Gardening 101

You don't need to spend tons of money filling your tool shed with every gardening gadget at the hardware store. Most gardeners can get away with ten basic tools: a sturdy hand trowel, a stirrup hoe, a square blade spade with a D-shaped handle, bypass hand pruners, a garden fork, a leaf rake, a bow rake, a hand cultivator, a wheelbarrow or garden cart, and a hori hori knife, which is a serrated Japanese garden knife used for dividing plants, making furrows, and weeding. Here's how to purchase useful, high-quality tools that can last a lifetime if taken care of.

There's a tool for every garden purpose--a dandelion popper, a bulb dibber, a watering can for seedlings. Stock your shed with well built, high-quality essentials--the classic tools you'll use year after year.

With dust, dirt and debris a constant in desert air, it is important to clean your gardening tools thoroughly. Disinfecting these same tools, prevents spread of plant disease and infection.

Putting garden tools away properly for the winter can add years to the life of your equipment. Your tools will be protected from rust and wear, and better yet, they'll be ready to go the moment spring fever hits on that first balmy day next year.

There’s no real secret to keeping garden tools working for you. All you need to do is buy good quality tools to start with, then take proper care of them. The main enemies of garden tools are moisture (causes rust) and lack of maintenance (means they can’t do the job they’re designed to do). So, getting rid of rust and properly maintaining your tools will keep them working for years. In fact, if you make taking care of your tools part of your gardening routine—your grown children will be using them long after you’ve given up gardening. Here are some preservation tips.

Tools can last for years if you take care of them. But don't worry; if your favorite shovel has gotten a tad rusty, it's a snap to make tools shiny as new.

Don't just throw an old garden hose away. Here are some ideas on other ways you can use it.