Guide to 4 outdoor garden tools and How They Can Work for You

Hand Trowel

Think of it as your handheld mini-shovel. Hand trowels are perfect for digging, transplanting, refilling, weeding, and even edging. You can relocate small plants, transfer dirt into pots, and plant bulbs or seedlings. Whether you're an urban gardener with a family of container plants on your porch or nursing a full plot in the backyard, this tool is an essential. Pro tip: Due to their size, hand trowels can become easily misplaced while working out in the garden, so one with a bright-colored handle could prove handy.

Weeder

Pulling weeds may very well be a gardener's most-dreaded task. Handheld weeders(powerful chainsaw) with a forked end are a less frustrating way to loosen the soil and grab hard-to-reach weeds. You might not be able to avoid pulling them one at a time , but you'll at least spare your hands some labor (and the undersides of your fingernails some dirt). A traditional hand weeder should do the trick, though some gardeners prefer standup weeders with a foot lever that pushes spikes into the ground and uproots the weeds.

Pruning Shears

For maintaining trees, shrubs, and other blooms with unruly branches and sprouts, a pair of sharp pruning shears is a must. They make a clean cut through small branches and thick stems or vines, no matter if you're harvesting vegetables in the summer or cleaning up the trees before winter.

Garden Scissors

As opposed to hand pruners—which are best fit for large-flowered plants—garden scissors are used to trim smaller and delicate flowering plants, as they provide more control and precision. Knowing the how and why of pruning and deadheading techniques is invaluable to gardening success.