Disclaimer: Most items have been sourced in France
because of the tedious problems associated with post-Brexit purchases from
British companies (indeed, many companies have stopped shipping to Europe post
Brexit). NOTE: of the items featured
below, the only ones I own are the trolley, kneeler & plastic leaf rake: the others featured are similar to the tools on the table which were purchased in
local retail outlets in France (the ladies fork is 100 years+ and belonged to my
aunt).
Pearls of wisdom from Fred The Shed
(http://www.fredshed.co.uk/forksandspades.htm)
* Don’t buy shiny (stainless steel) – not as
strong as forged metal
* Bulldog and/or Spears & Jackson now make
their forged metal tools in India
TIPS
Take mobile phone with you when you garden
Don’t go up a ladder unless you have someone with you
To move a table on a terrace: if the base is square, roll it along using
three 10cm diam. plastic pipe lengths like the Romans did.
To move a heavy pot, place pot on a wooden plank and
push/pull along the plank.
If removing a sack of compost from the car boot, slide it down a plank onto a wheelbarrow or trolley
Digging spade or fork handles – go for T-handle rather than D-handle (if the bar
rolls it can pinch the hand)
Use a smaller watering can (or only half-fill your normal watering can)
Try a “pick-up stick” if bending down is a problem
LEAF RAKE
https://www.leroymerlin.fr/produits/terrasse-jardin/outils-de-jardinage/outils-pour-nettoyer-et-traiter-les-dechets/balai-exterieur/balai-a-gazon/balai-a-feuilles-l-43-cm-combisystem-gardena-279902.html
Cost: €19.80
SECETEURS -
ORDINARY or RACHET
or BATTERY-OPERATED ?
GARDENERS WORLD MAGAZINE
VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pE0Wj9pOj8g
It is better to make an angled cut rather than a straight-across cut.
Rachet requires repeat-action (say three or four times) which may not be
comfortable for arthritic hands.
Except for the Bosch battery seceteur (which looks a slightly chunkier of the classic seceteur),
powered seceteurs have the battery clipped to the end which might
be clumsy when delving into a many branched shrub.
If buying online, try to actually handle the seceteurs before buying (not always possible if they are packaged). Remember, you get what you pay for – my latest cheapy purchase did not cut cleanly.
SECATEURS (non rachet)
https://www.jardiniste.fr/products/secateur-japonais-grpro-niwaki-acier-carbone
Cost: €92.00 (free delivery) small, right-handed, carbon steel
Niwaki brand - is this the Japanese make that Mavis McQuade heard recommended on a BBC radio gardening programme? Better to buy in France - if purchased in UK the additional costs of customs duty (£16.48) and shipping cost/DHL handling charges (£25.98) push the initial purchase price of £69.00 up to £123.46.
SECETEURS (RACHET)
https://www.amazon.fr/S%C3%A9cateur-Cr%C3%A9maill%C3%A8re-Automatique-GPPS-1011-Cisaille/dp/B07S51WRBF/ref=sr_1_7?__mk_fr_FR=%C3%85M%C3%85%C5%BD%C3%95%C3%91&keywords=secateurs+gonicc&qid=1643483127&sr=8-7
Cost : €17.95
Non-battery, rachet, but lighter in weight (recommended by UK Arthritis)
SECETEURS (BATTERY-OPERATED)
https://www.amazon.fr/S%C3%A9cateur-sans-fil-Bosch-EasyPrune/dp/B083QLYK7V/ref=sr_1_5?__mk_fr_FR=%C3%85M%C3%85%C5%BD%C3%95%C3%91&crid=2EKL4LC84SIJI&keywords=bosch%2Bs%C3%A9cateur%2Bsans%2Bfil&qid=1643584649&sprefix=bosch%2Bsecateur%2Bsans%2Bfils%2Caps%2C193&sr=8-5&th=1
Cost : €73.12
Bosch, rechargable battery, slightly chunkier version of traditional mechanical
seceteur
LOPPPERS (PARROT
CLIPPERS)
VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KAvnNYgo29g
Link: https://www.thespruce.com/top-
Look for: rubber handles, carbon steel
blade, non-stick blade
Rachet loppers are needed to cut dead wood, it is very difficult to cut through with
bypass loppers.
Like rachet seceteurs, rachet loppers need to be opened between cutting to
operate the rachet
Battery operated loppers are just a larger, heavier version of seceteurs
Check
a) how long the loppers work on a full charge and b) how long the battery takes
to recharge). OR buy two batteries if
you frequently have a lot of pruning to do.
https://www.amazon.fr/TABOR-TOOLS-GG11-Coupe-Branches-Antiadh%C3%A9sif/dp/B01E5MV0LG?th=1
Cost: £37.99, mechanical not
rachet
KNEELER
(REPOSE GENOUX)
https://www.leroymerlin.fr/produits/terrasse-jardin/outils-de-jardinage/outils-pour-cultiver-son-potager/beche/repose-genoux-jardin-54-cm-83804925.html
Cost: €29.90 (only sold on the internet,
not in shop) (folds flat for hanging up)
TROLLEY
(CHARIOT)
https://www.leroymerlin.fr/produits/chauffage-plomberie/accessoires-poele-et-cheminee/abri-bois-et-range-buches-exterieur/abri-a-bois/chariot-a-buches-charge-maximale-80kg-pneus-en-caoutchouc-82959517.html
Cost: €39.90
Load: 80 Kg
If carrying items other than logs, (i.e. narrower), need to fit planks across
both levels.
LEAF BLOWER (SOUFFLEUR) (battery operated)
https://uk.ryobitools.eu/garden-tools/blowers-and-vacuums/blowers/rbl1820s/rbl1820s40s-1/
Cost: €89 (includes 1 x battery +
charger)
Battery run time is approx. 15 minutes, re-charge time is fast at 1hr 40 mins.
Weight with battery: 2.3 Kg
No speed variation, can be operated & turned on/off with one hand
SPADES
(PELLE A BECHER)
Buy a ladies’ spade
which is smaller and lighter; today it
seems to be described as a “border” spade.
A man’s spade is heavier and lifts too much soil when charged so too
tiring.
https://www.chausson.fr/lp/692052-1?flxrid=c732e460-705a-450b-856a-70824cdd31b7&utm_source=gshopping&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=fluxcenter
Cost: €21.49 (a reviewer said might break if used for heavy
digging)
https://www.amazon.fr/SHW-FIRE-59044-B%C3%AAche-Femme-Abgerundet/dp/B08562Q8MR/ref=sr_1_36?__mk_fr_FR=%C3%85M%C3%85%C5%BD%C3%95%C3%91&crid=A91QD2XWPYKM&keywords=sneeboer%2Bbeche&qid=1643103483&sprefix=sneeboer%2Bbeche%2Caps%2C1092&sr=8-36&th=1
Cost: €58.90 + €15 delivery from Germany (€49 on SHW-FIRE website but won’t ship to
France)
Weight: 1.9 Kg
FORKS
FOR DIGGING (FOURCHE
A BECHER)
Ladies forks seem to be a thing of the past, the nearest appear to be border forks but the tines are still longer than ladies forks of yesteryear.
https://www.leroymerlin.fr/produits/terrasse-jardin/outils-de-jardinage/outils-pour-cultiver-son-potager/beche/fourche/fourche-a-becher-acier-revex-manche-bois-80-cm-73668532.html?megaBoost
Cost: €35.50 (narrow but tines are rather long)
https://fr.jardins-animes.com/fourche-beche-dents-sneeboer-p-25.html
Cost: €127.95
https://www.craigmoreonline.ie/catalogsearch/result/?q=gardener+digging+fork
Cost: €14.17 (can’t beat this price and I like the
old-fashioned handle!)
These are great for light digging in the border to loosen compacted soil without bending down or kneeling as one would with a hand fork.
https://www.promessedefleurs.com/outils-pour-le-travail-du-sol/beches-louchets-et-fourches-a-
becher/fourche-a-becher-bequille-traditionnelle-de-pypere.html
Cost: €35.50 Make: de Pypere (Belgian)
Or try the Wolf brand of clip-on tools, they have this mini-fork. Good quality & available in most garden centres. Gardena also do a range of clip-on tools like the leaf rake (first photo).
CORDLESS
STRIMMER (DEBROUSSAILLEUSE SANS
FILS)
Look for: * highest voltage/wattage/revs per minute
*
two batteries with charger EU plug
* EU plug and voltage (240V)
*
telescopic handle
*
choice of blades (serrated metal
saw, 2x flat metal blades, 5 x plastic
blades)
*
wheels (for larger flat areas)
https://fr.aliexpress.com/item/1005002837686112.html?gatewayAdapt=glo2fra&_randl_currency=EUR&_randl_shipto=FR&src=google&src=google&albch=shopping&acnt=248-630-5778&isdl=y&slnk=&plac=&mtctp=&albbt=Google_7_shopping&aff_platform=google&aff_short_key=UneMJZVf&&albagn=888888&isSmbAutoCall=false&needSmbHouyi=false&albcp=10191220526&albag=107473525328&trgt=1284054470089&crea=fr1005002837686112&netw=u&device=c&albpg=1284054470089&albpd=fr1005002837686112&gclid=Cj0KCQiA9OiPBhCOARIsAI0y71CdZgKFSlP56vVI2bvNEAxgAS98iJe2fvld0kaeMK6w73QGNskccm0aApFKEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds
Cost: €42.00 (made in Russia, shipped from China!), free
delivery but slow boat from China.
SUGGESTED BY MEMBERS AT THE MEETING
LEAF GRABBERS (RAMASSE
FEUILLES)
There seems to be three types –
* cheapy but flatter so don’t hold many leaves
and the strap for hands is uncomfortable
* larger, curvy so more leaves picked up
but still need to bend down to gather leaves into bag or sack
* the Rolls Royce with long handles so
no bending (see Darlac below) but leaves appear to need to be loaded into a Big Bag or wheelbarrow and probably not easy
to load into a 100-litre plastic sack
Darlac leaf grabber
Videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWm--xPS0Kg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qcg6SExLkBo
Unfortunately currently unavailable on www.amazon.fr. Cost in UK is approx. £22.
From the video, the Darlac handled grabbers load best into large sacks like
one-metre-cube BigBag sacks which are cumbersome for transferring leaves into a
leaf mould bin or a car (100-litre bags are easier).
BIG BAG
https://www.leroymerlin.fr/produits/outillage/outillage-specialise/outillage-du-macon/sac-a-gravats-reutilisable-ocai-150-l-69587623.html
Cost: €7.90
PICKUP-STICK
This one has a magnetic tip and adjustable hinge and will also be
useful in the kitchen to access stuff from the top cupbo9ard shelves (I
use my hip replacement hospital-issue stick for reaching my baking pans &
racks rather than getting the steps out of the garage).
