Gardening tools for fall chores at the cottage
Hello everyone, autumn has arrived! Today we’re going to talk about garden tools for the gardener.
Garden tools for autumn works in the country house, garden or vegetable garden are the basic tools and the most convenient devices, without which it is impossible to carry out the mandatory work of preparing the ground, trees and flowers before the winter holidays.
Autumn in the garden is considered no less important than spring or summer. After all, a hot and responsible time has come for harvesting winter varieties of apples and pears, walnuts, new trees and already growing bulbous plants – tulips, narcissus, crocuses and hyacinths, transplanting rootstock and billets and generally preparing the garden, flower bed and vegetable garden for the cold. Such work requires a whole arsenal of gardening tools. So what to choose for fall activities at the cottage?
Tips for choosing tools for beginners
Not very experienced beginners find it difficult to navigate in such a rich selection of tools for gardening and fall gardening activities, which are offered by various stores like “all for garden and dacha”. Most tools and appliances are versatile and can come in handy for spring and summer work. And even if the novice gardener missed something when visiting the store, you should not worry too much. For autumn gardening, it is quite possible to use a minimum list of tools, but still work with pleasure.
And with experience, knowledge will come the necessary garden tools and devices for the fall. The main thing to remember the following – all the necessary garden tools, and not only for autumnal works, must be convenient, safe and reliable.
The basic list of tools needed for fall gardeners
1. Various tools for tilling the soil
The shovel has been and remains the main gardening tool at all times. It is indispensable in preparing the soil for winter for planting and replanting various plants and trees. When choosing a new shovel, it is important to opt for a lightweight model so that the fall with the ground is light and insignificant. A good garden shovel should have a sturdy handle and a steel tip.
A rake helps you remove dry leaves. A heavy-duty rake with sharp, stainless steel tines is a good idea. In autumn, larger and more compact rakes come in handy because they can be used for everything hard to reach places in a garden in Raspberry.
It is difficult to overestimate the importance of garden forks. They are essential for the care of tall beds made of high quality steel with a strong grip. Experienced gardeners and gardeners know that with the help of garden forks it is much easier to work the soil, turn it over and break up large clumps of soil. And the little trailblazers you know are a big deal when loosening the soil lightly before planting flowers and bulbs.
Tilling and loosening large areas of land may require a flatbed or cultivator.
2. What should be in a gardener’s shed for easy removal of the fall fruit crop
The harvest from the lower branches of the trees can easily be removed by hand. But to pick up apples and pears that have climbed high, you need a ladder and a device such as a fruit picker. In order not to lose valuable fruits, you need to get used to this tool. In any case, plastic or wooden boxes are needed to store the harvest.
3. Selection of equipment for pruning branches and trees
In the fall season, garden shears are the second most important tool after the shovel. Gardeners use them almost every day. Scissors can be used to trim hedges and all shrubs. For these purposes, you should also consider buying garden shears and a garden saw. What criteria are important when choosing? First of all, you need to be guided by the amount of work to be done in the garden. For a large garden, you will most likely need large garden shears with a large handle and a high-quality steel blade.
A gardener always has several saws in stock – for trimming small and large branches. Each saw used should be of medium thickness – a thin tool can break under any load or bend, and a thick one can get stuck in the kerf.
4. Other garden tools
You may also want to consider purchasing tools such as:
- A chainsaw – for substantial work when pruning trees and branches;
- Freebinder – for pruning and shaping shrubs and hedges;
- Chopper – a tool for shredding various wastes, of which there are many in the garden in autumn. It helps to dispose of branches, leaves and other garden waste. And the shredded product can be successfully used to cover the roots of shrubs and a kind of fertilizer for beds.
Related garden tools
It’s hard to do without wheelbarrows, carts, ladders or small carts at the cottage in the fall. The wheelbarrows and carts carry various fertilizers or sand to the destination. In addition, a special pit is convenient to load and transport spoiled crops. In the fall in the garden you will definitely need a variety of gloves. You should have simple cotton gloves and a sturdy pair of cutting gloves that protect your hands well from thorns and thorny branches.
All of the above tools and gadgets make gardening in the fall much easier. In fact, this is only the most necessary list of garden tools, which can still be expanded.
That’s all, buy and try for yourself, leave feedback in the comments, and don’t forget to read the column “Summer Resident”.
Harvesting Devices.
Fallen leaves are a serious problem, because they not only spoil the appearance of streets and sidewalks, but also make driving more dangerous.
The fact is that wet, dirty leaves dramatically impair the traction of bicycles and shoes.
That’s why you need to pick up fallen leaves before they turn into an acidic mass.
Garbage consists of individual leaves, which are usually small, but the total volume of this material is enormous, as an average-sized tree falls to the ground at least a cubic meter.
It is very important to use the right equipment that is optimal for this special material. Otherwise, either the capacity of the devices is insufficient and few unknown leaves are left, or too much money is spent on devices with excessive capacity/performance.
In the article on sheet cleaning, we talked about the different ways to collect and deliver blight to the disposal site. Here we will talk about the types of devices that are used for such work.
Taking into account the method of use and the level of mechanization, they can be divided into:
- manual (including manually mechanized);
- fully mechanized.
If you are interested in chargers and vehicles that can be used to remove leaves and other debris, we recommend that you pay attention to these articles:
Hand-held devices.
Manual equipment includes all tools whose action is based on the muscle power of the worker.
The most popular tool is the usual garden wheelbarrows, which can be purchased in any garden or homestead.
Despite the extremely low productivity, this tool is versatile and suitable not only for harvesting fresh leaves, but also for cavernous leaves.
In addition to the calculator, other leaf harvesting attachments such as a B. broom, net or transport screen are also used. These devices are designed in such a way that they work with a small volume of collected leaves.
The leaves are first moved into one of these devices with a rake or air change, then the net is tightened and the web is folded so that the edges are easy to carry, and stretched on or over the floor (depending on the floor) of the storage facility. Here is more information on these home-made devices.
Manual Mechanized Devices
Manual mechanized devices include all vacuum cleaners and blowers that the worker places on the floor by his or her physical strength or moves across the floor. The basis of all devices of this type is a centrifugal fan, which creates a powerful flow of air.
To switch to vacuum cleaner mode, a suction tube is connected to the inlet, and a filter-mechanism writes the collected garden waste to the outlet. To switch to blower mode, the fan inlet is closed with a protection net and a blow-off tube is connected to the outlet.
Here you will find more information about the inner workings and configuration of these devices.
All manual mechanized devices are divided into:
- electric (AC);
- battery-powered;
- Gasoline-powered.
Electronic equipment.
Electric vacuum cleaners and fans operate in AC 22 0-V, and their power ranges from 0.6 to 3 kW.
This variation in performance is due to a variety of purposes, because even a fan with little power can create enough air pressure to move a small volume of fresh foliage.
This means that it can be used to gather leaves in a pile or drive them into a pre-existing net or canopy. Powerful blowers are well suited for cleaning gardens and vegetable gardens, because they can be used to blow away even those leaves that are between bushes.
At the same time, the weight does not exceed 6 kg, even in the most powerful electric devices, and the cost is 2-12,000 rubles. The main disadvantage of electric devices depends on the outlet, so they can be used only near electrified houses.
It is very important to choose the right extension cable, as the operating current at 3 kW is 13.5 amperes, so the minimum cross section of the core cable length of 50 to 100 m should be 2.5 mm 2.
It is equally important to choose the right device itself and focus not only on performance and weight, but also on the brand, as this article will help you.
Rechargeable
These devices can work even when they are disconnected, but the battery rarely lasts more than 10 minutes in full-load mode. This is due to the insufficient capacity of modern batteries, as well as their high price and weight.
Hence the total cost of purchase:
- Fan;
- power source (battery);
- Charger,
many times the cost of most electric or gasoline models.
For this reason, cordless devices are purchased only for home use, as it is impossible to clean the street or a large area with them.
And the purchase of several additional power units increases the cost so much that it makes it cheaper to buy a gasoline-powered drone. You can find more information about this type of garden vacuum cleaner and blower here.
gasoline engines
The main difference between gasoline-powered devices is their complete autonomy, since they get the energy to work from the combustion of gasoline and are not tied to the power grid in any way. Therefore, they are used where it is necessary to work for a long time in autonomous conditions, that is, without being connected to the outlet.
However, these devices have one significant drawback – it is impossible to install engines with a capacity greater than 1.5 kW. This is due to the large mass of internal combustion engines and the ratio between:
- cylinder volume;
- engine power;
- engine weight.
Hand-held gasoline blowers are not subject to the power limit for vacuum cleaners because the engine can be moved behind the operator’s back, similar to the way backpack units are arranged.
Therefore, they create a very powerful airflow, as they often have a capacity of more than 5 liters. С. At the same time, the backpack configuration of a vacuum cleaner is not possible due to the difficulty of emptying the filled filter bag.
This dependency also does not apply to non-self-propelled and self-propelled wheeled vehicles. After all, the entire load does not fall on the operator, but on the wheeled chassis.
That is why even non self-propelled machines often have 3.7 kW (5 hp) engines, which weigh up to 40-50 kg. Even more complicated are self-propelled machines, in which engines of 15-20 hp are installed. – Their weight often exceeds 100 kg.
All wheeled devices are more productive than manual ones, but they cannot be used in blowdown mode. Instead of the intake manifold, they have an intake pipe, the width of which depends on the engine power and is 50-100 cm.
For harvesting leaves where the bell cannot reach them, a flexible hose has been developed. It is connected to a special connector on a branch pipe or on the body of the centrifugal fan, and then used as an ordinary garden vacuum cleaner.
Self-propelled and non-self-propelled models are equipped with large garbage bags (200-250 liters), installed directly behind the engine between the body of the vacuum cleaner and the operator. More information on all types of gasoline vacuums and blowers can be found here.
Fully mechanical appliances.
These devices include accessories designed to be mounted on a variety of devices, such as, for example:
- mini tractors;
- tractors;
- flatbed trucks;
- vans;
- dump trucks.
They also consist of a centrifugal fan and accessories, viz:
- flexible hose;
- a chute to feed the collected debris into a suitable container;
- Means of transportation (suspension for superstructures or car trailers).
Most sound devices are equipped only with a flexible hose, which is 3-15 m long. Exceptions are devices designed for front installation for mini-applications.
Such devices are also equipped with a bell-shaped liner, so that the collection of fallen leaves is fully mechanized – the operator can collect most of the leaves without getting up from his or her seat.
If the leaves are located where the bell cannot be reached, the operator uses a flexible hose. A centrifugal fan carries the air and collected debris into the chute, which determines their direction of travel.
Because of their enormous capacity, they are not equipped with garbage collection bags, but there are containers nearby, where they water everything they could suck up from the surface of the ground.
Another difference between the attachments is that they often come without an engine, since the engine is the current transport unit on which they are mounted for you. They are connected to the vehicle engine via a power shaft (from) or hydraulic drive.
For more information on fully mechanized attachments for clearing foliage from lawns, see the article Municipal Street Leaf Removal Machines.
Conclusion
With a variety of devices for collecting fallen leaves, you can choose the device or tool that is most effective in your particular situation.
