Tools & Accessories

Choosing garden tools that last

Buy on the cut, not the colour. Bypass secateurs slice like scissors and leave clean wounds on living stems, which is what you want for roses, shrubs and fruit trees; anvil types crush against a flat plate and belong on dead wood. A professional bypass pair such as the Felco 2 secateurs will handle daily pruning for decades if cleaned and sharpened. From there the pruning ladder runs upward: loppers add two handed leverage for branches thicker than a finger, and telescopic tree pruners reach high limbs while your feet stay on the ground, which is safer than any ladder.

Hauling: wheelbarrows versus carts

A wheelbarrow is the manoeuvrable choice for narrow paths and tipping into corners, and the 80 to 100 litre trays here suit most home gardens. A 100 litre poly tray wheelbarrow carries mulch and prunings without the weight of steel. Four wheeled garden carts trade agility for stability: they hold 60 to 235 litres, tow flat loads without balancing, and the dump versions tilt to empty. Poly trays shrug off rust and are lighter to push; steel takes rubble and rough treatment. Flat free wheels are worth having on any block with bindii or buried offcuts.

Watering by numbers, not guesswork

A rain gauge is the cheapest useful tool in the garden: knowing whether the weekend storm delivered 5mm or 25mm tells you whether to run the irrigation at all. Weather stations go further, logging temperature, humidity and wind, which is genuinely handy when you are deciding if a heatwave calls for extra water or a frosty night calls for covers. New plantings need the most attention, and our planting and care basics guide explains how much water matters in the first season.

Care and storage

Wipe sap off blades with soapy water after each session, dry everything before it goes away, and run a drop of oil over pivots and springs every few weeks. Sharpen secateurs and shears little and often rather than grinding them annually. Timber handles last longer with an occasional rub of linseed oil, and every tool lasts longer stored under cover rather than against the fence.

Common questions

What is the difference between bypass and anvil pruners?

Bypass blades pass each other like scissors and cut cleanly on green growth. Anvil blades close onto a flat plate and can crush living stems, so keep them for dead or already removed wood.

Should I buy a wheelbarrow or a garden cart?

Narrow paths, tight corners and tipping work favour a wheelbarrow. Big flat blocks, heavy loads and anyone who would rather tow than balance favour a cart. Plenty of gardens justify one of each.

How do I keep secateurs cutting well?

Clean off sap, keep the pivot oiled and touch up the blade edge with a fine sharpening stone every few weeks of regular use. A blunt blade tears bark and invites disease into the plant.

Do tools ship with my plants?

Yes. Garden tools and accessories are delivered Australia wide alongside your plants with no minimum order, so adding a rain gauge or a pair of secateurs to a plant order is the easy way to buy them. Pots do the same, and the pots and planters range pairs naturally with this one.