I used to have an allotment where i used the large garden fork and a hoe, i miss it so much, but now i am growing veggies in the garden along with some ornamentals and i use my favourite hand fork most often, but i also have a trug full of hand tools, string, gloves, a chopstick etc
I'm with you on the Hori Hori! I'm on my third one. I will wear the serrated blade all the way flat. When I first got this home, since it's on a corner, I have a sidewalk going up each Street. The grass was out of control. I literally sat down on the ground and my neighbors probably thought I was crazy but I took my Hori Hori and cut along the edge of every sidewalk to cut the sod nice and sharp!! I don't need one of those expensive gas operated or battery operated grass edging tools, when I'm only going to use it once to get everything straight. Now I just keep it touched up all the time with the string trimmer. I should buy a file and actually create teeth again on it but it's okay. I use the more dull Hori Hori for planters I dont want to damage in any way. Also use my Hori Hori in holes for sawing roots. Like you, I use it everyday. My 2nd favorite tool is the "Stirrup Hoe!" I have a full size one I can use while standing and I have a hand sized one. I saw Charles Dowding easily walking casually through the garden disturbing his weeds with it!! It's glorious. It's shaped like a stirrup of course. I attempted to make one DIY. I took a handle and I tried to attach a metal band that would be just as effective at slicing the top layer of soil off, but nothing was as sturdy as buying something made for the job!! Another bonus.. The Stirrip Hoe is exactly as wide as a brick paver. All of my inground flower beds around the house have bricks for the edging. I can easily take that tool and create a nice moat, to lay those bricks down in. If you ever need to get rid of some Sod quickly by peeling it away, she's your new tool!! It's similar to the hoes you have shown, but can go much deeper and also has nice sturdy corners for tight spots. You can go ahead and take all my other tools away! *In the end, the best tools that we have, and all we need, is our hands! Question: I'm really really interested in getting a pair of Felco's, but with that type of investment I wanted to know what size you use, Eli?? I have small hands as well. I've been watching Laura from garden answer used the whole line (and sell them from their online shop) for years now. But I'm just not sure! Which number do you like??
I really enjoyed this! So funny at times. Brilliant collab ladies. I must sit somewhere in the middle of you both. I know you don’t view my vegetable plot as a garden but it’s part of my garden/home, so I do weed it thoroughly and I spent 2 hours yesterday dead heading. I don’t fit the form over function for my vegetable garden. I like pretty too. I’m a bit obsessed. I do have a hori hori, a lovely gift, but it’s not completely practical for me as I’m left handed. The serrated edge is on the wrong side for me, so generally I prefer to plant out with a trowel. I love the wolf Garten hoe that Emma has for breaking up the hard top layer of capped beds. I also have the hand tool handle, so have a small claw/cultivator and a larger one for the longer handle. A mattock and my trusty rake. I have a manual mower and a cordless strimmer, as my lawn edges extend a fair way from electric sockets. Also love my hedge cutter and have several secateurs and snips. The favourite tool I have access to though is the mini digger. Makes big jobs so much easier! I realise that’s not an every day tool for the masses Again.. love this ladies. I nearly fell about laughing at the humour of this. So mischievous 😂🥰🥰
Nice to see the sunshine in Scotland 😊! This is a great video. We're moving in a couple of years to about 4 acres. But I've already been getting rid of things. It's tough to decide.
This is hilarious! I live in a very hot, subtropical area in the US, that also experiences 7-8 months of drought. When neighbors move in from cold climates, they purchase a zillion garden items for the garden and/or lawn care. It only takes 12 months before they have hired a maintenance service, and the equipment/tools sit in the garage untouched. LOL 😂 I deal with the difficult conditions by working in the yard for only 6 months, and then leave everything alone the other 6 months except for occasional mowing.
now I completely get that! I have knee pads and kneeling pads and it's just annoying. I'd say it's much easier to just have your trousers have things "built in"
Thanks Emma i have the little weed puller but never knew thats what you do to get the weed out, it came in a set of threee hand tools i used it to dig and thought useless….haha. I wonder where i put it, no wonder it was hopeless. Fun video Elly & Kate
It’s one of those tools I think that you look at and really don’t know what to do with but it’s great for getting dandelions and its roots. They won’t come back
😂😂❤❤Kate’s so funny! I have a 2 acre property so I have a riding lawn tractor, unmotorized mower, hand trowel, shovel for planting larger potted plants, hand rake, snips/scissors, lopper for branches, and rake for mulch. Storing tools - now that’s a challenge cause some are in a box, the garage, and the greenhouse. When people give me ‘new’ tools I usually gift them to other gardeners cause even my hori hori doesn’t get a good work out.
@@eliandkate No, every tool has a purpose, but I always find myself going back to the same 2-3 tools (or bare hands). I gave my aunt claw gloves that I had been gifted 2 Christmas’ in a row and she loves them. I’ve never used mine.
Your videos are so good, even though I had to wait two blooming days to watch it. Getting home from an early shift, making a cup of tea, and giggling at your tool descriptions really brightened my day. I think I need a weed burner, but a little bigger, to deal with the brambles.... best put the fire brigade on speed-dial :)
Lol 😂 Fab video. I'm definitely team hori hori, especially after changing all my veggie beds from in-ground to raised. My husband is team 🎸 😊 Having said that, I have ONE hori hori, he has about 15 guitars 🎸 !!!
Love Kate's playing around. My most used tool is my Hori Hori. Second is probably a pitch fork for making compost and moving material. Couple wheelbarrows, lawnmowers and trimmers get used a lot too.
I barely use my shovel to be honest! It’s funny how everyone has different ways of working. I use my pickaxe waaaay more than the large shovel, it’s so much quicker to move and break up a large amount of soil. I also use my hoe to stir my compost heap. I bought a couple of wet willies as a joke, but very quickly realised how amazing they are for being very precise with where I plant my seeds. I use them when potting and sowing all the time! The penknife and blade sharpeners are also used loads. What about the trusty watering cans, wheel barrows, buckets and knee pads? Things I couldn’t live without! The knee pad doubles as a small stool, and I also use it as foot stool to reach just out of reach places. Very handy! Things I don’t use as much as I thought: soil moisture and ph checker, the sieve, the large fork, the stiff rake (I use the leaf rake more)
Hori hori, secateurs/snips, kneeling mat and gloves are the things I use constantly. I do have a dibber but tbh I just use the hori hori. Plenty of other tools get used when needed but if I could only have 1 tool it would be the hori hori, for sure. My newest tool is the broadfork and that's actually been a great addition for my compacted soil which trying to practice no dig. Oh and I'm all for thin gloves in size small but they can be so hard to find! And sometimes a small is not a small! Wilkos used to do a Junior glove which was perfect but now my go to is Briers green bamboo ones in small - try those Eli - so good.
And also what about a garden trug or hod for gathering produce in or collecting weeds as you move around the garden. And for all we just have a 50’ x 150’ piece of property, we own a garden cart/wheelbarrow that I use a lot!
Great video as always. I tend to get a lot of tools donated as an allotment gardener. So I have 3 spades 4 forks and 2 hoe's which just means more to leave lying around. I like you love the Hori Hori Knife and use it all the time. But I will be asking for the Japanese Hoe for my birthday this weekend. Thanks for the content
So sorry I missed the premier 😢😢 I bet it was a right giggle too! Loved this colab and it was fascinating seeing the differences in tools needed for garden v allotment lol the only tool I’d add is a pair of scissors other than that you covered every base!❤
Tried to watch this during my lunch break and kept having to stop as I was laughing too hard 😂 so relatable! Mattock is an absolute must where I live. Heavy compacted clay soil. Sometimes it's the only way to get a weed out of the sunbaked clay 😅 I've been dying to get a hori hori, but haven't been able to afford the one I want just yet. My hand trowel gets the most use out of all my tools at the moment, followed by my secateurs. I hate mowing, so my home garden is lawn-free. Only the nature strip that's Council-owned by maintained by residents (me) has an assortment of weeds that the council considers to be lawn haha Garden fork and shovel are probably my most commonly used of the big tools. Not often needed, but when I do, it's because I need something bigger and stronger to do a tougher job. I also adore my watering can. It's a posh one as you would say, it actually comes from the UK, and cost an eye-watering amount for an Australian, but I can't go back to a plastic watering can that ends up disintegrating in the summer sun after using this beauty I have now. 😁
I have orchards and big trees and hedges. So i have hedge trimmers, chainsaw (now my housemate has moved out, i need to learen to use it!) mini chainsaw, 2 kinds of long extendable loppers, a claw basket on a pole (for picking apples. I can climb well, but I've fallen off ladders too often because the ground gives way) . I also have fencing tools like wire cutters and pliers. As well as most of the stuff you have! My gamechanger this year is a pull along garden truck with fold down sides. Much better than a wheelbarrow for "stuff" rather than soil or compost.
Recently joined your chanel, so just caught up on this one about tools you do use and those you don't. Have a friend who has a friend who has no garden tools, just moved into a new house. So you guessed it, second spade, second fork, second everything is going off to this good cause. And freed up some of my garage. My favourite tool is the one with the flat blade one side and three prongs the other. Hori Hori knives make good Christmas presents for your gardening friends who haven't yet heard of them 😁. My latest favourite garden tool is my Auger. It's about 9" long with a 3" twirly bit and as l'm nearly 80 it's blessing. I attach it to my battery hand drill and it's a good size for planting small plants or shrubs and shall use it to plant 150 spring bulbs l've just bought.lf you need to make hole bigger than 3" you just work the Auger around the edges. A hand trowel will remove these loose soil which is now broken up ready for you to pack around your new plant. Cost about £8/£9 on line. Another tip check your local builders merchants for working gloves, mine has a great selection and they are much cheaper than garden centres generally. Happy gardening 🧑🌾
Welcome to the channel! It sounds like you're really making a difference with those garden tools. The Auger sounds like a game-changer for planting! Happy gardening!
Enjoyed the video 👍 nice to see Emma and interesting the different tools people prefer and need to use, we only have a front and back garden i lkve my hand tools and sectors i adore but my husband's are shovel spade lawnmower and strimmer there the most used but i ❤ having them all just incase for that job🤔
I can run my whole garden with a hand shovel (trowel) and a garden fork. But my battery powered tiller does make spring and fall much easier! I also love my collapsible trash can for collecting weeds, and a bucket wrap for my tools (goes around a 5 gallon bucket).
Love watching your videos from SW Oregon, USA. We're a bit warmer here in the summer (38 / 17) We don't get any rain at all from April to October. Just fire weather. Keep up the education laced with a good bit o humor!
Can admit to getting a hori hori and....yeah.... it's a nice to have. A nice flat shovel/spade to remove a sod layer is great too if needed. Pitchfork and ho. 1 million tomato clips for 40 tomato plants. Oh and all of the seed starting supplies needed to start a small army. Other than that....I'm not sure... I'll have to watch to see if anything stands out.
Great collaboration between you and Emma, thought it was going to turn into a horror movie with Kate and her chainsaw! Loved seeing the difference between gardening tools versus allotment tools. I have lots of tools from when I had the garden that I rarely use now. Great update, thanks very much 😊
Pruning saw, swoe, muck fork, border fork and spade, lump hammer and sack truck instead of wheelbarrow less lifting quarter acre garden with raised beds for fruit and veg.
Eye opening!! My shed is full of doubles. Stuff i brought with me after the divorce, and then stuff from my dad's garden... It's useful having two (at least) of trowels, hand forks, secateurs, etc. it means i can leave them in different areas instead of having to walk up and down looking for stuff. However you didn't mention the most useful tool. The one you've had for ages, which broke, and so you mended it with a bit of 2x1 and some gaffer tape!! I'll bet everyone has at least one!!!
I loved this! Kate with the guitar and flame burner! We used to have an allotment and used different tools. I have previously taken your recommendations for hand tools, also the sharpening tool. I keep my essentials in my little sit on cart (got two) with wheels, saves the bending when you get to a certain age! The sheds are full of tools etc..that we never use! I'm forever looking for some gloves for small planting / repotting..that fit and are lightweight and flexible so I can feel what I'm doing. I just can't seem to find any that fit, again I'm small handed like you. Eli are your gloves like that or more substantial? Thanks for a wonderful vlog. 😊🎸🔥
I still have tools that belonged to my dad and wouldn't part with them for the world but my hori hori is the most used tool. As for gloves I have dozens of pairs but my leather gauntlets are the best.
Ron needs a hori hori! That is just his type of tool. I on the other hand need the flame thrower. The weeds in the neighbour’s driveway are way too time consuming to work by hand. And yes, I have permission to garden and tend to the neighbour’s property. 😁😁😁
Great collab video. I use an ice scoop for shovelling soil, might use a screwdriver for weeding if I have my work trousers on. Thing is, I plan to get a garden and the place I get most of my seeds also sell a ploskorez, aka a Fokin hoe, no joke, as the inventer is called Vladimir Fokin. It's a Russian flat-cutter for digging, weeding, cutting high grass/weeds. And I feel I want one, but wonder if I really need it.
It's fascinating seeing tools from other areas of the world! The thing you and Emma call just a "hoe" is a shape I've never seen before, and the shape I know as a hoe is more similar to Emma's "draw hoe", which is a term I've never heard before! The one I know is mostly used for chopping down through clods and truly stubborn weeds...although I don't have one myself. I don't actually buy tools until I have a specific need that I can't accomplish with what I already have. I'm definitely taking notes for things I might want in future, such as a hori hori, and now a flamethrower like Kate's! And a fork that's strong enough not to bend out of shape when I find an unexpected tree root has been on my wishlist forever. But so far I don't have any tools of my own that I don't use.
Fantastic video ....love your sense of humour & fun .... Its very true though .... if you have a garden ....you do tend to only use certain tools ..... How often do you clean /maintain your tools please ? 😊😊😊🌻🌻🐝🐝
I know I need a new shovel! I broke my favourite one the other day out in the garden while using it. The handle snapped in two and gouged my leg: I got a huge blood sample from the scratches and now lovely colours of black and blue are showing up. 😢😂😂
Great video, and it really made me laugh, especially Kate with the guitar!!! 😂 Now I'm probably gonna sound really thick here, but I've never quite understood how people use a hoe for weeding? Does it not just 'scrape' the top of the weed off, and leave the root intact?
It works better with the smaller weeds. Hoe strike whilst they are small and tiny and clover size but when the weeds are bigger it will just cut the tops off and be no good
@GardenofEmma Ah, that makes sense, thankyou, might actually try using mine this year then! I was definitely inspired by your video with Eli to properly go through the garden and allotment shed this week, and really consider which tools I should hang on to. I'm thinking a cobweb density based system will help me to figure out which ones I actually use! 🤣
Hiya, I’ve brought a huge polycarbonate greenhouse and I’d just like to know if my plants will still ripen and do as good as a glass greenhouse because I had a glass one but it got completely broken and it devastated me so I thought I’d try out polycarbonate greenhouse and I want to have planters going along my garden too similar to yours but I haven’t had any experience with a polycarbonate greenhouse and I know you have so I just thought I’d ask you! Thanks so much for your videos I’ve learnt a lot these past few weeks from your helpful videos!
The polycarbonate greenhouses these days are really good, much much better options than any of the ones back when I bought mine I’d say there should be no difference between your experiences then and now 😍 Obviously the same stuff still applies as with any new greenhouse regardless of materials, you’ll need to take time to learn its foibles but it should be grand 😁
@@eliandkate thank you so much! I’ll be revisiting all you’re videos really soon especially on how to manage you’re greenhouse because my managing skills are awful 😂
@@eliandkate Not a strong one, no. But they all sound different to me. Maybe Capaldi’s brogue is stronger? Wait, what happened to the blonde?! That was fast. Guess I watch even less than I thought! LOL!
I got a hoe but don't think I ever used it. Also à couple of those claw things, also never used. Lawnmower? 2 one electric and one manual but no lawn anymore. My shed needs a serious declutter.
