My dad, always proud of his landscaping, could plant any brown branch in the ground and it would grow. An estate gardener at one time, he patiently taught his kids how to dig, aerate, chop, weed, edge, trim and prune using the proper tools.
Did any of it stick? Not at first. When I grew up, I bought a house big enough to turn around in. It was in the woods and had no lawn. Low maintenance, I figured %26#8212; a swipe of paint, a sweep of the broom, and I could go play.
Then came rain %26#8212; followed by wild grass, lots of it. A presentable house doesn’t need nature’s shag carpet growing around it.
So there I was, day after day, snipping with scissors. By the time one part of the hillside looked great, the other part needed another haircut. But I had limited space at that house, and I didn’t want it taken up with tools.
A couple of years later, I ran across an outrageous deal on an electric weed trimmer. It was skinny enough to store somewhere. And, boy, did it whack weeds! In 15 minutes, the entire hillside was clear, and I was ready to play.
There was the lesson, almost in my dad’s voice: Choose the right garden tool, and you’ll do the job properly while saving time. I invested in a rake and shovel, too. Now I’m ready to expand my basic tool collection.
The challenge: I want to outfit my shed with an array of basic garden tools, but no more than a gardener truly needs.
Web site: www.thisoldhouse.com; This Old House Online, New York City.
Purpose: The site, affiliated with the television show “This Old House” and This Old House magazine, provides how-to knowledge and sells home-oriented products.
The setup: The home page %26#8212; more than four screens long on my computer %26#8212; links to information about the television show, magazine, how-to articles, many home-improvement photo galleries, an online poll, a digital paint-color selection tool and a question-and-answer column. You could spend a lot of time here, instead of gardening.
Ease of navigation: Bypass clicks off the home page by plugging “Essential Guide to Tools” into the search function at the top of the page; then click on “Roger’s Garden Tools.”
What you’ll find: “This Old House” landscape contractor Roger Cook lays out his ideas on the most useful garden tools for homeowners. It’s thankfully short, and it really is basic and practical.
A sample: “Roger’s advice: Build a good collection that has the right tools for a wide variety of garden projects, and you’ll end up getting the job done better and faster. Don’t worry about expensive power tools like aerators and thatchers %26#8212; those once-a-year tools can be rented when you need them (and you can share the rental with a neighbor to save money).”
The best part: The list starts with %26#8212; ta da! %26#8212; a broom. Oh, well, it is alphabetical, but no other list I found on the Web included a long-handled push broom, which makes short work of cleaning up dirt and grass clippings.
Thumbs-down: Illustrations don’t accompany every tool. For example, the text describes a grub hoe, but it would be so much better to lay eyes on a photo of it.
Surprise: One more thing Roger includes that others’ lists don’t %26#8212; a tool organizer to keep the new toys handy, off the floor and manageable in small spaces.
Related sites
%26#8226; www.lowes.com; Lowe’s, Mooresville, N.C. business names
The home-improvement retailer compiled a list of descriptions and portraits of garden tools, “How to Select Garden Tools and Supplies,” so you can’t miss when you go shopping.
Three kinds of spades, four types of rakes, two forks, five hoes %26#8212; you’d need to build an addition on the shed if you bought them all, but remember this is the entire tool committee, not its essential members.
Find the list by clicking on “Project Center” at the top of the home page; “How-to Library;” “Lawn %26 Garden” on the left-hand side of the page; then “Garden Tools” under “Buying Guides” on the right-hand side of the page.
%26#8226; www.ehow.com; eHow Inc. of Palo Alto, Calif.
Type “How to Select Basic Garden Tools” into the search function at the top of the home page, click “Go,” and you’re on your way to a short, direct guide to your new-garden layette.
Scroll to the bottom of the page for links to articles about choosing watering cans, rakes and garden shears, as well as using the right tool for the task.
%26#8226; www.diynet.com; Do It Yourself Network, based in Knoxville, Tenn.
At the home page, type “Basic Gardening Tools” into the search function and click “Go.” Select “Tools,” then click on “Basic Gardening Tools.”
You’ll get a rundown on five tools, plus links to tips on caring for tools, tools for weeding and handy gadgets for gardeners branching beyond the basics.
Home on the Web is an occasional feature in digs. The e-mail address is homeontheweb@seattletimes.com
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