With our gardening needs list so long, is there one or two items that you never will scrimp on price or quality? Is it those awesome pruning sheers, a pair of comfy gloves, or a certain bag a fertilizer? What gardening item are you truly loyal to and won't stand for imitation?

Good quality, non-gmo seeds

A cheap tool is an expensive tool! I buy the best tools I can and then take good care of them.

I'm a hard-sell regarding gloves.

I have a very healthy respect for our plentiful poison ivy, so I won't touch anything bare-handed. My criteria is, however, quite tough to match. I'll pay what I need to for gloves that:

Are thick enough to deflect rose thorns...
Are flexible and form-fitting enough to handle delicate seedlings...
Are tough enough to survive scrabbling in hard clay...
Are possessed of non-skid grips to prevent slippage...
Are easy to put on and take off...
Are easily washable without shrinkage...
Are breathable...

Won't dry into an unmanageable hard lump...
Won't smell atrocious when wet...
Won't stick together if left in the sun...

Will last a reasonable amount of time, fingertips included.

That's not much to ask for, right?

dave said:A cheap tool is an expensive tool! I buy the best tools I can and then take good care of them.

Every chance I get I ask professionals what they use and I've even stopped at commercial growers and nurseries to pick their brains. My number one pet peeve is hose associated items. Nice looking brass valves or splitters where a flat ring breaks. A seemingly solid feeling sprayer whose pressure adjustment constantly loosens. Places that used to carry commercial grade tools that now have to compete with big box stores and carry garbage. We had some old Dram valves/regulators, or whatever they're called, that lasted decades. Replace an o-ring and you're good to go.

Miracle-gro potting soil.

There are small pruning shears, shorter than the length of my hand, that I have 3 pairs of. I use them for my succulents, nothing else.

I agree with good tools , If you only have to buy them once you have saved time and money.
My guys do the heavy work here and cheep tools don't last , shovels & forks that have to be replaced slow down the work.

Work boots would be my second choice , If my feet are not happy the work stops.

Chelle what brand gloves do you use? You've described all the things that fail with my gloves!

Hoses. I'll pay a fortune for a great hose. The problem is that you can never really tell until it's been garden tested for several years & by that time you can never find the same hose again.

After hoses it's tools.

gg5 said:Chelle what brand gloves do you use? You've described all the things that fail with my gloves!

Greg,

I found really good gloves locally last year but I removed the tags because they irritate my skin, so I don't know what brand they are. I haven't be able to locate exact replacements, but I did some looking around and found these that I like just as well. They might be just a tad thicker in the fingertip area than the ones I used last year, but other than that, they're just about identical.

http://garden.org/blogs/entry/...

The Ethel gloves are sized for women, but Mechanix also has gloves designed for men.

Brass quick connectors, a great time saver.

Thanks Chelle, another question for you, do you buy new gloves each year? Maybe that's part of my problem, I expect them to last a couple of years

gg5 said:Thanks Chelle, another question for you, do you buy new gloves each year? Maybe that's part of my problem, I expect them to last a couple of years

I usually wear holes in the fingertips of several new pair a year, but they get really brutal full-time use.

hehe, okay, I thought I had resonable expectations...probably not! I use mine whenever needed, but often that's clearing debre and blackberries!! Guess I'm living in a dream world where there should be strong (thorn proof) and flexable (seedling handling)

It's the hand weeding between plants that wear mine out. The index fingertip is always the first to go.

So often I have to take my gloves off to get the right grip on the weeds! (sortof defeats the purpose!)

I haven't tried this with garden gloves yet, but when I wear a fingertip hole in other gloves, I'll wrap the tip of that finger with tape (masking tape, duct tape, or Gorilla Tape). That lasts forever, but it is slick, and reduces the gripping power.

When roots need a stronger tug then my fingers can deliver (the usual case unless it's a well-amended bed), I usually go after the roots with a kitchen knife or bayonet . If I'm not just decapitating them with a scuffle-hoe, I'll go as deep as I can.

DO NOT DEFY THE COREY-GARDENER, MR. WEED!