SolveYourProblem Article Series: Roses
5
Tools for Your Rose Garden
You should always be prepared to do what needs
doing in your rose garden. In order to do a good job with your
roses, it is essential that you have the right tools. There
are plenty of garden tools, and some of them are perfect for
rose gardening. When you have the right tools, you will be
ready to do anything that your rose garden needs to be healthy
and thrive. Here are five basic tools that can help you ensure
that you are caring properly for your rose garden.
Gloves
These are essential if you plan to work in your rose garden
with any sort of enjoyment at all. Nobody enjoys being scratched
by thorns. They can be sharp and painful, and can lead to infection.
Thorns are a necessary evil associated with working with roses.
However, a good, thick pair of work gloves can protect your
hands as you work. Luckily, working with roses does not require
great dexterity, and there are few people who are seriously
impeded while wearing work gloves in the rose garden. The leather
variety adorned with big, fold-down cuffs make excellent protectors
while working in the garden.
Kneeling pads
Kneeling pads are another of those things that are more for
you than for the roses. However, if you ruin your knees trying
to take care of your rose garden, then you will not be caring
for the roses anyway. There are knee cups that can be strapped
around the leg. They move easily when you do, but can be uncomfortable
if their “one size fits all” really doesn’t. There are also
large pads that are water resistant and have handles. They
are often more comfortable, and can be moved with relative
ease.
Pruners
Pruning shears also known as Pruners, make it easier to keep
your roses in good shape, pruning back excess growth and getting
rid of damaged or diseased portions of the rose. It is important,
however, to make sure that you get the right kind of Pruners
for roses. Anvil Pruners have blades that fall one on top of
the other. Because of the way that the blades of anvil Pruners
meet, they are likely to crush your rose stems and canes. This
can cause a great deal of damage and invite diseases and pests
to take advantage. Always use bypass Pruners on your roses.
These are the Pruners, whose blades work like scissor blades,
passing each other.
While not needed initially in your rose garden, the lopper,
a heavy-duty relative of the Pruners, will be needed down the
road. They can be expensive, so plan to save up for them for
purchase down the road. Loppers are used much like shears to
get rid of thick, old canes that Pruners can’t handle.
Shovel
The shovel is for digging holes for planting and digging up
bushes for transplanting. It can also be very useful for other
purposes. Choose one that is both sturdy and lightweight. A
fiberglass shovel with a long handle is excellent for this
kind of work, as it does not weigh very much, but is very resilient.
If you want to further protect your hands, it is possible to
spend an extra few dollars and get a shovel with a padded handle.
A digging fork is also good to have on hand. It is an excellent
choice for loosening soil and turning it in patches too small
to be worked on with a shovel. Make sure that your digging
fork, like your shovel, has a sturdy and lightweight handle.
Rakes
There are two types of rakes that you should have to enhance
your rose gardening. A garden rake is the one that has steel
teeth. This type of rake is used to smooth and level your flower
bed. Choose a sturdy rake with steel tines (no plastic tines
here). The other type of rake is a leaf rake. These are the
rakes that make cleaning leaves, clippings, and other varieties
of garden leavings much easier. Get two kinds of leaf rake:
a regular rake and a “child” rake for smaller and tighter areas.
Finding these basic tools is relatively easy, and many of
them are reasonably priced at most garden and home improvement
stores.
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SolveYourProblem.com
: 2006
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