Best gardening tools every gardener should own

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Whether you're a seasoned gardener or growing your own plants for the very first time, every gardener needs a good collection of tools in their arsenal. For vegetable gardens and flower beds alike, the right set of tools like pruning shears, shovels, and hoses can make a real difference in your gardening season.

We've compiled the best garden tools from across our guides, from the best garden hoses to the best soil moisture meters. Our recommendations come from real gardeners after years of researching and testing. Below, you'll find our favorite essential tools for every garden.

Essential gardening tools every gardener should own

Best garden tool set: Fiskars 3-in-1 Garden Tool Set - See at Amazon

Best pruning shears: Fiskars Steel Bypass Pruning Shears - See at Amazon

Best gloves: Showa Atlas Nitrile Gloves - See at Amazon

Best garden hose: Dramm Colorstorm Garden Hose - See at Amazon

Best garden hose nozzle: Dramm 9-Pattern Revolver Spray Nozzle - See at Amazon

Best sprinkler: Nelson Rain Train Traveling Sprinkler - See at Amazon

Best watering can: Bloem Easy Pour Watering Can - See at Ace Hardware

Best soil moisture meter: Ecowitt Soil Moisture Tester - See at Amazon

Best indoor garden: Rise Personal Garden - See at Amazon

Best wheelbarrow: Gorilla Carts GCR-4 Poly Dump Cart - See at Amazon

Best rake: Kobalt Steel Garden Rake - See at Lowe's

Best shovel: Fiskars Long-Handle Round-Point Steel Digging Shovel - See at Ace Hardware

Best gardening tool set

Whether you're looking for a handy set of tools to get you started on your gardening journey or need to replace your rusty, old handheld set, the Fiskars 3-in-1 Garden Tool Set is a worthy option. This trio of tools is ideal for light-duty tasks like weeding flower beds or planting new vegetable seedlings.

This set is our top pick, thanks to its combination of ergonomic design, durability, and value. It contains a transplanter, a trowel, and a cultivator — each backed with a lifetime warranty. The head of the tools consists of polished, rust-resistant cast aluminum, while the handles feature a soft, grippy design made for easy handling. The transplanter also has etched-on measurements for easy depth measurement when transplanting different types of seedlings.

Unlike other garden tool sets, which contain extra accessories, this Fiskar set has only what you need. While the tools aren't ideal for cultivating heavy clay and rock-filled soils, they'll hold up well to frequent use in most other settings, including container gardens.

Best pruning shears

If you've ever left your pruning shears in your garage only for them to be completely locked up the next time you go to prune your roses, they were likely a victim of sap gluing the blades together. Fiskars has aimed to put a stop to gummed-up pruning shears by treating its blades with a non-stick coating. The coating on the Steel Bypass Pruning Shears both prevents sap buildup and allows the blades to cut through wood that much more easily.

The steel blades have a bypass design, meaning that the top blade descends below the hinge to make a cleaner cut. The design means you don't have to saw through the branch you're trying to remove. The Fiskars Pruning Shears can handle branches up to 5/8 of an inch (a bit smaller than a dime), so they will easily be able to handle your rose bushes and forsythias that need their seasonal trims.

The blades lock closed with a sliding button that can easily be accessed with your thumb, so you don't have to fumble with a latch mechanism.

Best gardening gloves

The Showa Atlas Nitrile Gloves are a budget-friendly option made from a durable nylon fabric coated with a layer of thick nitrile rubber. The rubber-coated palm serves two purposes — it prevents punctures and abrasions to the glove and increases grip support. These gloves keep your hands clean and dry, but they're form-fitting enough to ensure you maintain your dexterity when handing seedlings or delicate blooms. They're lightweight, too, so they don't add extra bulk when you're gardening.

The one downside to these gloves is that the nylon fabric is relatively thin, meaning they won't protect you from thorns or brambles. Still, at around $3 a pair, they're a must-have in any gardener's arsenal. Plus, they come in five different sizes.

Check out our guide to the best gardening gloves for more options, including gloves for heavy-duty jobs.

Best garden hose

The Dramm ColorStorm Garden Hose is a simply constructed rubber garden hose that won't kink easily and doesn't crack or warp in the sun. We tested Dramm's hose and loved its durable design and quick flow rate.

It's rated to withstand temperatures from 25 degrees below zero to 160 degrees Fahrenheit, so if you're in the habit of leaving your hose outside in all weather, the Dramm Craftsman won't spring a leak the next time you uncoil it.

The hose's excellent durability comes with one minor tradeoff: it's pretty heavy. However, its kink resistance, flow rate, and durable construction make it a reliable watering companion.

Check our our best garden hose guide for more recommendations.

Best garden hose nozzle

The Dramm 9-Pattern Revolver Spray Nozzle offers impressive versatility. It can easily transition from a soft, gentle mist to water your seedlings and flowers to a hard, direct spray suitable for hosing down garbage cans.

In addition to 9 different spray options available, a separate pressure knob allows you to adjust the intensity of any of those opinions. The freedom to customize each aspect of your spray makes it easy to adapt this nozzle to any specific task.

It's made of metal and rubber, so it's fairly durable. However, its plastic parts may impact its durability, especially in colder climates.

Check out our guide to the best garden hose nozzles for more recommendations.

Best sprinkler

The Nelson RainTrain Traveling Sprinkler is a convenient option for hands-off watering in large areas up to 13,500 square feet. Three speeds allow you to adjust how fast the sprinkler travels, providing more or less spray.

Adjustable spray arms also let you choose the spray diameter — from 15 feet for small yards and areas to 55 feet for swaths of land. The full-circle sprinkler moves on its own along your garden hose — up to 200 feet — so you don't have to constantly adjust its positioning to reach all areas of your yard.

After it's done running through a cycle, it automatically shuts off, preventing water waste. There's a bit of a learning curve at first when discovering the best settings and placement for your lawn, but after some initial experimentation, the sprinkler requires little human input.

Check out our best sprinklers guide for more recommendations.

Best watering can

For smaller gardens, window boxes, and houseplants, a watering can is the best way to keep your plants hydrated. But some plants require a gentle sprinkle so as not to crush leaves or delicate blooms. Other, hardier plants may need a larger volume of water more easily delivered in a steady stream. The Bloem Easy Pour Watering Can does both, with a rotating head that allows you to deliver the proper care to your plants.

It's a large watering can with a 2.6-gallon capacity, and anyone who's hauled water across their lawn to their plants can attest to how heavy water gets. These larger cans can be tough to pour, putting a strain on your arms and wrists. The double grip on Bloem's watering can allows you to place your hand however you'll get the most leverage. You can also grip with two hands for additional support.

The Bloem watering can is constructed from UV-stabilized resin plastic so it will resist fading, warping, cracking, and freezing. The material is also FDA-approved for contact with food.

Check out our guide to the best watering cans for more recommendations.

Best soil moisture meter

Soil moisture meters take the guesswork out of watering, with quick readings to let you know when your beloved plants are in need of water. The Ecowitt Soil Moisture Tester is suited for indoor and outdoor use, so you can use it to keep track of your houseplants and your vegetable garden alike.

Once the probe is inserted into the soil, the accompanying display will show the moisture level in just over a minute. It requires batteries to operate.

Check out our guide to the best soil moisture meters for more recommendations.

Best indoor garden

For indoor garden aficionados, we recommend the Rise Personal Garden. It has a sleek, compact, and simplistic design for growing herbs and vegetables indoors year-round.

This hydroponic growing system has smart connectivity, and the accompanying app helps you determine the best time to water and harvest plants. It's big enough to grow eight different seedlings.

For more recommendations, check out our best indoor garden guide.

Best wheelbarrow

The Gorilla Carts Poly Dump Cart 2-Wheel Garden Wagon is our top wheelbarrow pick because it's easy to maneuver — backward and forward — and can handle a significant payload — up to 300 pounds. It also has a convenient, foldable handle that makes storage easier.

You will need to refill the 10-inch tires occasionally, but they're sturdy enough that you don't have to worry about puncturing them. The 2-wheel design also makes it effortless to dump out hauls without breaking your back.

We also recommend the Gorilla Poly Dump Cart, a four-wheeled wagon with an impressive 1200-pound weight capacity. It has the same impressive durability and strong tires as the wheelbarrow. Our associate home editor, Kinsley Searles, tested it in her own garden and found it versatile and useful for tasks like hauling bags of soil and mulch, carrying seedlings, and hauling broken branches.

Best rake

While a traditional leaf rake is best for fall yard clean-up, you'll need something a bit more heavy-duty for your gardening projects. The Kobalt Fiberglass Steel Garden Rake is a necessity for landscaping, gardening, and lawn maintenance. It excels at removing debris from garden beds, spreading soil and mulch, and raking through gravel or pebbles.

Steel rakes are durable and strong, but they tend to be heavier than their plastic counterparts. Thankfully, this rake combines a heavy-duty steel head with a lightweight fiberglass handle, so the weight is manageable. It also sports a cushioned handle, so it's easy to grip and comfortable to use for long periods.

Check out our guide to the best rakes for more recommendations.

Best shovel

For large tasks like planting shrubs or moving rose bushes, you'll want a sturdy steel shovel with a sharp, rounded blade. The Fiskars Long-Handle Round-Point Steel Digging Shovel is the best shovel we've tried. "This tool has a 14-gauge steel blade and an 18-gauge steel handle welded together so the shovel won't snap even under rugged use," Former Business Insider Reviews freelance contributor Michelle Ullmann writes. "It has a large foot platform so you can really throw your weight into your digging, and a rubbery orange grip to keep your gloved hands in place without slipping or sliding."

Check out our guide to the best shovels for more options.

Browse more essential garden tools

Garden gloves | Gardening tool sets | Shovels | Pruning shears | Garden hoses | Hose nozzles | Sprinklers | Watering cans |Rakes | Wheelbarrows | Soil moisture meters | Indoor gardens