Earthly Garden

There are several tools you should have at all times in your garden tool kit. These tools can make your gardening a lot easier and can also make your garden a better garden. Your vegetables can flourish and your back will be saved as well. Here are a few great tools that can make the gardening process ten times easier.

1. Spades and Shovels: There are several varieties from scoops, to sharp spades to forked spades. Short handles and long handles. It’s best to get a variety and see what works best for your. It’s not a bad idea to have several different ones on hand at all times. Even if you use it only once or twice a year, it’s good to know you have it there when you need it.

2. Wheelbarrow: I went years without a wheelbarrow and I will never do that again. Moving rocks and parts of earth are made so much easier. Trust me!

3. Rakes: A good rake is a wide one with a long handle. The plastic rakes work fine for small jobs, but for heavier jobs and raking a lot you want to look to metal ones and get one that is tempered and can withstand the weather if left out.

4. Forks: These sort of fall in the same category as, what ever works best for your needs. Forks work great for uprooting things and weeding as well. You can get them with long or short handles and you will end up with several versions along your gardening path as well as spades.

5. Hoes: This is my must-Have garden tool. Without a hoe I am lost in the garden. I have a metal hoe with a firmly secured head held on with heavy screws. I have had to replace my handle a few times because the wood has given out, but again it’s whatever works best for your gardening needs as well.

Good Morning!
Today I’d like to share with you an important safety notice:

Troy Built is recalling their 4 Cycle Gasoline String Trimmers, model numbers TB425CS and TB525CST. The blade that trims the excess string can detach from the plastic shield covering the trimmer head and be thrown forward, causing serious injury to the user and/or any bystanders. These were sold at Lowes from January to March of 2006. If you have one, stop using it immediately and contact Troy-Built for a free repair kit. Be careful out there!

Gardening Pic of the Day:

troy-bilt, string trimmer, recall information

troy-bilt, string trimmer, recall information

Hi all,

I was horrified yesterday when a reader told me that rainwater collection is illegal in Colorado. I would never tell someone to do something illegal…except in this case! I think it horrifying that a state in general would not put any controls on over-development or population, but would make it illegal for a gardener to collect rainwater for their garden. So, if you live in CO, get a bucket, collect some rain (next time it rains) and collect it for your gardens. THEN try and get the laws changed. Thank goodness there are no such silly laws in Texas!!

On other more pleasant matters, yesterday I received an order of dibbers from my Nova Scotian woodturner friend and artist, Derek Andrews. I had never even heard of dibbers (AKA dibblers or dibbles) until I saw them on his Seafoam Woodturning Studio website, but now I’m finding out what great little tools they can be in the garden. You can use them for planting bulbs, seedlings or young plants, and I love that he’s marked measurements on them. Derek does wonderful work, and we have a few of his other pieces in our collection. His dibbers are smooth as glass, and I *almost* hate to get them dirty. I had to run outside and try them, and I love the way they work! I’ll write more about them when I use them to plant my new tomato babies. It’s so seldom that you find handmade garden tools! (And these are VERY affordable, too, and will last forever!)

dig it!

bobbi c.

rainwater collection, Seafoam Woodturning Studio, handcrafted garden tools, dibblers, dibbers, dibbles, wooden garden tools