Tools For The Job

As with any tools for the job, care should be taken with their use. Be Safe!

Now you don't need lots of expensive tools to propagate plants successfully, but as with any job, having the right tools makes the job a lot easier, and more enjoyable.

Most tools required can be found in garden centers, DIY stores and hardware shops at very reasonable prices. A good source for cheap, but good quality, tools are boot sales and yard sales where tools can be found for pennies.

So, what tools for the job, then?

Besides general gardening tools, spades and forks for general digging, lifting and dividing plants, rakes for leveling off and preparing seedbeds and hoes for making seed drills you will need other tools to propagate your plants:

Tools for the Job - Hand Trowels and Hand Forks are ideal for lifting and thinning out young plants.

Use two hand forks back to back for dividing small clumps of plants.

Hand trowels are very useful for filling large pots and tubs with compost from large bags.

Hand trowels and forks are indispensable in the vegetable garden for planting, thinning out crops, harvesting, weeding and many more tasks.

Hand trowels are just the job for making short shallow drills for sowing vegitable seeds.

Hand trowels make perfect planting holes for small plants or bulbs in pots, containers or in the garden.

Use your hand fork for weeding close to plants in borders, they are ideal for this.

Use your hand fork for for lifting all those self-seedlings you get for free.

Hand trowels and hand forks are essential garden tools, so make sure these are near the top of your must have gardening tool list.

Or, better still, make your own from old pencils, dowels, old wooden spoon handles whatever you may find suitable.

Tools for the Job - Widgers. NO not widgets. Widgers, are just the job for lifting seedlings and rooted cuttings at transplanting time.

Again these are readily available in different sizes and made in different materials. You can, as with dibbers, make your own.

Try cutting a small 'V' notch in the end of a lollipop stick or similar. These homemade tools are great. They are just the right size, shape and "feel" for your own use.

And what's more they are free, and hey, you made 'em.

Use the scissor action, or bypass type secateurs as they make a cleaner cut than the anvil type.

Buy the best quality secateurs you can afford.

It is worth paying extra for good quality.

Cheap secateurs are a false economy, they will not last the pace. Especially if you have to do quite a lot of pruning.

Treat yourself and buy the best quality secateurs you can afford.

And at the same time, treat yourself to a quality holster that will fit on your belt and as with this one, can also clip to your trouser waistband.

Tools for the Job - Potting Bench, ideal if you are going to do loads of propagting.

Depending on the style and size of the potting bench, you can have all your compost, sieves, pots, trays, dibbers, tampers indeed almost everything you need to sow your seeds, plant your cuttings or to pot on, all in one place.

Usually made from wood, aluminium or stainless steel. They are quite expensive to buy, but you can easily make your own at a resonable cost from timber.

Tools for the Job - Potting Tidy/Caddy, these really do make sieving of compost, seed sowing, planting cuttings or potting on so much easier.

They help to contain the compost, preventing it from spreading everywhere. Usually made from plastic or aluminium. The plastic potting tidy/caddy are fairly inexpensive.

Again like the potting bench, you can make a potting tidy/caddy easily and cheaply from timber.

Tools for the Job - Scoops are invaluable for getting compost out of the compost bags and into sieves or onto the potting bench or into the potting tidy/caddy.

Smaller scoops can be used for filling pots and trays.

Usually made from plastic, steel or stainless steel. The plastic versions are fairly inexpensive, light in weight and easy to clean.

Plastic scoops are recommended.

This tamping (but not compacting) is essential for the sowing of fine seeds. Yes, you can make your own!

Made from a block of wood sized to fit the inside of your pots and trays.

Fit a smaller piece of wood in the center of one side to be used as a handle.

Make a set of different sizes to suit your pots and trays if you are doing a lot of propagating. They really do make it easier.

*(Using these tampers correctly will increase your chances of propagating success).

It was mentioned above about "not compacting". This is very important, as all we want to do is gently firm the surface of the compost in pots or trays. We don't want to squash the compost. This will compact it and can cause all sorts of problems not least, poor drainage, which is disastrous for seeds and cuttings.

Tools for the Job - Garden Knife for taking and the preparation of cuttings. Use the straight blade type for propagating not the curved type.

Craft knives or scalpels are ideal as they give a very *clean cut which is essential for cuttings.

(*A clean cut will increase your chances of success).

BE CAREFUL with craft knives and scalpels - they are SHARP.

Whatever type of blade you use for cuttings, *keep it clean.

Tools for the Job - Watering Can, the small plastic watering cans are a must for propagating.

Make sure it is fitted with a very fine rose. *Turn the rose upside down for use as this will prevent the surface of the compost being disturbed too much and washing small and fine seeds to one side, or 'washing out' small cuttings.

*(This method will increase your chances of success).

Fill the watering can, with tap-water, (never use water from a water butt or similar as it can harbour disease), *twenty-four hours before you intend using it and keep it, together with the compost, in the same place where you will sow your seeds or plant your cuttings.

By doing this you will allow chemicals to disperse out of the tap water, also it will be at the same temperature as the compost.

*(By doing this you will increase your chances of success, especially when propagating cuttings).

Tools for the Job - Mist Sprayer can be used for young seedlings or newly rooted cuttings that need a humid environment.

A mist sprayer can also be used, with care, for moistening compost after sowing fine seeds.

*Dont forget to fill the mist sprayer, with tap-water, (never use water from a water butt or similar as it can harbour disease), twenty-four hours before you intend using it and keep it, together with the compost, in the same place where you will sow your seeds or plant your cuttings.

By doing this you will allow chemicals to disperse out of the tap water, also it will be at the same temperature as the compost.

*(By doing this you will increase your chances of success, especially when propagating cuttings).

Mist sprayers are inexpensive so have a couple ready charged with water available at all times.

Mist sprayers are ideal for spraying your plants in hot dry weather in greenhouses or conservatories to raise the humidity.

Make sure the plants are not in direct sun when you spray them or it will scourch the leaves.

Use mist sprayers for spraying plants against white fly etc. Mark the mist sprayers you use for this and keep them seperate from those you use for water.

DO NOT use mist sprayers for general watering if you have used them for treating plants with insecticides or similar!

*Use a sieve for all composts when sowing seeds, planting cuttings or at transplanting times.

*(This will increase your chances of success).

You will be surprised how much 'bulky' material there is in a bag of compost.

This 'bulky' material is no good for sowing seeds or planting cuttings as the new roots will struggle trying to penetrate their way through.

However, don't throw this 'bulky' material away it is ideal for using in large pots or containers with bigger plants, just mix it with ordinary compost.

Or use it as a soil conditioner in your garden, it's good stuff for that.

Tools for the Job - Scissors are essential when taking and preparing cuttings.

Small stainless steel nail scissors are ideal. *But keep them clean at all times to prevent the spread of disease.

*Use methylated spirits to clean the blades of scissors.

*(By doing this it will increase your chances of success).

It is highly recommended that you use stainless steel tools for your general gardening tools, spade, fork, rake, hoe and also for your hand trowel and hand fork.

These tools made from stainless steel are one hundred times better than tools made from mild steel.

Soil will not stick to them as you use them, which makes their use so much easier, especially in heavy or clay soils.

They are also much easier to clean.

Stainless steel tools are now not much more expensive than ordinary mild steel tools.

So, give yourself a treat, go and get some stainless steel tools!

Well, that's the basics of tools for the job.

But you will find that as you progress and become more successful at propagating your plants, you will collect more tools for the job along the way.

These will be your own tools for the job that you have found makes propagating your plants more easier and more enjoyable for you.

If you want any further information on tools for the job or how to propagate and grow any of your favourite garden ( yard ) plants please feel free to contact us