How To Trim Hedges - Guide To Pruning

Hedges are a very common and important ornamental feature in the garden. If properly cared for, they can be one of the most eye-catching landscapes in the garden. Hedge care - that is, pruning - then becomes a daily task for many gardeners.
Hedge pruning is the best maintenance to help keep them looking good over time. In this article, we'll give you some tips on how to trim your hedges, including the proper time to trim, the tools to use, and more.

How to Trim Hedges
Trimming hedges is very different from trimming trees. When pruning trees and shrubs
best practice is to follow the natural lines of the plants. Unlike hedges, which often need to be trimmed to a specific shape for better ornamentation. This is actually contrary to the natural growth pattern of the plant and therefore requires better planning and consistent pruning.

When To Trim Hedges
Generally, hedges are trimmed before the new growth blocks the sunlight. As the leaves below lose sunlight, they will begin to die back in favor of new growth.
Some evergreens grow quickly and need to be trimmed every four to six weeks during the growing season, while others may grow more slowly and only need to be trimmed once. The best way to determine how often to prune is to watch the growth and prune before it begins to shade out the foliage below.

How To Trim Hedges Easily With The Right Tools
Many people use electric trimmers to trim hedges, especially some large landscaping providers, and power tools offer greater efficiency. But for individual gardeners, hand tools are a better choice. They ensure a cleaner cut and cause less damage to branches.
Power tools tend to leave uneven wounds on plants, which are difficult for them to heal. Therefore hedge plants trimmed with power tools are more likely to get sick. In addition, hand tools are more environmentally friendly and quieter.

Prepare To Prune
Before trimming your hedge, clear your workspace. Remember, it's a good idea to wear safety goggles and garden gloves. Clean and sharpen your tools before pruning. If you are trimming multiple hedges, have a bucket of soapy water and a rag on hand to clean your tools between two hedges. Since pruning can cause disease in the wood, it is important to make sure your tools are kept clean.
Manual Hedging Tools
1. Hand Pruners
Hand pruners are small tools that are ideal for removing wilted, dead or diseased branches and leaves. Hand pruners cannot cut branches that are too thick, so they are often used for softer plants or to trim the edges of hedge forms.
2. Pruning Saw
The saw blade of the pruning saw is so sharp that it is capable of cutting off large branches of more than 3/4 inch. Therefore, hedge trimming with a pruning saw will be very easy.
3. Hedge Shears
The hedge shears are slightly larger in size and can trim a larger area. This makes them very easy to use, especially when trimming large hedges and hedges at right angles.
Start trimming at the bottom of the hedge and trim all the way up so that the top branches and leaves are free to fall to the ground. Place the blade at a right angle to the branch to get the cleanest cut possible. Make sure you don't twist the branches or approach them at odd angles, as they won't cut cleanly.
4. Grass Shears
After trimming the hedge, the grass shears are then used to clean up any small debris that has sprung up after the cut and to remove any protruding leafless branches. Grass shears are the ideal tool for finishing and they are great for enhancing the decorative look of the hedge.

Pruning is one of the most frequent tasks in the garden. With a detailed guide and the right tools, every gardener can easily do the job and get a perfect hedge shape.
Gardepot is dedicated to wholesale gardening tools and you can find a wide range of pruning tools as well as gardening guides on our website. Feel free to contact us with any questions or needs.

What Tools Are Needed For Landscaping Business?

If you are planning to start your own landscaping business, then a good team and the right tools will be the two most important preparations. Using the right tools and equipment can make gardeners more efficient and landscaping service providers can expand their business by providing quality services to more customers.
In this article, Gardepot will introduce some useful gardening tools for those who are interested in landscaping to help them better understand the work of gardening.

Garden Hand Tools For Landscaping
Because of the versatility of hand tools, they are often critical in landscape design work. Hand tools allow gardeners to work with precision. Different gardening jobs may require different specialized tools, but the following basic tools are essential for landscaping services.
-Rake: A rake is essential because it helps sweep up debris from plant material, collect dirt, and scrape or move other things you may encounter on the job. When purchasing rakes, consider factors such as the length of the handle, the material of the rake, and the purpose of your use.
-Shovel: Shovels help dig up soil, break up clods, and scoop out materials such as pine needles or gravel. For gardeners with heavy workloads, it's best for the shovel to be light enough but strong enough. That's because they need to handle the work easily as well as be able to withstand difficult tasks, such as digging up dry, compacted ground.
-Spade: Often confused with a shovel, a spade has a square base and is designed to sweep and scrape hard surfaces such as concrete. For this purpose, the right spade needs to have a handle that is easy to grip and a head made of metal to withstand tough jobs such as moving gravel or concrete.
-Trowel: Small trowels are often used for garden planting, especially for small plants such as flowers or potted plants. Trowels are also ideal replacements in places where a regular shovel is too big to fit. Examples include making a small hole in a flower bed to plant seeds, or prying rocks up from the soil.
-Shears: Shrubs and hedges, common plants in garden landscaping, both require regular pruning to maintain a nice shape. Pruning shears are the best tool for this job, and they are used to cut twigs and stems to help landscapers shape hedges and shrubs.
-Wheelbarrow: Wheelbarrows are versatile tools used to transport materials with ease. Since there are many types of garden wheelbarrows, their materials, the number of wheels, and the type of surface they will be working on should be considered when purchasing them.

Garden Power Tools for Landscaping
With advances in technology, there are more and more options for garden power tools. Power tools often have greater power and greater efficiency, enabling them to perform tasks that are difficult with hand tools. For this reason, garden power tools are also essential for a successful landscaping business.
-Chainsaw: Cordless chainsaws are mobile and can quickly complete tasks such as cutting branches and trimming shrubs. As with all power tools, the weight of the chainsaw, battery life, and safety features are the three most important factors when purchasing. Because they are so loud, it is also worth investing in ear protection for gardeners who use such machines.
-Mower: Mowers are an expensive investment, but they are the most convenient and efficient tool when it comes to mowing large areas of lawn. Remember to consider their size when purchasing to ensure good mobility.
-Trimmer: Commonly called a “weed-eater“ or “weed-whacker,” these precision tools trim the areas a lawnmower can’t reach. They rely on plastic string blades to cut plant material, so look for a trimmer that’ll be easy to reload when it’s time to change out the string. It’s also worthwhile to look for a string trimmer with low vibrations to make precision trims easier.

Gardepot offers a wide range of gardening tools and equipment that landscaping business needs. Just contact us now to get a latest catalog of our all products!

Buying Guide - Different Types Of Wheelbarrows

In many cases, gardeners may not realize just how important a tool a wheelbarrow is in the garden. In fact, a wheelbarrow can perform many garden tasks.
Wheelbarrows can be used for a variety of purposes, such as moving rocks, mulch or compost to the garden, moving trees or large shrubs from one place to another, hauling bricks, disposing of garden debris, or even for mixing concrete or fertilizer.
However, there are different types of wheelbarrows designed for different jobs. Which wheelbarrow you should buy depends on what tasks you need it for. We've prepared an introduction and buying guide to wheelbarrows for you, so keep reading to learn more.

USING WHEELBARROWS IN GARDENS
With so many varieties available, it is important to choose a wheelbarrow that properly fits your gardening needs. In general, wheelbarrow buckets come in two materials: steel or plastic.
Steel wheelbarrow buckets can handle more weight, but they will rust and be heavier to handle. Steel wheelbarrows are used for heavy-duty work, such as moving rocks, bricks or large plants.
Plastic wheelbarrow buckets are lighter and often cheaper, but they can break from carrying too much weight or from bumps. Plastic wheelbarrows are used to move mulch, compost, garden debris and small plants. Plastic is also better for mixing things like concrete or fertilizer, especially some organic fertilizers that contain animal manure, which contains ingredients that can corrode steel.
Trolleys also come in different capacities to indicate how much weight they can hold. But we don't recommend filling them to the brim with rocks or bricks when using a wheelbarrow - as they say on the label that they can hold 500 pounds.
How much weight you put on the wheelbarrow will depend on your own strength. While such tools are designed to make it easier to move and dump heavy loads, a wheelbarrow full of rocks or other heavy objects may be too heavy for many people to handle.

How to Choose a Wheelbarrow
When choosing a wheelbarrow, also consider the handles and wheels. When you hear "wheelbarrow," you probably think of the classic wheelbarrow with two straight handles, one wheel in the center of the front, and two supports evenly spaced in the back. However, newer types of wheelbarrows may have ergonomic bar handles and/or two wheels. Single-wheeled wheelbarrows are easier to tip and maneuver, but they are also easy to tip over when turning or tipping, or due to unbalanced loads.
Carts with two wheels are less prone to accidental tipping, but may be more difficult to turn and dump. Wheels are also available as ordinary inflatable wheels or solid rubber wheels like bicycles. Solid rubber wheels don't flatten or burst like inflatable wheels, but they also don't have the shock absorption of inflatable wheels, making them more difficult to use on rough terrain.
The classic two-handle wheelbarrow is designed for good leverage. These handles are usually plastic, metal or wood. Plastic handles can break due to excessive weight. Metal handles can get very hot from being in the sun for long periods of time. Wooden handles can crack and split from too much weather exposure. Two-handled strollers may also require a lot of upper body strength, causing shoulder, arm and back pain.
Ergonomic handles are usually bar handles, like lawn mowers. These bar handles are designed to reduce upper arm strain, but actually have less leverage when dumping loads and can cause more back pain.

In addition to the types described above, there are also specialized slender carts that can be used in tight spaces. Now you can even find foldable canvas trolleys on the market for easy storage. Of course, these canvas trolleys cannot withstand a lot of weight.
Take the time to choose the best trolley for your own needs. All different types of trolleys have pros and cons, so base your choice on what seems easiest for you to use.

If you have any pruner purchase needs or other questions, feel free to contact us. GarDepot is always happy to help!

Understanding Essential Lawn Care Tools

Lawn care is one of those tasks in gardening that is both important and complex. Unless you hire a lawn service to handle the weekly chores of lawn care, every homeowner needs a few basic lawn care tools to finish the task.
There are power tools and some hand tools needed for lawn care. These tools each meet different purposes and have their own different characteristics. This article will provide you with a detailed introduction to them.

Lawn Mower
Almost every homeowner who tends to their lawn will want to own a lawn mower. Mowers are usually of two types: reel mowers, which shear bed knives with a set of laterally mounted blades as the wheels turn, or rotary mowers, which cut with high-speed rotating blades hidden under a metal deck.
In the days before power mowers, reel mowers used to be the standard. There has been a resurgence in reel mowers as people seek non-polluting alternatives. While there are some gasoline-powered reel mowers for commercial applications, reel mowers for home use are usually powered only by the force of the gardener pushing them. Reel mowers are completely pollution-free and provide more exercise for the user.
Rotary mowers include most of the push-powered mowers used in homes across the country. They come in many, many different forms, from small push mowers to large riding mowers that resemble small tractors
Among these push mowers, increasingly common are those operated by plug-in cords and those operated by rechargeable batteries. The various electric models have many advantages, not the least of which is the absence of polluting fumes from burning oil and gasoline. And electric mowers are usually much quieter than gasoline-powered mowers.

Spreaders and Sprayers
To feed and weed your lawn, a spreader for spreading granules is an basic lawn care tool. It spreads fertilizer evenly over a wide, curved area. For spot treatment of weeds, the average size garden a small volume (from one to three gallons) pressure sprayer for spraying herbicides. For lots over half an acre, gardeners may need a backpack sprayer capable of holding four or more gallons.

Rakes
The rake is a basic garden long-handled tool for digging, spreading and collecting in lawn care. And there's a surprising variety to choose from. Hard, metal-tined landscape rakes or garden rakes are ideal for weeding, spreading, separating rocks from the soil and laying mulch. If you want to remove dead leaves, grass clippings and other debris from your lawn, the more flexible and lightweight plastic leaf rakes are better.

Shears
In addition to lawns, some owners like to have some landscaping with grass in their gardens. Grass shears or large hedge shears are the best tools for trimming these landscapes. Small hand pruners are suitable for decorative plants and can cut branches, shrubs and vines.
Grass shears can help you keep the grass high so the landscape doesn't look cluttered. When there are a few scattered weeds popping up and you don't want to bother starting the mower, that's when grass shears come into play as a lawn care tool.

Hand Trowel
This little gem of a lawn tool has multiple uses. Use it as a miniature shovel for digging small holes for planting seedlings and bulbs, or use it for weed eradication tasks. Some models are actually multi-purpose tools with serrated blades and markers that allow you to measure the exact depth of your garden digging.

Wheelbarrow
Moving things from one place to another can be a chore, even in a modestly sized yard. Wheelbarrows are great tools for transporting soil, plants, mulch, hay and other lawn equipment, no matter the distance.

Using these basic lawn care tools to maintain the health of your lawn is sure to keep your entire outdoor living space beautiful this spring and summer. Boost your curb appeal, enjoy your beautiful lawn, and revel in the compliments you receive from your neighbors!

Essential Watering Tools For Beginning Gardeners

Watering is a very important task in garden care. Like many other gardening tasks, watering requires the right tools to do it.
Not all plant watering tools are created equal. You may be confused by the wide variety of watering tools on the market. Some are cheap, but completely unreliable and break after one season. Others are expensive and of good quality, but you may be concerned about whether you really need them for your garden. There are even watering tools that you've never seen before, making the choice even more difficult.
Don't worry, we have prepared this guide for you on a few of the most important watering tools for your garden.

Essential Watering Tools in Your Garden
1. A Lightweight, Long Gardening Hose
One of the most important plant watering tools in your collection is a high quality hose. With a lightweight hose, even plants in the farthest corners of your garden can be watered with ease. What's more, you don't have to worry about accidentally damaging any fragile flower beds while you're hauling it around. Watering hoses have become one of the most recommended gardening tools for most gardeners.
Remember to check the length of the hose before you buy it, to make sure you can easily reach every corner of your yard. There's nothing more irritating than buying a new hose and finding yourself unable to reach your backyard herb garden! If you live in a seasonal climate, purchasing a weather-resistant hose is crucial to getting through the winter.
2. A Self-Propelling Sprinkler
Now that we have robotic vacuum cleaners for use in our homes, it was only a matter of time before they reinvented the sprinkler with the same concept. Self-propelled sprinklers may just change the way you think about your plant watering tools. You don't have to adjust the sprinklers multiple times throughout your yard. Sprinklers no longer have to babysit as they do their job. You simply lay the hose used by the sprinkler as its track across the yard and let it go!
3. A Rain Barrel
You can save a lot of money simply by collecting and using rainwater to water your lawn and garden. To do this, you first need to purchase a rain barrel. These are usually fairly inexpensive, and it's not even necessary to buy a brand new one. Being frugal and eco-friendly is also something every gardener wants. Buy a rain barrel and save your money and water!
4. A Multipurpose Hose Nozzle
While it is necessary to have a hose nozzle for watering your garden and plants, it is important to consider other uses when purchasing.
The hose nozzle should be durable enough to last a long time, and it must also be easy to use. Think of all the chores a hose nozzle can do, such as watering gardens and potted plants, washing vehicles, spraying the exterior of a house, or even giving the dog a bath. The best plant watering tools may also help you in other aspects of your daily life.
5. The Water Blossom
The Water Blossom is both a beautiful garden decoration and a root watering device that directs water to the roots of plants, making them stronger and healthier.
The problem with most traditional plant watering tools is that they cannot get under the hard surface layer of the soil. Especially in the hot summer months, water may not penetrate into the ground, causing most of the water to evaporate or run off. the Water Blossom root watering tool allows you to water your plants and garden more effectively than traditional watering systems. Whether indoors or outdoors, you'll be able to water deeply and less frequently. This watering method encourages deeper and wider root growth.

While you can't make it rain, you can equip yourself with some affordable tools that will help make watering your lawn and garden less of a hassle. The goal is to water smarter, not harder.
If you'd like to learn more about gardening tools, feel free to browse GarDepot. we offer a gardening guide guide, as well as a variety of useful gardening tools to help keep your garden in tip-top shape all year round.

The Tools You Need to Start a Garden

If you're planning to start a garden, you probably know that it takes more than a few gadgets to get the job done. However, you don't need an entire shed full of tools for every type of plant you plan to grow.
And you certainly don't need to give up growing your own vegetables and fruits because you lack gardening tools or expertise. We've prepared a detailed guide to the basic gardening tools you need to get started, plus helpful hints and optional add-ons that can make gardening easier.
Save yourself (and your wallet) a trip to the garden center by sticking with these essential gardening tools, which will get you off to a strong start.

5 Must-Have Gardening Tools
1. Trowel
A small hand trowel is an essential tool for many everyday gardening tasks, including breaking up clods of soil, digging small holes, transplanting young plants, and even digging out weeds. Container-only gardeners and large gardeners alike will find themselves using a small trowel on a regular basis. If you're spending money on a piece of entry-level gardening equipment, this is the one to go for - choose one with a sturdy metal blade and a sturdy wooden handle.
2. Pruning Shears
Whether you're harvesting fresh produce or cutting back berry bushes, you'll want to equip yourself with a sturdy set of pruning shears.
For a clean cut, cut at the nodes of the plant (where the branch meets the stem in a Y-shape). Once your garden matures, you can invest in a set of shears designed for branches that are 2 inches or wider.
3. Hose and Watering Can
If you put your plants directly in the ground, then buy a hose and make sure it's long enough to reach from your faucet to your garden. Consider adding a sprayer attachment that lets you control water flow and pressure. If you're purely a container gardener, a watering can will suffice - look for one that's lightweight and still portable when filled.
For best results, water in the early morning when temperatures are cooler. Avoid midday watering, which evaporates too quickly, and evening watering, which can leave the soil waterlogged and create a breeding ground for harmful fungi and bacteria.
4. Garden Rake
Garden rakes usually have a long wooden handle with uniform metal tines and are stronger than the leaf rakes you use to clean up grass clippings and other loose material. They make it easy for you to create smooth, level soil while removing unwanted weeds. If you're tilling tough, weedy ground, consider swapping the rake for a garden hoe, a more weighty landscape tool that can help you chop and clear irregular spaces and remove weeds.
5. Angled Shovel
A shovel seems simple enough, but you'd be surprised at how many options are available in the store. Choose a shovel with an angle (with a triangular head) that will give you the ability to dig holes, move soil and relocate plants. If you're starting a large landscape bed, a square garden trowel will help you make cleaner cuts, but for most novices, an angled trowel is the tool for the job.

5 Nice-to-Have Tools to Make Gardening Easier
If your budget allows, consider these five items that will help make your entry into food gardening a bit smoother.
1. Gardening Gloves
While some people won't touch the soil without wearing gardening gloves, they're not technically necessary, especially when it comes to lighter workloads like container gardening. However, they will help prevent blisters and scratches, not to mention keep your hands clean. Look for gloves with reinforced fingertips and padding for added protection, plus a tightenable wrist strap to keep soil out.
2. Kneeling Pad
If you're concerned about soreness from kneeling for long periods of time, consider this comfort item. Most garden centers offer rectangular foam pads that you can place under your knees while you work.
2. Sprinkler
You can water your vegetable garden with a hose and sprayer attachment (plus a few minutes of your time), but sprinklers have proven to be useful for larger spaces. If you need to cover a lot of ground, look for a swinging or rotating sprinkler that will maximize the use of water.
3. Wheelbarrow
If you're working on a heavy project, consider using a wheelbarrow to help you move lots of soil, mulch, compost and plants (and, hopefully, a bumper crop in a few months!) . Plastic wheelbarrows are less expensive (not to mention heavier), while metal wheelbarrows may prove to be more durable. For smaller projects, an old 5-gallon bucket will do the trick.

Power Tools You Need For Your Garden

Who doesn't love a beautiful garden full of lush flowers and vegetables, or a perfectly uniformly trimmed lawn? These outdoor landscapes involve hard work, planting, cultivating, weeding, mowing and harvesting. Fortunately, we live in an age where garden power tools can alleviate some of the hard work that is necessary to achieve a beautiful garden and lawn.

Leaf Blower
Come fall, all the lush leaves fade to brown and cover your once lovely lawn. Using a leaf blower will save you time with your rake. The newer models that can both blow and suck are also useful for cleaning up debris in your yard.
Leaf blowers are also available in gas-powered, corded electric and battery models. Leaf blowers use a fair amount of energy for their tasks, so battery-operated leaf blowers have a fairly limited life between charges and are best used if the task at hand is fairly small.
An electric, corded blower is a good choice for home use because it is a compromise between power and weight. These blowers have no emissions when in use, start reliably and easily, and have enough power to move most leaf litter.
When choosing a leaf blower, look for an adjustable air deflector, a convenient on/off switch, a good hand balance to reduce fatigue, a speed control, and a gas operated model with a detonator bulb. For example, a model that can also be used as a vacuum cleaner can come in handy when cleaning garage floors.

Hedge Trimmer
If you have a lot of shrubs and hedges, you'll soon get tired of trimming them one by one by hand. Instead, this is the job of a pair of hedge trimmers, which use two toothed blades that move sideways to quickly clip off branches.

Again, you can choose between gas, corded electric and battery electric models. And, the battery model is best for light use and the gas model for very heavy use. Most homeowners will choose a corded model as a compromise between power and price: both gas and battery models are more expensive. Corded models are also lighter and quieter.
The blade length of a hedge trimmer determines its cutting speed and has an impact on the overall weight of the unit. Home landscape models are usually in the 16-inch to 24-inch range. The distance between the teeth determines the maximum size of branch you can cut; home models are usually 1/2" to 3/4".
On some hedge trimmers, one blade moves while the other remains stationary, while on better models, both blades move, resulting in a faster cut. A wrap-around handle will provide a firm grip, and you'll want a front handle guard and tine extensions to minimize any chance of injury. Choose a hedge trimmer that is well balanced and light enough that it won't tire you out.

Chain Saw
Chain saws are perfect for cutting large branches into smaller, more manageable pieces. These types of saws are also suitable for pruning branches that are too wide for other equipment.
Features to look for on a chain saw include a kickback lever (one danger of the saw is the tendency to kick away from the cut when the going gets tough), a brake to stop the chain when it kicks back, to prevent the chain from being thrown back at the operator if it breaks, and a wrap-around handle for maximum grip.

A good garden and lawn can give great satisfaction, but is very time consuming. Having the right power tools on hand can save you enough time to really enjoy the fruits (and vegetables) of your labor.