a man is only as good as his...tools?

laid up in bed yet again for another glorious day that i wish i was outside planting, weeding, picking, snipping, mulching....okay, okay.

i am trying to get several blogs packed in now, in time for secret garden's website/facebook launch next month, in which there will be a link to my blog. my mom has asked me to kind of try to cover several broad subjects/categories, one of them being tools, especially tools for beginner gardeners or people who want to start gardening but aren't sure where to begin.

so. tools!


1) you need a good pair of gloves, something that won't make your hands soggy if the dirt is slightly damp, something that will deter at least some stickers and sharp things, and something that will keep irritants off your skin (can you say hello, poison ivy?). don't skimp on your gloves because they are the one thing you will (hopefully) use every time you are gardening. i like bionic gloves (about $32). they are designed by hand surgeons to support all the critical pressure points in your hands, made of soft and pliable lambskin, are semi waterproof, tough, and machine washable. they velcro tightly around your wrist so nothing can fall down in your glove while you are working. mine follow me all over my yard.

2) something to dig with, and something to weed with. ideally, you can combine this into one tool. get a tiger trowel (about $27). it has an orange handle so you'll never lose it among your weeds, ergonomic design so it is super simple to use, serrated blades to dig through clay or cut through taproots of weeds, and a sharp end to dig, scoop, plant, weed, etc.

3) sharp scissors (cutting, pruning, etc). i like joyce chen scissors, which are around $30 i think. also toss in twine, paper and pen (for making notes).

4) felco pruners. these are the sharpest, most amazing pruners ever. you can skip these if you dont have any shrubs or trees to prune back. however, if you have anything that you cannot cut with scissors these are the way to go. my pair was around $70 but they have a lifetime guarantee and all the parts are individually replaceable and sharpenable.

5) sunscreen, bug spray, and a big hat.  if you are anything like me, you like wearing a huge hat simply because it is fun. mosquitoes and sunburn are not. don't use anything with DEET in it; i prefer natural bugspray made with lemongrass and eucalyptus ($8). my hat is made by Tula hats and i think it was $33.

(everything i mentioned here is, of course, available at Secret Garden. 426-2216)

my Tula hat. (my excuse is that i dont want sun on my face. i really wear it because i feel like Beatrix Potter when i wear it in the yard.)