardening tools and their functions.
Shovel or Spade

Every gardener needs a shovel for digging. The most versatile and widely used is the round point shovel. It is used to dig, scoop, or to carry dirt from one point to another. The square point shovel is similar except as the name suggest; the tip of the shovel is flat and straight edged. It is used for leveling large areas and as a scoop for gravel, soil, or snow.

Trowel or Garden Shovel
These are the small shovel tools that you use for scooping out the soil to create holes for planting new flowers.

Gardening Forks
If you are planting a small area or are using planting containers, then you will only need a hand fork. Forks are used for working in tightly planted areas, removing unwanted weeds and for transplanting small seedlings. Forks are also used to loosen and aerate the soil.

If you are going for a larger garden, a garden fork will be necessary. Garden forks are be used for digging and they can also be used for aerating the soil, moving compost and cultivating a garden. (more…)

Different Types Of Gardening Equipment

May 19, 2011 By: Juliet Spalding Category: Tools of the Trade

The types and worth of tackle you use to take caring of your plants not only have an effect on your plants’ wellbeing, but your own as well.

Defective tools could trigger harm to your plants, but it is shoddier if they are so uncomfortable to use that they give you blisters or a bad back. To evade this, look for the farming tools that will do the best job for your print of farming. It must have the right quantity of ability to be energy effective while also being able to do the job lacking causing you any more strain than basic.

Here is an appraisal of farming tools from the farming experts themselves.

1. Garden Shredders

JCB SS2400 expected five stars out of five from the gardening gear reviewers from recommendedbuys.co.uk. It has a 2400 watt motor and comes with a silent gear crushing approach. It is one talented tool to farther and hasten your shredding activity.

Ryobi ESR – 2240 Electric Shredder is an easy to assemble patch shredder fitting for prunings up to 40mm. It comes with built-in wheels and a nozzle for increased portability. (more…)

How to Make a Weed Dabber

May 16, 2011 By: Michael McGroarty Category: How To Grow..., Tools of the Trade

You are welcome to use this article on your website or in your newsletter as long as you reprint it as is, including the contact information at the end. Website URLs must be active links. You are welcome to use this article with an affiliate link, http://www.freeplants.com/resellers.htm

The tool that I am going to tell you about is for using herbicides such as RoundUp. The biggest mistakes that people make when using non-selective herbicides like RoundUp is overspray getting the herbicide on plants that they did not intend to spray, and over applying the product. If you spray to the point of run off, you are applying way too much.

The weed dabber is a tool used for spot treating weeds without getting the herbicide on other plants. (more…)

Tips On Using Powered Garden Tools

May 10, 2011 By: Cindy Heller Category: Tools of the Trade

Some people enjoy the sweat and the work out from using manual garden tools while others prefer the ease of usage and speed conferred by powered garden tools. The size of your garden will determine the type of tools you need. There is no point getting big powered tools for a small lawn. Powered tools in general confer speed and power. Some small powered tools are useful even for a small garden. If you considering or have decide to buy a set of powered garden tools, take a moment and find out what you should look out for.

The common large powered garden tools are lawn mower, powered saw and leaves blower. For small garden, these may be not necessary. However, most people will benefit from having powered shears as it provides power for cutting thick stems and branches, which are common gardening tasks.

Cordless grass Shears
For small jobs, a cordless grass shears is ideal. Cordless grass shears are perfect for the inaccessible where a lawn mower cannot reach such as landscaped or raised flowerbeds. With this, you can easily trim the overgrown grass that is close to your flowers and shrubs without worries. When shopping around for cordless grass shears, look for batteries, which provide the maximum amount of cutting per each battery charge. Nickel cadmium battery is preferred, as it is long lasting as well as safe to use and store. (more…)

Fall Gardening – Do’s & Don’ts

April 26, 2011 By: Andy Asbury Category: Tools of the Trade

We’ve been trained to believe that certain gardening chores must happen in the fall, or face the risk of an unproductive garden next in the following year. Indeed, some tasks are better taken on in the fall, but contrary to common belief, others can be put off or left out altogether.

Here is a list of some of the fall season do’s and don’ts to help your garden thrive in the coming year.

DO clean out any annuals or dead plants in the fall if you don’t want to face them in the spring.

DON’T remove dead plants if you want to maintain some vegetation in your garden over the winter. Keep in mind that they will break down over the winter providing compost for your garden. In the spring, simply turn the soil over and they will magically disappear. (more…)

Gardening Tips – Buying the Right Tools for the Job

April 08, 2011 By: Cindy Heller Category: Tips Tricks & Steps, Tools of the Trade

If you are an amateur hobbyist or just starting off on gardening, consider buying a garden tool set. They tend to be cheap but of lower quality. The advantage is that you will have almost the full range of garden tools needed to start a garden. Once you have gained more experience working on your garden, you can better assess your tool requirement and preference. There may be problems, which you can foresee the tools required until you actually work on the affected areas. Also, every gardener will have a collection of tools in which some tools are constantly used, while other tools neglected and forgotten. You can spend more money on better quality tools once you have a grip on your garden and your gardening requirement.

Maintenance of Garden Tools

When you are buying new gardening tools, you are likely to be faced with a choice between low price and low quality or higher priced and better quality tools. Good quality garden tools are designed to last, but they must be also be properly maintained. If you opt for cheap garden tools, maintaining them is less of an issue. When they break or wear out, you simply throw them away and buy a replacement.

A basic maintenance regiment for garden tools involves cleaning and oiling. Always remove all traces of soil and plants remain from your garden tools after usage. If necessary, dismantle your tool to get at the dirt. Hose down with water to remove mud and scrape off any stubborn dirt with a brush or a screwdriver. Cleanse and rinse thoroughly any tools, which have been used for application of chemicals such as fertilizer. Fertilizer is corrosive to metal. After cleaning, do not store away tools when they are wet. Allow them to air dry completely to prevent rust and wood rot. At least once a year, rub linseed oil into the wooden part of your tools to make them last longer. Before storing, wipe the metal parts of your tools with an oily rag after each use. Or use a spray to apply the oil and wipe with a clean cloth. (more…)

Ergonomic Garden Tools That you Should Use

March 17, 2011 By: Cindy Heller Category: Tools of the Trade

Gardening is a favorite past time for many people. For the professionals or those really like to spend long hours working in the garden, ergonomic garden tools are preferred. Ergonomic garden tools are basically designed for easy handling and usage. It is a boon for people with problems in their joints and or have weakness in their hands.

Construction of Ergonomic Tools

Ergonomic tools are often made with longer and bigger handles so that they are easier to hold. Many such tools have comfortable foam handles or specially designed grip for better holding. Weight is a very important consideration, so the material used are often lightweight plastic. Lighter weight allows the tool to be lifted and held up for longer duration. The design may also incorporate features like a prop or support.

Some of the ergonomic design considerations may be to enable dual usage or multiple functions. For example, many garden tools such as the tool storage box can double up as a stool or a small stand. Complementing this convenience, are the designs, which allow working from a sitting position. Some tools have longer handles for this purpose. Other tools with long handle may be designed for working from an upright position instead of bending over. An example is the long handle grass shears. Trimming the stubborn growth at the edges of footpaths and walls can be taxing on the body, especially when there is constant bending, leaning over or squatting. The ergonomic design of the long handle grass shears can help to eliminate these problems. Some grass shears are also designed with turning heads to enable the right cutting angle. Some also have wheels attached at the bottom for support. (more…)

Top 3 Essential Gardening Tools

February 26, 2011 By: Cindy Heller Category: Tools of the Trade

Gardening is a great hobby. You will get great satisfaction from creating a well-groomed garden. Some people find it a great way to relax and de-stress as well. Here we will discuss three essential gardening tools, which are must have for creating a good-looking garden. Other a shovel for digging, the grass shears, the garden rake and the watering can are very important for proper maintenance of your garden.

Grass and Pruning Shears

The humble shears. It looks like a pair of scissors with extra-long blades. It is used for trimming small over-growth. Pruning shears help to keep all your plants properly trimmed to give your garden a well-kept look. Grass shears are used for trimming around footpath and landscaping. Shears can come with either long or short handles. The long-handled ones will take the stress off your back, while the shorter handles can be easily held. For thicker branches, you may need a powered shears. (more…)

Learn About Modem Gardening Equipment

February 07, 2011 By: Jon Simms Category: Tools of the Trade

The types and quality of equipment you use to take care of your plants not only have an effect on your plants’ health, but your own as well.

Defective tools could cause damage to your plants, but it is worse if they are so uncomfortable to use that they give you blisters or a bad back. To avoid this, look for the gardening equipment that will do the best job for your type of gardening. It must have the right amount of power to be energy efficient while also being able to do the job without causing you any more strain than necessary.

Here is a review of gardening equipment from the gardening experts themselves.

1. Garden Shredders
JCB SS2400 received five stars out of five from the gardening equipment reviewers from recommendedbuys.co.uk. It has a 2400 watt motor and comes with a silent gear crushing system. It is one promising tool to improve and hasten your shredding activity.

Ryobi ESR – 2240 Electric Shredder is an easy to assemble garden shredder suitable for prunings up to 40mm. It comes with built-in wheels and a plunger for increased portability.

2. Hedge Trimmer
Bosch AHS42-16 Electric Hedge Trimmer also received five stars out of five rating from the gardening equipment reviewers from recommendedbuys.co.uk. It has 420 watt output.

3. Cultivators
Mantis Tiller Cultivator comes with patented tines to aid in cutting smoothly through hard, compacted soil. It is perfect for preparing vegetable plots, flower beds, etc. It also helps in thatching, aerating and cleaning moss. It also comes with a free border edger.

4. Lawnmowers
Brill 78370 Luxus Push Reel Mower rated 4.5 out of 5 stars Tools-hills.com customers. It has a large top cover that protects shrubs and overhanging flowers.

American Lawnmower Deluxe Light Reel Mower 1815-16 received 4.5 stars out of 5 from Epinions.com buyers. A push-mower, it does not cause pollution, but is not suitable for tall grass.

5. Leaf Sweeper
Agri-fab 26 Push Leaf Sweeper is for smaller lawns and is available with 200 litre collector. It also comes with an infinite height adjustment feature.

Read about cherry bush and carolina cherry at the Cherry Facts website.

View more articles from Jon Simms

This article is provided by Amazines.com – The ULTIMATE Article Database

Gardening: Gardening Gloves

January 23, 2011 By: Nicholas Tan Category: Tools of the Trade

One of the best things about gardening is felling warm, moist dirt in your bare hands, but you will often end up with blistered, chapped, and scraped skin. The solution to this problem is gardening gloves. The more time you spend getting down and dirty in the garden, the more you need gardening gloves. Gardening gloves will be able to ease some of the pain you would otherwise be subject to, letting you spend even more time playing in the dirt.

There are hundreds of different types of gloves on the market, and the kind of gardening glove you buy depends on the way you garden. Some gloves offer protection against specific substances or things, for example, leather gloves are not the best for working with chemicals or water. Many gardening gloves are specialized for pruning thorns, refilling gasoline tanks, or using a chain saw, while others are for general tasks such as raking, digging, and weeding. (more…)

New Life for Old Garden Hoses

January 12, 2011 By: VK Melhado Category: Tools of the Trade

When your old garden hose is worn and in poor repair, don’t throw it out. Garden hoses can be used in a number of ways and will remain useful long after they cease being used for watering your lawn.

Here are just a few inspiring ideas for your old hoses:

Protect Young Trees: When supporting young trees, cut a piece of garden hose and run wire through to attach to support stakes. The hose prevents the wire from damaging your saplings.

Earwig Trap: Earwigs love to hide in small, dark places. Place 6-inch pieces of hose in your garden to attract these nasty insects. Later shake them free into a bucket of soapy water.

Garage Buffers: Especially helpful for new drivers in the household, screw lengths of hose at bumper level to corners of the garage door frame to prevent unsightly dents in the trim.

Soaker Hoses: Make your own soaker hose by crimping the open end and drilling some holes throughout the hose. Bury it just under the soil around your plants and fill with water. It will keep your plants watered for days.
Water Level: Walter Reeves, the host of TV’s Garden Sense, transformed his garden hose into a giant water level in order to set an even grade for his patio. He attached 3-foot pieces of clear vinyl to each end of the hose and filled it with colored water.

Tool Hanger: Halve a 2 foot segment of hose and screw both ends to a wall. It creates a hanger that will hug the handles of your tools.

Blade Protector: Slit a length of hose and slide it over the teeth edge of your handsaw to protect the blade when not in use. This also works great with knife or ice skate blades.

Bucket Handle: Slip a piece of hose through the wire handle of a bucket or paint can to provide a better grip.
Swing Protector: Slide a length of swing-set chains through garden hose to protect little fingers when swinging.

Faucet Extension: Bury lengths of linked hose underground to relocate an outdoor spigot to a more useable location.

Snake Scare: Create a snake decoy to frighten away annoying flocks of birds. Cut a short length of hose and lay it on the grass in a snake position. It fools them everytime.

Downspout De-Clogger: Push the hose up through a clogged downspout allowing the water from the gutter to drain and carry away any trapped debris.

Play Telephone: Make an old-fashioned play telephone for the kids. Cut a length of hose and attach a funnel to each end with duct tape. Let the kids chat all they want.

Landscaping Tool: When laying out a new garden, use a length of garden hose to create the initial outline and then dig around it.

Curve Sander: Hose works great as a sanding tool for tight curves such as trim or crown molding. Take a length of hose, split it lengthwise and insert one edge of the sandpaper. Wrap it around the hose, trim to fit and insert the other end in the slit. Close the slit with some duct tape and get sanding!

Visit PreviewNaples.com for all the tools and information you need to navigate the Naples real estate and greater Southwest Florida real estate market. You’ll find local realty info, including details about Aqualane Shores real estate

View more articles from VK Melhado

This article is provided by Amazines.com – The ULTIMATE Article Database

Getting Gardening Gloves

January 08, 2011 By: Jon Simms Category: Tools of the Trade

Here are the major reasons why one should consider getting a pair of trusty gardening gloves:

Gloves protect your hands from blisters, thorns and cuts while doing rough work like digging or pruning in the garden. Investing in one or more pairs of quality gloves is a good decision.

Here are some tips on how to choose the pair that will suit you best:

1. Look for quality leather gloves with a cloth back; this will let the gloves breathe and keep your hands dry, cool and comfortable.

2. If mud bothers you, select rubber gloves with cotton lining.

3. When spraying pesticides or chemicals choose gloves that are made from neoprene. Gloves made from latex or any type of plastic may not offer the best protection.

4. When pruning roses, use gloves that reach up to the arms.

5. If you usually operate large garden machinery, buy gloves in brown instead of red as the latter may dye your hands.

6. Light cotton or even fingerless gloves may be useful for transplanting seedlings. They will allow more dexterity and so help to prevent the tiny roots from being crushed.

7. And of course, make sure that the gloves you buy actually fit your hands. If you have small hands, try the children’s gardening section. there’s nothing worse than trying to garden is gloves that are too big.
Your gloves must be comfortable as well as give protection to best serve your gardening needs.

Want to find out about cherry pitter and calories in cherries? Get tips from the Cherry Facts website.

View more articles from Jon Simms

This article is provided by Amazines.com – The ULTIMATE Article Database

Innovative Recycled Garden Tools

November 13, 2010 By: James Brown Category: Tools of the Trade

Having your very own home garden does not only translate to sweating under the intense heat of the sun toiling, weeding and growing flowers and plants but would also mean spending your hard earned cash on home garden tools that may not at all come that cheap. But then again, there is a way around these costs. There always is, if you are imaginative and innovative enough. You may not even have to look and search that far. Your kitchen or perhaps your waste basket may hold the very solution to your garden tools expense predicament. No need to mop and think long and hard on how. Here are a few creative tips.

Yogurt containers usually go straight to the trash as soon as we scoop out that last spoon of yummy yogurt. But hold up, there might be more to these plastic tubs than meets the eye. These yogurt containers can be great sanctuaries for your seedlings protecting them from those nosy good for nothing night-crawling cutworms. Working as a shield, sink these tubs into your soil enclosing the seedlings in. You can strip off the yogurt shield as soon as the seeds are able to grow sturdy stems.

These small plastic pots can also be used as cute flower pots. Just make sure to punch in a few holes in them to allow the soil to breathe and also to release excess water. Moreover, if you are looking for something to help you scoop up your soil or fertilizers, these yogurt containers may be your best bet.

If the yogurt container can make do as a small scoop, the plastic milk jug may be employed as its bigger version. This jug has a lot of flexible uses for your home garden. Mixing and sprinkling liquid fertilizer to your home grown plants is easy and trouble-free with the use of a milk jug. Simply put the fertilizer ingredients in, shake to blend, poke some holes on the top and you are set to shower your plants with nutrients. If frosty and chilly seasons have caused you to lose your baby seedlings and underdeveloped plants, the plastic milk jug may pose to be a solution to your problem. By covering your plants with the jug (make sure to remove the bottom of course) heat is stored and retained for the plants. What is more, you have the option to adjust the warmth of your plastic mini conservatory by opening or closing the cap.

If you think your egg cartons can offer no help in your home garden, think again! These containers are known to be perfect for growing seedlings. Using the Styrofoam ones are more preferred and it is important that you wash and clean them well before use so that you can prevent any bacterial contamination. Punch a hole on the base of each cell to allow for drainage.

It is essential that your home garden plants get at least an inch of water in a week. While figuring the volume of water your plants get may seem like a difficult endeavor, it is actually not. You may use those straight-sided tuna cans in collecting or measuring if your home garden is getting enough rain or sprinkler water.

Published At: Isnare Free Articles Directory http://www.isnare.com
Permanent Link: http://www.isnare.com/?aid=204028&ca=Gardening

About James Brown
James Brown writes about Park Seed online coupons, Wayside Gardens coupon code

Gardening: Gardening Tools – An Overview

October 28, 2010 By: Nicholas Tan Category: Tools of the Trade

I think you know very well about the rules and regulations to keep your plants to grow healthy in your garden. For getting sustainable growth of your garden plants you do require good soil quality, sunlight and sufficient water. Although these items have been gifted by nature, you ought to require modern gardening tools to upkeep your garden in a good state. Gardening tools help a lot in taking care of your plants as well as the good growing conditions and positive effect on your plant’s health.

Defective gardening tools might have cause injury on your plants or cut your plants or totally plug your plants from the soil. In order to prevent the occurrence of such untoward incident, it is a must to look for the best gardening tools, which will provide your plants loving tender care. Once you called a tool as ‘Best gardening tools”, it refers to a tool, which will permit labor saving methods and that allows energy efficiency.

Here you can see some of the best gardening tools available in the market to provide a better care than ever for your plants in the garden. (more…)