I manage to get at least one every other year or so. My last good one was one of those little chainsaws on a pole. Then I the tiller attachments for it.

I like my Garden Claw better than the little tiller.

If you get a Garden Claw get the one with the longer handel with the bend in it. More leverage makes less work.

Plantermunn - I have a Mantis tiller and I love it. You use it more like a vacuum cleaner, let it walk forward, then pull it back toward you. The slower you pull it the deeper it digs. Mine just pulverises everything. Also make sure the tines are turned the right way.

Today I got a decent flat-faced hoe from my father. Then I found out it was dull as can be, so I sharpened it on his grinder. Ain't friendly relatives grand?

Last one I bought was a hand trowel I got last week. I'd left my last trowel at a lady's in Skiatook who gave me some rose moss, cannas and irises. I used to have two, but I lost the other one last fall getting irises and stuff at a friend's mother's house which was being torn down. I got a lot of stuff there, so I counted a lost trowel as a small cost. But having lost two, I was out of trowels.

I got a spading fork and then a great Asian hoe (long handled) from Lee Valley Tools. I believe I paid for them both in March. Now, I may not purchase a new tool every year. The spading fork looks to last a long time. Normally I purchased one or two replacement spading forks a year!

On the other hand, I'm getting spoiled, as I'm discovering what a really fine tool can do. I may want more....

George
Tahlequah, OK

at an estate sale i bought two snow shovels recently. you never know when you may need one. i had to buy a new hoe last week because my husband ran over the one we had.

My husband is loving me gardening... gives him an excuse to buy more tools! He got a Poulan weed eater thing, cuz he needed it... bought the tree trimming attachment cuz of the ice storm... and the cultivator attachment cuz of my garden! It's not a very strong cultivator, we've had to do the main breaking up of dirt with a friends tiller. But it's excellent for breaking up smaller areas and will be great for weeding large areas. I can even use it for a little while, untill it rattles me too much... :).

Beth

If new as in brand new a long time. If new as in new to me then just recently. I buy most of my garden tools at farm and estate auctions. From the old push plows to shovels, spading forks, pitch forks, ect. I can buy a hand full usually for 2-10 dollars. Cheaper than putting a handle in an old one. I have bought a wide assortment of hoes and rakes. I just bought a neat hoe a few weeks ago. I may have to try on of George's Lee Valley tools. They sound nice. Just have to convince myself to spend that much money. Jay

Last time I bought anything was last year, a new set of pruners. For Christmas, I got a tractor sprinkler from hubby. Haven't bought a shovel since my daughters bought me one with a fiberglass handle for Mother's Day, almost 15 years ago. It has been the best shovel. When it retires, I will hang it on my wall. LOL. I will usually spend the extra money, for better quality, as I use most of the things daily.

Moni,

I recently bought a new trowel because I'd misplaced mine. Of course, the next day after I began using the new one, I found the old one buried under some mulch. I don't buy tools very often. I try to buy high-quality ones that will last a long time, and I buy them old and well-used or new. Often the old ones are higher quality than the newer ones.

I did buy some Reemay-type floating row covers this winter to use to cover some of the squash plants this summer.

George,

I'm glad you're enjoying your Lee Valley Tools. Just holding that spading fork of yours in my hands made me want to run home, get on the website and order something--anything--from them. I'll probably talk myself into something from Lee Valley, even though I don't specifically "need" anything at this time. It is just so nice that someone is still making quality tools that can stand up to a heavy workload.

Jay,

The tools from Lee Valley are in a class by themselves. The moment you pick up a Lee Valley tool and hold it in your hand, you know you holding a heavy, old-fashioned (as in high-quality), tool that is made to last. They remind me of the tools my dad had in the 1960s, although I don't think Lee Valley existed back then.

When I recommended Lee Valley to George a few months ago, I was just hoping their quality was the same as it always has been. When I held his new Lee Valley tools in my hands and looked at them at the plant swap, I knew that Lee Valley was still making high-quality tools. Their prices are somewhat shocking, but they are worth it.

Hardin,

We have a fiberglass-handled shovel, transplanting spade and fork that were Christmas gifts. I guess ours are about 10 years old now and still unbroken, uncracked, unchipped, etc. They are very durable, but if anything ever happens to them, I'll probably replace them with the wooden-handled ones from Lee Valley. I just like the old-fashioned feel of a wooden-handled tool, provided it is a good quality wood.

Dawn

I bought two watering wands with the usual spray settings. What I really like about them is an adjustable head and a sensitive lever that allows the water flow to stay on without squeezing. The lever is on top of the wand rather than a hand grip trigger. I paid $11 each for them at W-M. I recommend them to anyone who has trouble gripping. (I'm pretty wimpy.) I spray painted my ugly plastic pots & my rt index finger has been numb for 3 days now and I still have pain up my forearm when I press with that finger. Hate to admit it, but I guess I need to surrender to ergonomically correct tools. I digress. Sorry.