Best Garden Tool: Felco Pruners

Working in the garden (whether it's a container garden or an 800 square foot greenhouse) can be one of the joys of nice weather and a free weekend. Not only can you make huge progress in a short time, but it's physical and engaging. The one thing that can get in the way is not having the right tools. For pruning, we fully endorse Felco pruners:

We know quite a few avid gardeners who swear by them, and when we use them we're grateful: they cut with ease, the handle grip is firm, and they don't dull anywhere near as quickly as some of the cheaper versions we've bought in the past. We recommend the but they also have versions for smaller hands and for lefties depending on your needs. For larger jobs check out their lopper.

What is your can't-live-without garden tool?

Comments (5)

Interesting -- we agree!:

http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/sf/gardening/best-products-felco-2-classic-pruner-009580

posted by leslie on April 29th 2008 at 10:38am
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This is my all-time favorite tool:

http://www.smithandhawken.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=prod540090p&categoryId=cat120313

It loosens all those teeny weeds, breaks up soil, and is perfect for working in a fresh layer of mulch or compost. The blade pulls about 3" below the ground surface and does it's thing like magic. I bought mine almost 20 years ago, and it's the longest lasting, most useful item in my garden bag.

posted by kimg924 on April 29th 2008 at 10:56am
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Felco...best tools ever

posted by hdtex on April 29th 2008 at 4:30pm
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I happened on some Corona pruners last week and initially thought they were Felcos. The patent must have expired, if there was one. The Model 2 style are about $10 to $20 cheaper than my #2 Felcos and I'm impressed with their quality. The local landscaping companies seem to use them a lot

I also have a pair of the rotating handle Felcos as shown in your photo and dislike them. There's nothing natural feeling about the tool handle slipping around in your hand.

posted by Poster on April 29th 2008 at 5:25pm
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I absolutely love My Felco's with the rotating handles. They work extremely well for me and give me much more cutting power. I can get through things I couldn't cut with my first (non-felco) loppers. The advantage of Felco over corona is that the blade can be removed and sharpened or replaced. In fact, all the parts can be replaced so it's cheaper over time.

posted by djftex on April 29th 2008 at 6:44pm
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