14 Best Garden Hand Tools For Beginners

Here is my recommendation of the 14 Best Garden Hand Tools For Beginners, a Guide To The essentials.

Garden hand tools come in a wide variety of makes, type and price. All I will say is to set yourself a budget for tools and stick to it.

If you’ve been bitten by the gardening bug and are just starting to learn about plants and gardens, you may have found that there is an untold amount of gardening tools to choose from.

Some you will recognise, some you may never have seen or even heard of. It’s hard to know which to buy and very easy to get carried away.

Try to buy the best quality tools that you can afford, they will last you longer.

Cheap tools do not always last long and you will find yourself replacing them which is not cost effective.

Having said that, when I first started gardening some of my first tools were second hand, some of which I still use. I made a wish list of garden tools and bought something each month until I had what I needed.

I also added them to my gift list in the hopes that a kind friend or family member would buy them for me.

 

I may earn commission when you shop through the links in this article.

 

How Do I Choose The Best Garden Hand Tools?

Gardening is wonderful for many reasons including our physical and mental well being. Gardening is very good exercise. It can however cause muscle strain, muscle fatigue, injury and aches and pain when tasks are carried out incorrectly.

Always endeavour to consider your health and safety when you are gardening.

Choosing the right tools goes a long way in keeping you safe. Take into consideration the handles for example. Are the handles ergonomic? Do tools feel comfortable when you’re holding them?

Bear in mind the length and weight of tools for your own height and stature.

Are they lightweight or do they feel too heavy or awkward?

Ensure that any adjustable handle lengths match your height as well.

You can also find tools for left-handed, right-handed or ambidextrous users.

Some of the better quality Spades and garden forks have shock absorbers to aid in your health and safety during digging tasks.

Always bear in mind that a lot of gardening work is repetitive, causing repetitive stress syndrome, take breaks and alter the type of garden work you are doing regularly.

The rest is up to you, if you like the tools and they feel comfortable to use then they are the best ones for you.

14 Essential Garden Hand Tools

Trowel

Required for planting in pots and containers, making holes for small plants, bulbs and seeds to go in.

Hand Fork

Small hand forks are handy for light weeding around plants and in pots and containers. Trowels and hand Forks can be purchase in a handy set which often saves you a bit of money than when buying them separately.

 

Essential Garden Pruning Tools

Secateurs

 

Secateurs are used for light pruning of plants and shrubs. By far the best that you can buy are Felco Secateurs

Stocked at  Amazon 

There are bypass and anvil secateurs. But which ones do you need?

The most popular and indeed the most essential are bypass secateurs, these are used for the majority of pruning jobs in the garden. Anvil secateurs are used for tough woody branches and for cutting out dead wood. Buy bypass secateurs first and add anvil secateurs to your additional garden tools wish list

The Best Felco Secateurs Review

Pruning Shears

Hand held pruning shears are essential for light pruning and trimming of shrubs and plants. Used mainly for hedges and for trimming back spent perennial plants or grasses. They have long blades that cut through a mass of branches or growth at one go.

Find a suitable pair for you at Amazon

4 of the Best Cordless Garden Shears Review

Loppers

Again there are several types of loppers, I would recommend the ratchet type as they are easier to use and you don’t have to exert as much muscle. Loppers with extending handles are ideal for larger shrubs and small trees.

Adjustable handles also prevent you from over reaching, thereby reducing the risk of injury.

Loppers are used for cutting branches that are too large or thick for secateurs to cut through.

Essential Garden Digging Tools

Garden Fork

Different forks for different jobs.

Digging forks are robust and large to deal with digging and breaking up big clumps of soil.

If you have borders that are planted already use a border fork, they are smaller, so less likely to damage your plants.

Spade

A spade is required for preparing the ground, digging holes and/or trenches ready for planting.

Hoe

There are several garden Hoes to choose but they all do the same job. They break down larger lumps of soil after digging, to help you gain a finer soil for planting in. They are used too for weeding, their sharp edge cuts through new weed growth on the soil surface easily and quickly and can be used between plants in borders, so reducing the chance of damaging the roots.

Essential Garden Hand Tools For Tidying

Rake

Rakes are Perfect for a number of gardening jobs IE, clearing leaves and debris, raking up prunings and for a last rake over on soil before planting.

Yard Broom and Pan

A good brush with sturdy, strong bristles is a must have for sweeping, clearing and tidying patios, drives and walkways as is a large pan such as the one in the image below.

Sacks or Trugs

These items will depend on how much garden and outdoor space that you have. You need some way of carrying and disposing of garden waste. Reusable Sacks and Trugs are perfect in small gardens for taking garden waste to your bins, compost bins or to your car if you are taking debris away to a recycling center.

Wheelbarrow

A wheelbarrow helps to make light work of removing larger amounts garden waste in larger gardens. Also, required for carrying bags of materials such as mulch or for moving compost to and from various parts of your garden.

Gloves

A good quality pair of gloves are absolutely essential for your protection if you’re working with certain plants like brambles, roses or any toxic plant. Gloves will keep your hand protected and clean.

Watering Can or Hosepipe

You need something to aid in the task of keeping your plants watered and again this may depend on the size of your garden, but either one or the other or both are a garden requirement.

 

I have also posted an article on the best Home Garden Irrigation Systems for your information.

 

When you have a good collection of quality hand garden tools, you’re all set to enjoy your new-found love of plants and gardening.

When I am visiting garden and plant centers I find I am drawn equally to the tools section as I am to the plants, so be warned it’s all rather addictive.

As you and when you need power tools pop back here to read product reviews on all the essential cordless garden tools such as the Bosch Rotak 430 LI Ergoflex Cordless Lawnmower

The best cordless hedge trimmers can be found right here.

How to Maintain Garden Hand Tools

One last word on the essential Garden tool kit for beginners…

Look after your tools, keep them clean and well maintained and they will last considerably longer and continue to do their job effectively.

Blades on secateurs, shears and any cutting tool need to be kept clean and sharp. This makes your pruning tasks easier and a clean, sharp blade reduces stress on pruned plants and helps to stop disease and viruses from being spread from one plant to another.

Clean forks, hoes and spades after use, a build up dried soil on tools can also spread disease and infection.

Store them safely in a shed, garden store or garage after use.

I hope that this article is of use to you, that you now know the essential gardening tools needed to help you enjoy your garden. Please share with friends and family and on social media.

Any questions or views can be added in the comments box below, I appreciate your time in doing so and I always reply.

Happy and Safe Gardening