This article will teach you everything you need to know about how to select the right edger and what some of the most popular choices are.

Consider the Size of Your Yard

When deciding which unit will be the best lawn edger for your yard, you need to factor in how big your yard is. If you have a lot of area to edge, such as driveways, sidewalks, or extensive landscaping areas, you might want to buy a bigger, stronger unit.

Manual, Gas or Electric Edgers

Edgers come in a variety of prices and can be manual, electric, or gas-operated. Each type of edger has its own pros and cons. Here is a basic rundown of their benefits and drawbacks.

• Manual. If you just have some light edging to do and you don’t mind spending the extra time tinkering around in your yard, you may be able to get by with a manual edger. They take more time to cover an area than the other types do.
• Electric. Electric edgers can come with cords or they can be cordless with batteries. The nice thing about cordless electric edgers is that you can go anywhere on your property without having to worry about running an extension cord to where you are working. The main drawback is that batteries can drain quickly while you are doing yard work, and you might be in the middle of a project when your battery conks out on you.
• Gas. If you have a giant yard, you’ll likely want a gas edger because otherwise, you’ll have to go to the trouble of running extension cords to your edger for the areas that aren’t near a power outlet. Gas edgers generally offer more power than any other type, but they are louder and heavier than electric and manual edgers.

Sampling of Lawn Edgers

Black and Decker LSTE525

This is probably the best edger on our list. The Black and Decker LSTE525 12-inch unit can move back and forth between a trimmer and a wheeled edger. This is the update to the LST522 that we loved last year. You can use it to trim unsightly weeds or edges along your sidewalks, driveway, or landscaped areas. It has a power drive transmission, which gives extra torque, and it runs on a lithium battery. Even if you run out of battery power, this battery will charge quickly.

It offers a two-speed control – one gives you additional power, and the other lets you run the unit for an extended amount of time. Switching between the two modes is simple.

The LST522 has an automatic feed spool with ‘EasyFeed’ that gives you a button on the handle to advance the line. It is height adjustable. At 6.3 pounds, this unit is light enough that you’ll be able to do a considerable amount of edging without feeling too much burn in your sore muscles the next day.

WORX WG896 Lawn Edger

The WORX WG896 Electric Lawn Edger is the perfect machine for great edging. It is corded for great power and comes with steal low maintenance blades.

Of course the edging depth is adjustable to give you a custom professional finish. This is not a toy machine and also doubles as a trencher and has no difficulty running with the blades in the dirt.

We found this machine great at preparing the ground for installing landscaping borders. Since this machine is designed for digging in the dirt, it will greatly outperform line trimmers that double as edgers. For example, if you were to run an invisible dog fence, this would be the go-to trenching device.

Ames Steel Manual Edger

If you are looking for a lower cost manual edger, this Ames Steel Handled Landscape Border Edger will last you a lifetime. No batteries to charge. No wires to deal with.

The edger is essentially a half circle with stepping ledges on either side. Can be used for cutting out grass segments or for setting landscape borders. Once you feel the weight of this edger, you know you have a quality tool.

It comes with a T-handle and cutting teeth to make cutting through dirt and soil very easy. Of course, it is also fully assembled.

The post Lawn Edgers Knowledgebase appeared first on Garden Consumers.

Cheap materials, inefficient leaf pick up, short handles or rust problems: sound familiar?

We’ve faced the same leaf rake problems a time or two ourselves, and in order to help you find one that is actually worth the investment, we’ll share our favorite options for you here in our guide.

The small details make a big difference in the overall quality and durability of the rake, so we’ll take a look at this information, as well, as we walk you through the buying process.

Things to Consider Before You Choose

As you compare and contrast the great options we highlight in our table, here are a few things you should ask yourself in order to ensure that you’re choosing the right one:

• Rake Head Width. Expandable or retractable rake heads are great if you have a variety of spaces you need to cleanout. Think about how great it is when you can rake up a wider area of leaves in the main lawn and then shrink the rake head just a bit in order to reach in between your plants in the flowerbeds.

Wider is better if you’re raking over grass, but narrower heads are better if you have a lot of tight spaces to clean.

• Material. Remember that plastic, while light in weight, is definitely the flimsiest of the materials. Only purchase a plastic long handle rake if you plan to use it on leaves only.

For all other larger, heavier debris, be sure to opt for a steal rake head.

• Handle Length. If you plan to use a standard rake with a long handle, make sure you know the length of the handle.

One of the biggest mistakes that buyers make is choosing a rake that is too short for their height, which will make leaf raking quite uncomfortable on the back and shoulders.

Measure twice, purchase once!

• Tine Width. If you are strictly using the rake to pick up leaves, thinner tines are fine; however, if you know that you’ll pass over heavier or larger debris, it’s best to get a rake with wider, sturdier tines just like number 3 in our table.

Top 3 Best Leaf Rake Reviews

ReLeaf wins the title of best leaf rake on our list by a mile.

These specially designed handheld rakes make transferring the leaves from pile to bin so much quicker and easier than trying to juggle around two long handle rakes.

Currently on Sale

ReLeaf Leaf Scoops: Ergonomic, Large Hand Held Rakes for Fast Leaf & Lawn Grass Removal

• LIFETIME QUALITY GUARANTEE – Hassle Free “Return & Replace".
• OVERSIZE LEAF CLAWS – The Releaf Closed Design gets the job done fast, grass or leaves wet or dry, rake with minimal fuss or spills.
• PROTECTION – A barrier from stinging nettles rosebushes and weeds.
• INTELLIGENT UNCOMPLICATED STORAGE – Easy hang and fit together design. Store beside your garden bags.
• OTHER USES – An extra sized hand for fruit picking spreading mulch feeding leaf shredders hygienic pet mess clean up tool gather toys fast after kids playtime.

$43.95 −32% $29.95

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*Price from:  2024-03-22 at 18:51 EST

You just slip them on like a pair of gloves and start picking up the leaves! Since the head is closed (there are no individual tines that leaves can fall through), these act like a handy scoop that allows you to sandwich the leaves between them.

Some find that it would have been better if the tips of the rake had individual teeth to help pick up smaller debris (these are flat and dull on the edges, as you can see in the photo), but overall, they’re still a great addition to the tool shed for those of you with quite a few leaves to remove every year.

Since you will actually need these in addition to a regular long handle rake, we suggest that you take a look at the next two options on our list. Let's get it NOW! 

2. Gardenite Adjustable Garden Leaf Rake 

We find these expanding leaf rakes to be the most versatile option on our list, and the fact that you can widen the head or make it narrower makes it great for any gardener to have.

63 Inch Adjustable Garden Leaf Rake - Expanding Metal Rake - Adjustable Folding Head from 7 Inch to 22 Inch. Ideal Camp Rake

• 63 Inches Long. Similar rakes on Amazon are only 48 inches long. The adjustable head expands From 7 Inches to 22 Inches
• 15 Flat Tine Expandable Head. Adjust the rake width to a tiny 7 inchs for tight areas. This rake is designed to go in smaller areas that are difficult for conventional rakes. Expands to a full 22 inches.
• 3/4 Inch Zinc Plated Steel Handle that is zinc coated to prevent rust.
• Very light weight and easy to use, the rake is an ideal leaf rake. Note that it is not designed to be a heavy duty rake for rocks and heavy materials.
• 100% CUSTOMER SATISFACTION GUARANTEE - Order with confidence! The Gardenite 100% customer satisfaction guarantee means exactly that. We will fix any problems quickly and to your 100% satisfaction every time! We are always available to help our customers. Our customer service record is unmatched!

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*Price from:  2024-03-22 at 18:51 EST

The handle is long (63 inches) with a 15-inch long rake head that can expand from 7 inches all the way up to 22 inches when you’d like to cover larger areas in a shorter amount of time.

Another reason we like this rake is that it is so lightweight and you don’t have to worry about the prongs snapping off.

This is the ideal long handle leaf rake but since the prongs are so narrow, you shouldn’t use this for heavier yard debris such as rocks or large twigs as you risk bending them. I'm sold, let's get it! 

3. Corona Steel Head Shrub Rake 

Those of you with a mixture of heavy debris and leaves will appreciate a rake with a heavy-duty head like this one. The first thing we noticed was the curved prong tips that help you pick up and scoop the materials toward you better than the previous rake.

Currently on Sale

Corona RK 62060 Fixed Tine Shrub Rake, Aluminum Handle, 8-Inch Wide

• QUICK CLEANUP: An ideal tool to quickly and easily rake up clippings, leaves, and other lawn and garden debris
• EFFICIENT: Bi-curved bow gives even pressure to all tines for maximum raking efficiency
• NO DAMAGE: 11 extra-wide tines remove debris without damaging plant feeder roots
• COMFORTABLE TO USE: Lightweight aluminum handle with anti-slip vinyl sleeve

$22.99 −22% $17.99

View on Amazon*

*Price from:  2024-03-28 at 08:29 EST

While the head may be more narrow than the Gardenite (11 inches wide), this is ideal for use around shrubs or other plants thanks to the tempered steel tines. The handle is made of aluminum and it is comfortable to grip thanks to the vinyl sleeve.

If you’re in need of something much sturdier, then we highly recommend this rake to you. Yes! I want it! 

The post Best Leaf Rakes 2021 appeared first on Garden Consumers.

Since there are a few things you should take into consideration before you choose, our guide will walk you through the most important features and we’ll check out the top three pruning shears with you in our review section below.

Let’s get started!

Before You Choose…

Don’t choose a pair of shears just yet! There are a few things you need to take into consideration before you select them.

Shears have been around a long time. The inexpensive ones still match the shears of years ago, but there have been some great enhancements if you are willing to spend the money.

• Handle. The handle is the first place you should look. Is it comfortable? Can you easily close the shears or does it require a little more hand strength? What is the handle covered in?

Many have a rubber coating on the handles, but some have foam (which is a bit more comfortable to grasp with bare hands) and others don’t have much padding at all.

The only way to find a comfortable pair is to try before you buy, and if you can’t do that, see what others have to say based on their experience with the shears. Look for handles that are labeled as “ergonomic” if you’re interested in a pair that will feel comfortable.

• Blade Maintenance. To help prolong the life of your blade, you might want to invest in a special grease or sharpening stone designed specifically for pruning shears.

Some shears also have replacement blades available, so it would be worth it to check and see how much those blades cost and how easy they are to find. But let’s be honest here, most of us want a durable shear that we do not need to worry about special maintenance. All our recommended shears fall into this category.

Types of Pruners

You’ll notice in our table that we included the type of blade system that the pruners are designed with: bypass, anvil, and ratchet.

If you’re not already familiar with them, here are the differences:

Bypass – Scissor Type

These cut like scissors when you close the handle. Both blades come together sliding by each other just like a hefty pair of scissors. These are the most popular type of shears and generally the least expensive. They also are more limited in the size of items (stems, branches, etc.) that they can cut.

Anvil Type

Here, one blade slides down onto a flat surface so there is only one cutting blade. Since these have only one cutting blade that blade can be made of harder metal materials at a lower cost. Since there is no scissoring, you can attack larger branches with this type. The applied force is applied to a single blade rather than be distributed to 2 blades. Also, even if you cannot cut through with a single squeeze, you can then rotate and cut from the back.

Ratchet Type

If you have weaker hand muscles and you need a little extra assistance in order to cut through branches/stems, then a pair of ratchet pruning shears are a must. These help you cut the branch in stages, providing you with more leverage than the other two blade cutting styles. They will generally be more expensive because of the required gearing. Also, I’d expect that they might be more problematic, so make sure you do not skimp if you’d like this type.

Below I have recommended one shear from each of these categories. Take a look.

Some Pruning Shears Reviews

Felco F-2 Classic Manual Hand Pruner

The best pruning shears in the world, perhaps? We’ll let you be the judge of that, but they are pretty amazing!

These bypass pruners are 8 ½” long and weigh just 8.5 ounces, featuring rubber-coated solid-forged aluminum handles and shock absorption to provide you with a clean, smooth cut every time. They even have a handy wire-cutting notch so you don’t have to switch tools if you run into a piece of wire as you trim the bushes or trees.

• Standard basic anvil blade
• Includes a sap groove
• Adjustable blades
• A rubber cushion and shock absorber
• Light application pruner
• Includes a wire-cutting notch

Felco has thought of everything in terms of design, and thanks to the handy sap groove on the blade, it helps prevent the blade from getting sticky and gooey from wetter, sappy wood.

The level of quality is evident as soon as these slide into your hands. You may invest more money initially, but you won’t be replacing these shears any time soon, which helps you to save money in the long run!

Mockins Professional Heavy Duty Garden Anvil

Mockins’ Anvil pruning shears are an excellent alternative to the Felco’s we just looked at.

• Highly recommended and highest quality.
• Includes a safety lock.
• All stainless steel construction for long-last rust free life.
• Great second generation ergonomic handles.

They cost less but still work just as well when it comes to snipping your way around the garden and the handles are more comfortable to grip with bare hands thanks to the thick foam padding they’re covered with.

Ergonomically, these are designed to help reduce the amount of stress that is placed on the wrist as you cut and rather than stainless steel blades, they’ve upped the ante with titanium coated blades to ensure strength and durability with regular use.

I really like the way they designed the anvil-holding surface. You will see the non-blade side has ridges to hold the branch steady while cutting. You will also find that the parallel cutting motion “snaps” branches apart. These are particularly effective when cutting dried branches.

The Gardener’s Friend Ratchet Pruning Shears

The Gardener’s Friend gets right to the point when it comes to selling their pruners: these are perfect for senior gardeners or those who lack hand strength.

• Outer handle ring to guard your hands.
• Over 30 years of experience.
• Very expensive construction, definitely professional grade.
• Also, targeted for seniors.

The reason for this is the handy anvil and ratcheting system that helps you cut through thick branches and material without adding extra strain to the hand.

They feature hardened carbon steel blades and aluminum handles that have a thin rubber coating on the top that provides grip and prevent you from touching the cold metal with your entire hand. These even come with a replacement blade!

Those thick branches you dreaded before will come off cleanly with just a few snips from these shears.

They are a little large for some hands, but if you’re wearing gloves when you use them, you probably won’t experience any control issues.

The perfect gift for any gardener in your life!

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