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Nov 16, 2014 3:09 PM CST
Name: Neal Linville
Winchester, KY (Zone 6a)
Bulbs Charter ATP Member Cottage Gardener I was one of the first 300 contributors to the plant database! Irises Roses
Celebrating Gardening: 2015 Garden Ideas: Level 2
I like Huskers Red too, and have some in another bed. I'm too OCD about colors, the pale pink blooms would bug me in my bed of "fire colors", LOL. I loved the yellow blooms of the Lysimachia there, but thugs gotta go. I widened the whole bed this fall, and have considered a couple of bronze leaved, small shrubs to serve as a background.
"...and don't think the garden loses its ecstasy in winter. It's quiet, but the roots are down there riotous." Rumi
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Nov 16, 2014 3:23 PM CST
Name: Jan Wax
Mendocino County, N. CA (Zone 9a)
I'm a semi-retired studio potter.
Irises Hummingbirder Hellebores Organic Gardener Dog Lover Daylilies
Region: Ukraine Region: California Dahlias Garden Art Cat Lover Vegetable Grower
Back here after a morning of pulling weeds by hand. It's been a week since it rained and the ground is
perfect for both planting and weeding - although I've stopped planting irises. These cold mornings are telling
me that winter is coming.
I have a nifty long-handled Japanese tool with a small triangular head that is good for some weeds, but the stubborn ones
are best removed by my hands. Of course, my hands and fingernails suffer a bit, but it's so satisfying to clear
the area!
I never, and I mean NEVER, use herbicides on our land. It seems like a sin to me.
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Nov 16, 2014 7:02 PM CST
Name: Mary Ann
Western Kentucky (Zone 7a)
Bee Lover Irises Hummingbirder Hostas Keeps Horses Farmer
Daylilies I was one of the first 300 contributors to the plant database! Container Gardener Cat Lover Region: Kentucky Birds
Jan -- can you show us a picture of your Japanese weeding tool? And tell us where you got it?
Thoughts become things -- choose the good ones. (www.tut.com)
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Nov 16, 2014 7:32 PM CST
Name: Ken
Traverse City, Michigan (Zone 5a)
Cat Lover Daylilies Dog Lover Irises Region: Michigan Region: United States of America
Vegetable Grower Enjoys or suffers cold winters
I think this is the tool Jan is talking about. It is about 15 inches long and has a slight bend to it. It is good on weeds with deep tap roots... like dandelions. Sink it next to the plants tap root and give it a twist and it should pop out. Got this one from my Grandma.
Thumb of 2014-11-17/bramedog/40de72

Not the best pic...Got to clean the crud off it also...it is good at stirring things when it's at arms length away. Smiling
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Nov 16, 2014 8:11 PM CST
Name: Jan Wax
Mendocino County, N. CA (Zone 9a)
I'm a semi-retired studio potter.
Irises Hummingbirder Hellebores Organic Gardener Dog Lover Daylilies
Region: Ukraine Region: California Dahlias Garden Art Cat Lover Vegetable Grower
Mary Ann - I'll take a picture of it tomorrow, and ask where DH got it.

Ken that's not like mine. Does yours work well?
Last edited by janwax Nov 16, 2014 8:14 PM Icon for preview
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Nov 16, 2014 8:47 PM CST
Name: Ken
Traverse City, Michigan (Zone 5a)
Cat Lover Daylilies Dog Lover Irises Region: Michigan Region: United States of America
Vegetable Grower Enjoys or suffers cold winters
Works good on weeds with a tap root. I mainly use it on dandelions in the lawn.
Last edited by bramedog Nov 16, 2014 8:57 PM Icon for preview
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Nov 16, 2014 10:04 PM CST
Name: Mary Ann
Western Kentucky (Zone 7a)
Bee Lover Irises Hummingbirder Hostas Keeps Horses Farmer
Daylilies I was one of the first 300 contributors to the plant database! Container Gardener Cat Lover Region: Kentucky Birds
Hi Ken -- I've seen weeding tools like that one before. I think they advertise them as good for dandelions, don't they?
Thoughts become things -- choose the good ones. (www.tut.com)
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Nov 17, 2014 12:13 AM CST
Name: Sherry Austin
Santa Cruz, CA (Zone 9a)
Birds Bulbs Region: California Dragonflies Foliage Fan Irises
Keeper of Poultry Roses Photo Contest Winner: 2015
My once-a-month garden guy uses one of these:
Thumb of 2014-11-17/Henhouse/145673

Is this what you have, Jan?
(sorry, when you click on the picture, the whole thing does show)
The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us.
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Nov 17, 2014 5:04 AM CST
Thread OP
Name: Tom
Southern Wisconsin (Zone 5b)
Butterflies Vegetable Grower Keeper of Poultry Irises Keeps Horses Dog Lover
Daylilies Cat Lover Region: Wisconsin Celebrating Gardening: 2015
I have a Japanese garden knife that I got as a gift from Brett for some irises I sent him. I don't have a picture of it, but it is a really handy tool in the garden for weeding, dividing irises, or thinning them. I use it a lot. It is like a knife with a serrated edge on one side, and a sharp edge on the other, and a nice pointed end for digging and weeding. I also have a sharp pointed small shovel that my dad made years ago to dig up small trees to transplant that is very handy.
Politicians are like diapers, they need to be changed often, and for the same reason.
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Nov 17, 2014 7:21 AM CST
Name: Mary Ann
Western Kentucky (Zone 7a)
Bee Lover Irises Hummingbirder Hostas Keeps Horses Farmer
Daylilies I was one of the first 300 contributors to the plant database! Container Gardener Cat Lover Region: Kentucky Birds
Interesting tool Sherry -- I'm having a hard time seeing it clearly because it's laying on its side, right?
Thoughts become things -- choose the good ones. (www.tut.com)
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Nov 17, 2014 11:13 AM CST
Name: Jan Wax
Mendocino County, N. CA (Zone 9a)
I'm a semi-retired studio potter.
Irises Hummingbirder Hellebores Organic Gardener Dog Lover Daylilies
Region: Ukraine Region: California Dahlias Garden Art Cat Lover Vegetable Grower
Good morning everyone!
Here's some shots of my long-handled handy-dandy weeding tool. Chris thinks he got it
years ago from Smith & Hawken.

Thumb of 2014-11-17/janwax/a7b42e


Thumb of 2014-11-17/janwax/4e7d65


Thumb of 2014-11-17/janwax/f77ff2

He says he's got his eye on a weeder by Eliot Coleman. Thinking it might make a good Christmas
present. He gave me a Hawes watering can for my birthday. Smiling
Last edited by janwax Nov 17, 2014 11:15 AM Icon for preview
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Nov 17, 2014 11:15 AM CST
Name: Sherry Austin
Santa Cruz, CA (Zone 9a)
Birds Bulbs Region: California Dragonflies Foliage Fan Irises
Keeper of Poultry Roses Photo Contest Winner: 2015
Mary Ann, I think it's the angle of the blade, and the plastic shield that make it hard to see clearly. Try this (with a bit longer handle): https://store.kaufmann-mercant...
The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us.
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Nov 17, 2014 11:58 AM CST
Name: Arlyn
Whiteside County, Illinois (Zone 5a)
Beekeeper Region: Illinois Irises Celebrating Gardening: 2015
I have a hoe just like that, Jan, and it IS a handy tool.....you can get in real close to the plants. I also use an old "butcher knife' a lot in the garden, as Tom said, the pointed end is pretty good for "popping" them out of the ground.
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Nov 17, 2014 12:13 PM CST
Name: Jan Wax
Mendocino County, N. CA (Zone 9a)
I'm a semi-retired studio potter.
Irises Hummingbirder Hellebores Organic Gardener Dog Lover Daylilies
Region: Ukraine Region: California Dahlias Garden Art Cat Lover Vegetable Grower
Arlyn, I like that it gets in close to the plants too. Since I've kind of taken it over for my irises, I just ordered
an Eliot Coleman collinear hoe for hubs for Christmas - from Johnny's Seeds. Chris has a big vegetable garden.
Avatar for crowrita1
Nov 17, 2014 1:26 PM CST
Name: Arlyn
Whiteside County, Illinois (Zone 5a)
Beekeeper Region: Illinois Irises Celebrating Gardening: 2015
I have a hoe very similar to it that I made ,several years ago. The difference being the "home made " one is narrower at the top.....I'll post a picture of it in a few days...it's way to cold and windy to walk down to the garage to get it !!
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Nov 17, 2014 3:05 PM CST
Name: Lucy
Tri Cities, WA (Zone 6b)
irises
Charter ATP Member Cottage Gardener Irises Region: Northeast US Region: United Kingdom Region: United States of America
Enjoys or suffers cold winters
this thread seems to have morphed into a tool thread. OK, but confusing.
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Nov 17, 2014 3:40 PM CST
Name: Jan Wax
Mendocino County, N. CA (Zone 9a)
I'm a semi-retired studio potter.
Irises Hummingbirder Hellebores Organic Gardener Dog Lover Daylilies
Region: Ukraine Region: California Dahlias Garden Art Cat Lover Vegetable Grower
Mea Culpa, Lucy!
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Nov 17, 2014 4:11 PM CST
Name: Debra
Garland, TX (NE Dallas suburb) (Zone 8a)
Rescue dogs: Angels with paws needi
Dragonflies Dog Lover Bookworm I was one of the first 300 contributors to the plant database! Garden Photography Bee Lover
Plays in the sandbox Butterflies Region: Texas Garden Sages I sent a postcard to Randy! Charter ATP Member
With this level of interest, could start a "What tools do you use?" thread...
It’s okay to not know all the answers.
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Nov 17, 2014 4:24 PM CST
Moderator
Name: Kent Pfeiffer
Southeast Nebraska (Zone 5b)
Charter ATP Member I was one of the first 300 contributors to the plant database! Plant Database Moderator Plant Identifier Region: Nebraska Celebrating Gardening: 2015
Million Pollinator Garden Challenge Forum moderator Irises Garden Sages Garden Ideas: Master Level
There's a whole forum for it right here:

http://garden.org/forums/view/...
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Nov 17, 2014 4:46 PM CST
Name: Marilyn
Central California (Zone 9b)
Annuals Irises Dog Lover Composter Cat Lover Region: California
Butterflies Birds Bee Lover Enjoys or suffers hot summers Celebrating Gardening: 2015
Tom, the tool you are describing is a Hori knife and it is my favorite garden tool. Although there are many other tools for specialized uses this is the one I (try to remember to *Blush* ) grab when I make my rounds of the garden.

I'll have to catch up on posting my TJ and PB irises when I get home. Some of you may hate me for saying this but I'm posting on a tablet while enjoying the sunny Mazatlan beach! The internet signal is lousy so it's a slow and tedious process to post anything. I have really been enjoying the photos some of you posted! Smiling

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