What makes gardening easier and what tools would you recommend?

[Marax]

I'm a complete beginner when it comes to gardening.. what makes your life easier? Tips/tricks/tools?

Thank you

Delco sécateurs ( last for ever), a holder for them that goes on à blet so you don’t put them down and lose them, and a sharpener to keep them sharp( once a season job but worth it).
Someone else can do the fork…..

F e l c o. There is obviously a gnome sabotageur from another company on here👿

Would the sharpener work on another brand, @Allthegoodnamesarechosen ?

Also (sorry to push in, OP) could anyone recommend a good - ideally long handled - patio weeder? Is the Fiskar one any good?

Not specific tools as such, but I'm a big fan of those builder bucket trug things, really handy for gathering up trimmings etc and really cheap to buy.

A controversial tip here, but I don't put membrane under gravel, I think it's a lot easier to weed without it, if your gravel is deep enough.

Burgon + Ball gardening gloves! They are ££ but I got mine for my birthday - the only time I have ever had any small enough to fit me (they do different sizes). They are padded but not so thick that your hands are unmanoeuvrable.

Totally agree with @digbythedigger about the membrane too, it's awful stuff. We are in the process of taking out the stuff put down by the previous owner of our house.

A decent kneeling mat
Spade, fork, hoe, trowel and hand fork, trug.

Go to a garden centre and handle those tools! Find out which secateurs feel right in your hand, what size and weight of spade and fork suit you. Loppers if you have a lot of shrubs. Or a garden saw. I have clay soil with a lot of flint which is really hard to dig. I used to buy stainless steel forks but I've broken so many hitting the flints I just use a cheap one now. Try on the gardening gloves.
But don't necessarily buy from the garden centres they can be really expensive.
I started with a cheap but sturdy fork and border spade. Nice quality hand trowel and fork. Cheap loppers, decent secateurs. Thin gloves for fiddly jobs, thornproof ones for tackling the brambles and nettles.
I dig out weeds where I can but keep some glyphosate for really pernicious weeds. I give bindweed something like a long stick to grow up, then shove the growth into a plastic bag and spray into that.
Agree with a builders trug for throwing clippings etc into. Can also use them for carrying plants, pots compost etc, as a sink for cleaning old pots or watering several potted plants at once.
If you have grass lawn and borders keep the edging neat or you'll end up with grass growing through your plants and plants growing into the grass. You may think this sounds nice but it becomes a total pain!

One of these https://www.axminstertools.com/japanese-gardener-s-root-cutter-202309. Does practically everything.

Tools that feel comfortable to you.

Keep a can of WD-40 or similar in the toolshed and give everything a quick spray before you put it away.

Always allocate the last 30 minutes of gardening time to clearing up. Makes a huge difference to start next time with everything clean and in it place, and makes it possible to do those five minute in between jobs without spending the whole time searching for something.

I wish I did all this all the time!

If you are a beginner

• little and often - don't let the grass/weeds etc run away with you
• have somewhere outside to go and sit (so you see what's happening and don't suddenly find it's all a jungle)
• rechargable battery operated everything - lawn mower, hedge trimmer, the lot. Much easier and more likely to be used than anything with an electric cable
• put in lots of bulbs - now and until late autumn is a great time to put them in. really give you a lift in spring. Snowdrops, daffodils, alliums, you will be so happy when you see them come up.

All my tools are from Implementations, made of copper, always sharp and light and I swear have helped against the slugs

Recognise that some things are an ongoing issue - eg bindweed is impossible to eradicate but you can just keep ripping it out when you see it and that will do.

Google lens plant finder is pretty damn good. Ask friends, neighbours etc for bits of plants you like.

I agree with little and often.

I also think look around your immediate local area and see what seems to be thriving in lots of peoples gardens that you like. It will probably thrive in yours too.

I'd second a good pair of secateurs that feel well balanced and the right size for your hand. It makes an enormous difference. Like a previous poster, I have Felco and they are so good I would save them from a fire 😳😆

I regularly use a small trowel and a border spade (not a big one). I also recently bought a long handled but small fork which is also very useful.

Very important - if your back starts twinging, STOP! It's so tempting to think, you'll just finish this bit first - no! Stop, stand up straight, give yourself (and your back) a break. Like others have said, little and often.
I also now want a Japanese root cutter! That looks the business!

Definitely this!

It's like hairstyles, you can spend years, cash and effort on getting a hairstyle you desperately want only to find it never looks quite right whatever you do. Or you can work with what your hair wants to do and look great, with significantly less cost.

Try to be ruthless about only growing things that want to grow in your garden. Otherwise you'll put masses of effort and love into them, only to have them look sorry for themselves. Truly, if you've fallen in love with a particular style of gardening and it's not suited to your conditions, you're better off moving house.

Clearly you've struck a chord we me here, I keep thinking of more (sorry!).

A plastic container like the ones you buy to carry cleaning materials around the house. Easy to take with you round the garden and keep anything you might need to hand. Also if you can get into the habit of putting things straight back into it, it minimises the chance of your favourite tools disappearing somewhere for days on end.

Yes and thrice yes to the plastic container with a handle. I use an old tub from a bulk buy of bird fat balls. V useful for the little bits like trowels, spools of twine, secateurs etc. Extra points if it's clear and you can see where things are in it.

I'm not an expert gardener at all, and have had lots of help on the gardening board, come and visit us over there.

If you are taking over an existing garden, wait a year before changing things. Find out what plants you've got first before you start hacking at them or digging stuff out. A boring shrub might suddenly burst into bloom in the depth of winter when nothing else is growing. Having done that, if you don't like a plant or it's in the wrong place, don't feel guilty about hoiking it out.

One of those weed puller- upper things. Excellent for dandelions!