The Best Garden Tools

Here’s what a few garden experts say they can’t live without.

Charlotte Moss

IGTV is a great tool, a tool for learning and experiencing. But as for the more traditional garden tools: Modern Sprout clippers and Foxgloves.

Perla Sofia Curbelo-Santigo

My pruners and garden scoop. I even keep a pruner in my purse. You never know when you come across a plant that you would like to take a cutting for propagation (of course, I will ask first). The garden scoop helps me to control any soil spill when I´m gardening.

Christina Chrobokowa

My camera.

Jennifer Jewel

Felco clippers; a small well-used, handheld hula hoe; and my Womanswork gauntlet leather gloves are right up there too!

Sofia Barroso

Garden scissors. There is always a place to do some cuttings.

Vanessa Parson and Lisa Stamm

LS: A soil probe.

VP: The Hori Hori blade is indispensable—from dropping Plant-tone into a hole before planting, to cutting pesky roots and planting bulbs in cold and tough soil. It is endlessly useful.

Raun Thorp

One? My “saho” Japanese pruning shears, my Hori Hori (a Japanese digging and weeding tool that is really indispensable), and my Le Prince Jardinier tool apron.

John Danzer

The rake. Love the rake. Love the deep scratch sound, love the finality (leaves, no leaves), love the no-think accomplishment. Could rake all day.

Lucy Berkoff

The poacher’s spade. Light and easy to use in almost any application. Very underutilized.

Abbie Zabar

A long-handled carbon steel bonsai tweezers. Perfect for container gardening. They pinch out, they prune, they dig holes, they transplant the most delicate seedlings. I have several for when I misplace one, which inevitably happens.

Jinny Blom

My Swiss Army knife.

Sarah Hobel

I love my Garrett Wade Cape Cod Weeder.