Gardening is a slow yet rewarding experience. Some of the plants you grow may take up to a year or more to fill in while others may take a short few months. Regardless, it can be an enjoyable, fulfilling experience to tend to them. One of the most important tools to have when maintaining your garden is a trusty pair of gardening scissors. Unlike traditional scissors, gardening scissors are more reliable and durable.
With so many gardening scissors on the market, it can be hard to choose the right pair. We’ve compiled a list of the most useful gardening scissors of 2023 to help you find the right pair for your needs. We’ve also included a comprehensive buying guide with use and care tips to keep your shears in excellent condition for years to come.
Gardening can be quite a bit of work if you don’t have the right tools. This is what you need to know about gardening scissors.
Gardening scissors are tools that you use to cut plants and parts of plants with. They’re also called gardening shears by some. Gardening scissors have a variety of uses, and they’re very often used by gardeners. They can vary in shape and size depending on your need.
Pruning is a process that’s vital to the growth and longevity of many plants. For those still relatively new to gardening, pruning is the act of cutting off dead or dying parts of the plant. Because these parts of the plant are taking nutrients from the plant, they won’t be able to grow as effectively. As such, gardeners prune these dying parts in the hopes that the nutrients are better used in other parts of the plant.
If you’re wondering about the safety of the plant, then don’t — plants are completely fine even after they’re pruned. The cut-off part can simply be disposed of or decomposed, and the exposed cut can regrow into a new, healthier part of the plant. That is, however, only if the cut is clean.
You see, the difference between a clean cut and a rough one can be huge when it comes to pruning. A very haphazard and rough breakage will be difficult for a plant to heal, and it may take time for the plant to regrow in that area if at all. On the other hand, a clean cut will expose the plant properly and allow it to heal much faster. This will also make the plant healthier in the long run.
Because clean pruning is very important, many gardeners invest in high-quality and sharp gardening scissors. The sharpness guarantees a clean prune and increases the chances of faster and healthier recovery of your plants.
Trimming is another activity that many gardeners do. It is the act of cutting up parts of a plant to achieve a certain look. This is often done to bushes but some gardeners trim other plants too. While it may not necessarily help the plant grow better by any means, it is a surefire way to improve the look of your garden. Gardeners love making their gardens look nice and comfortable, and with the right pair of scissors, you can trim your plants to look inviting and welcoming.
Plants aren’t the only things that gardeners cut while gardening. Whether it be rope, sticks, or some other material, there are many things in gardening that you may have to cut at some point. So even if you’re not going to use the scissors to prune or trim, you can still use the tool for basic cutting of materials, equipment, and the like. It may be a bit unnecessary to use such a special tool for cutting simple items, but it’s better than having nothing at all.
Unlike general-purpose scissors, gardening scissors stay open by default. This is because gardening scissors often have a spring that keeps the scissors open. The spring helps make your cuts more consistent and easier to pull off but at the cost of leaving the blades open and exposed when not in use. Thankfully, there is a way to close the blades together with the help of a closing mechanism that is installed on many gardening scissors.
If your pair of gardening scissors has a closing or locking mechanism, be sure to use it to keep and store the scissors safely. Gardening scissors are just as sharp as regular scissors if not more, and it’s dangerous to leave them open like that all the time.
Gardening scissors are most effective when they can easily cut through materials and plants. They’re at their best when at their sharpest, but this isn’t always the case. Over time, the blades will dull and become less effective at cutting. In the best of cases, this is a minor inconvenience, but in the worst of cases, it can drastically worsen the effectiveness of pruning. To fix this, you need to ensure your gardening scissors are always sharp.
There are a handful of ways to do this. For one, you could get a sharpening tool to sharpen your scissors between gardening sessions. It involves a little work but guarantees your tool will stay sharp. An alternative to this would be to buy another pair of scissors — more costly, to be sure, but easier and requires less effort. Whatever method you choose, you have to ensure that the blade stays sharp so that you can use the scissors effectively for as long as possible.
Gardening scissors are a quintessential gardening tool and they’re quite affordable, too. A decent pair of gardening scissors should cost you no more than $10, with some even costing around $5 or so depending on which brand you go for. Of course, the higher you go in price the more likely it is you’ll get a pair with sharp blades, but this isn’t a guarantee.
Gardening scissors may also come with freebies and accessories that increase the overall price. So, depending on the included tools and accessories you’re looking at spending up to $20 or more. If you’re on a budget, though, a $10 bill should afford you a decent pair of scissors and maybe even some additional accessories on the side if you’re lucky.
With a solid build quality and an ergonomic grip, there’s a lot to love about Vivosun’s gardening scissors. It comes in two different colors, with the blue color featuring an almost golden pair of blades. The design of the scissors features a curved grip on both sides of the tool. This minimizes strain on your fingers and gives you a more comfortable experience when holding and using it.
Other than the convenient shape, the scissors feature a lock function that keeps the tool safe and closed when not in use. It also has a spring that makes it easier to cut down twigs and other small shrubberies. While the scissors may be a tad smaller than others, it’s a great solid choice for many gardeners. It’s the best overall pick and a definite recommendation all around.
With a sleek design, these pruning shears by Fiskars are great for pruning many plants in your garden. The device features what the brand calls micro-tip blades — in other words, they’re small blades that can easily cut through plants to the tip cleanly. It’s always important to prune cleanly to facilitate growth, and these shears do just that.
Due to their small size, the shears are best for small and repetitive cuts rather than one sweeping cut. Thankfully, it’s not as tiring as it sounds because the ergonomic handle makes the tool great for prolonged use. The shears only come in one color, however, so unless you’re fine with black and orange for your tool then you may want to look somewhere else.
Gardening can end up being quite an expensive hobby. And while you can make a bit of money back by growing your own vegetables and fruit at home, you’re still spending a good amount of money on tools and materials. If you want to save a bit of money, Wevove’s got quite the deal for you — you get three pruning shears with one purchase, each with a different shape and design.
The three shears can be used in a variety of situations. Some of the shears are better used for tough twigs whereas others are more suited for softer and younger branches. The handles are slightly different from the shears, which can make holding them feel inconsistent and uncomfortable at times. But apart from that, you’re getting a great deal by having three shears in just one purchase.
So far, we’ve taken a look at scissors that were clearly meant for gardening. The thick handles, the springs, and even the shape of the blades were clear indicators that those scissors were made for plants. This next pair of scissors is also made for gardening and plants, but you wouldn’t know it from a glance. CastleGreens’ plant scissors are the perfect gardening tool for those just getting into gardening.
It can be a difficult experience to work with new tools for the first time, even if they’re used in a similar way. Because of this, it may be a good idea to start with something that you’re already familiar with. These plant scissors are shaped just like traditional paper scissors, and you can easily cut through plants with them thanks to the sharp blades. They make a great gift to friends who are also getting into gardening for the first time.
If you’re still new to gardening and are going shopping for some parts, this last product may be the perfect deal for you. You get not one, but two pruning shears — one with thick, curved blades and the other with thin, straight blades. These two designs are suited for different types of branches and twigs, and you’ll be able to cut just about anything with these two. But that’s not all you get from your purchase.
Aside from the shears you also get a pair of gardening gloves and a storage bag for your tools. This is a great kit to buy if you don’t have a whole lot of tools already and are looking for a great deal. Finally, the set is surprisingly affordable, so you can save up quite a bit of money in the process.
A: Ideally, you’ll want to prune plants when parts of the plant are dying and need to be cut out.
A: No, it does not. In fact, pruning extends the lifespan of the plant by getting rid of unwanted parts.
A: It’s best to prune as necessary and not do it regularly as some sort of scheduled appointment. Find what parts of the plant need pruning and prune them.
