I live in my Meindl boots - the most reliable, hard-wearing and amazingly comfortable boots I have ever owned. I was loyal to Timberland for the longest time but they definitely went downhill sometime in the 90s. Meindls, while somewhat ugly, are brilliant. Not cheap - Mr.Camps recently spent summat in the region of $350 for Meindl Taiga hunting boots but since they will last for years (mine are 6 and worn every day), it is not as expensive as it appears. I have seen people gardening in flip-flops, sneakers, sandals and the like...but I can forsee losing toes and stabbing my feet with a fork (my teeth are a memory because of an over-enthusuastic gardening accident).

Wellington boots are OK in wet grass and mud...but are freezing in winter - may as well be gardening in socks and a bin-bag. I have Raynaud's syndrome though - tragic for outdoor workers as my hands and feet get too cold to move - but my Meindl's are a couple of sizes too big so I can wear lots of socks and even (joyously) a heated insole!.

I wear a pair of good and sturdy leather boots. Heavy pair of thick wool socks, even in Summer, to absorb sweat and cushion the feet as I stoop and bend. Necessary for spade and shovel work if required and they become supple and comfy rapidly on beakin. A pair generally lasts me over 5 years and I always have a new pair in the closet. Surprisingly the pair I am wearing (right now as a fact) are a cheap chinese pair which I bought for $19.95 on closeout at a nearby store. I bought 3 pair, their remaining stock, and am still on the first ones after 3 years.

muck boots .. ken

http://www.dickssportinggoods.com/product/index.jsp?productId=76989906&cp=4406646.4425420.15283036&categoryId=15312646

Rain boots...sounds crazy but I cannot stand when dirt/pebbles get in my shoes...LOL

I'm with Ken, Mucks are number one with me.

I love my Sloggers. I'm in and out of the house constantly and they slip right on and off. They're waterproof and last 3-4 years.

For me, it depends on the task and time of year. In cold or wet weather or sometimes during the worst of tick season I wear men's muck boots since they are warm and dry and reach up to my knees. If I will be digging or using power tools, something stout but comfortable such as leather oxfords or leather boots so if my foot slips I don't slice it open. In summer, if I'm doing light work such as weeding, insect patrol, or harvesting herbs and veggies, I wear old Keen sandals or I am barefoot. All of my garden footwear except the leather boots slide on and off easily to reduce the amount of mud that comes inside with me.

I vote for the Muck boots also. I invested in a pair of the slip on type that Ken showed in his link. I was horrified at the price, but it was a good investment. I wear them all the time in the yard. I even wear them to walk the dog when it is wet and rainy, but hope I don't encounter anyone. They are quite ugly.

I checked the Women's Muck boots, but they look more for rain than mud. The treads are nothing like the men's version. I am currently wearing a men's slip on I found on clearance for weeding and such, but it is too wide for anything but casual use. But at least it is easy to get on and off for going in and out of the house.

I need to find something with a steel shank for shovelling, but have yet to find anything.

Steel-toed leather boots.

I am a slogger girl! Love them...they slip on so easy and so comfy. I ordered them on line and they considerably cheaper than in local stores.

I wasn't familiar with slogger - they come in such pretty patterns! Groupon has them too, but I hate to buy things that can't be tried on first (or mailed to be returned). I need something good to dig in though. I was using my hiking boots, but those are on their way out too. I might have to bite the bullet and sink some $$ but I guess it shouldn't be on sneakers! Anyone else?

I wore a brand of rubber gardening clogs called Anywears for years then they went unisex and made them too wide, so I wore their Everywheres which were narrower and less clunky. Sadly they have discontinued them. I bought a cheap pair of Turf King rubber clogs and they hurt my feet. I use Roper brand knee high neoprene and rubber "muck" boots at the barn and they are warm and waterproof but I don't need that much warmth nor height in a gardening shoe. I wore my Everywheres to plant shop, plant tour and even to the grocery store and miss them. It rains so much in Portland that sneakers just aren't practical most of the year, you get wet in parking lots let alone gardening....I haven't seen either Slogger, Bogs nor Muck brand shoes anywhere locally to try them on. I hate to spend almost a hundred bucks online and have them not fit....I see Sloggers cheaper on amazon, maybe I'll try a pair...Thanks

New Balance (formerly Rockport) shoes (wide and with podiatrist's insole) for total comfort.

They also double as my best shoes.

Usually nothing. :) And yes, I was digging a hole with a shovel to plant a 15 gal. shrub today, among other gardening tasks.

Tough as old boots!

For normal gardening Birkenstock rubber clogs. They are comfortable, waterproof, easily to slip on and off and wear like iron. In the early spring when my back garden becomes flooded I wear Aigle brand to- the-knee rubber boots. They have deep treads to slog through heavy mud and fit great. Not cheap at $215 a pair but worth every penny.

can I ask - these rubber boots and garden clogs: what is on the inside of them? is there some sort of liner/lining? Or do you just have to wear heavy socks? I'm having a hard time equating rubber with comfortable.

Hmmmm....mostly flip flops to be honest. I guess I wouldn't call my gardening heavy duty, just me a trowel, one shovel and some weeding tools.

I wear sturdy shoes of some sort and usually they are not something new but then I'm not using power tools either. You don't need special shoes when using a trowel, hoe pruners, shovel, other hand tools or working in the greenhouse. My husband who handles all the electrical or gas powered machines wears steel toed work boots when he gardens

I wear a pair of green, heavy rubber, clog like shoes. All rubber no lining. Thick soles and comfortable. They slip on and off easily enough and you can just hose the dirt or mud off. Bought them at Target 3 or 4 years ago.

I usually wear a pair of rubber gardening clogs I got from LL Bean years ago - they are well made and have really held up.

For just pulling a few weeds or snipping flowers or daily mosey-ing around, I usually wear slip on shoes that I keep in the garage, or if I'm going onto the patio, some rubber sandals I keep by the patio door. I don't like to walk around in the sandals, though -- too easy to get sticks between my toes or dirt (dirt under my nails or on my feet skeeves me out...). They're great for the patio, though, or going to the other patio to use the grill or across the yard to check the mail.

Cloud_9 the Everywheres rubber clogs I used to have had foam comfort insoles, they were so comfortable that I wore them traveling, shopping etc. not just for gardening. They were not hideously ugly like Crocs, most people could not even tell they were rubber. They were flexible and lightweight. I wore socks but not heavy wool socks. I could walk in them all day and not be sore. I have been struggling for several years to replace them....I just haven't had the money to spend mail ordering without having tried on locally. Good gardening clogs aren't cheap....

Well now I am embarrassed to admit that I just bought Garden clogs at Ocean State Job Lot (for non-New Englanders: a liquidator) for $6. Even if they are OK I still need some waterproof work boots. And if they are OK I am getting a second pair. : )

A pair of socks and clogs for me.

I have crock sandals , not the original crocks, rubber sandals for summer. I use rain boots in tall grass and when I am doing a passel of tree trimming in my forrest , I have some all work boots and hiking boots for the heavy stuff.

I'm still wearing my Nike's but want to get some Slogger's. They would be much easier to keep clean, and I could wear them out when it rains too. I see alot of people here wearing them while shopping & running errands when it rains.

I have a pair of Croc sandals. I use them year round. With socks in winter and without for the rest of the year. I'll often garden barefoot too (you can take the girl out of Africa...). If I'm going to use a spade, I'll don my sneakers.

Muck boots. Short and ankle length. Or new balance sneakers.

mmm, those rubber things - I don't think they would cut the mustard for this cold blooded gardener at all. I have neoprene wellingtons (knee high boots) in heavy rain or deep mud but they are nothing like as warm as stout leather. Curiously, it is the top of my feet which freeze in them (because the sheepskin insoles I use help for the soles of my feet)...and if the ground is not actually swilling about in water or mud, I wear the same boots I wear for everything else. Can't quite get my head around having separate footwear specifically for gardening. I have worn heavy leather boots forever (got issues) - have never owned a pair of high heels or strappy sandals in my life...and I doubt my feet would fit in any if I was forced to endure them. I have no problems wearing my Meindls with a summer dress or skirt - it is a style which I have made my own and have zero self-consciousness about gigantic boots on the end of my legs.

Although it is fair to say I only own 4 pairs of footwear and 1 of them are sheepskin slippers. My feet are never exposed to the outside air...or even under anyone's gaze (including my own apart from nail care and baths) - they are like pale white corpses on the ends of my legs!

So funny to spot this thread. Last week, digging a Sequoia sempervirens, I finally broke the bottom of my Hunter boots. 9 years old. (surprised not to see this famous English brand mentioned yet) I thought, "better go get some advice on garden web." Will have to investigate Campanula's recommended Meindl boots. Edit: they've got to be slip-on/riding style for me. No time to tie up when you switch them on and off 15 times a day!

Old Merrell walking shoes. Always lace ups. The sloping grass paths on the allotment are lethal when wet. Slip ons would be a fall waiting to happen. Bare feet??? No chance - too dangerous and too coooold. Sandals just fill up with grit and bits. Anyway - there are only a few days a year when I can stand wearing sandals ;-)

Hunter seems to focus more on being a fashion label these days. Are they even made in England anymore? The ones I got in 2006, on sale at Smith & Hawken (remember them LOL), were definitely advertised as made in the UK.

Muck seems to be a good brand for my needs. (ability to aggressively dig in Wellington-style boots)

http://www.accidentalsmallholder.net/forum/index.php?topic=30210.0

Yep, I would consider muck boots as default wellies. Meindls are actually German - take a look at their website - they used to have a really interesting video about the making of them - more or less handmade still in the age of mass production. I love these boots - most especially since I have suffered from foot issues my whole life (born with club feet, many bones had to be broken and reset) - warm, tough, yet somehow deeply soothing when laced around my dodgy feet. Why do you need to take them on and off, David? I put mine on in the morning and take them off at bedtime. Doormats and even, in extremis, bootscrapers remove any need for indoor removals.

Merrells are the choice of my eldest...but he is still firmly ensconced as a trainer wearer (I would bake my own boots out of old tyres before enduring those sweaty Nike/Adidas/New Balance monstrosities near my tender footsies) and Merrells still have a faint youth cachet and make rather good walking sandals (although tbh, walking and sandals are not concepts which really go together in my eyes).

Ah, sadly Hunter have gone the way of the old Dr.Martens and are essentially a fashion accessory for festival wear - not made in the UK anymore either...but still notable for bringing out a half height version which Mr.Camps prefers.

Yeah I went with the Mucks Classic Chore Hi, though I'm concerned about some online reviews saying they fall apart after a year or less in some cases. We shall see. Almost nothing is made like it used to be...at least I got almost 10 years out of the old, UK made Hunters. I do think one possible problem is my new digging spade has shorter "shoe flaps" or whatever they are called, so the force is more concentrated onto the boot than it used to be.

Read that when Hunter sold off their Scottish factory in 2008, all of the equipment went to an eastern European manufacturer, Tigar, but their boots are very hard to find even online.

EDIT! Maybe it's just time I buy the foot pads!

http://stores.drainageproducts.us/wolverine-rubber-footpad-for-steel-spades/

The Wolverine Spade btw, is really awesome. With my full weight on it trying to lift a tree root (185 lbs) I cannot get it to bend.

I have an ancient Le Chameau pair of green neoprene lined wellies - they were also not cheap but since I have had them for over 15 years, I have few complaints.

I bought some calf length Hunters a couple of years ago for sweetheart (after almost fainting at the cost of men's Le Chameau boots - more expensive than his leather Meindls) but yeah, they can be tricky to get hold of.

Having a welding son is a massive advantage - he welded extra wide flanges on my digging spade as narrow ones are brutal on my feet...and since I still relish a good hard digging session. the effort was worthwhile. Annoyingly, my favourite carbon steel spade is less amenable to reinforcement.

Thank you! Flanges is the word I was looking for. It's too bad none of the ultra-high end brands (Aigle, Le Chameau, etc.) make a super-duper kevlar fiber reinforced EPDM, titanium shanked, blah blah mega Wellington for gardeners. If something like that came with a 10 year warranty, I'd happily pay $300 for it. Mucks seems to have taken over that "industrial strength" part of the market, they were somehow once a part of Honeywell.

Oh yes, an all steel spade. I graduated from gardening spades to building and construction tools years ago - I have 3 steelies - a long heavy excavator (which I sometimes use with a landscapers bar), a standard carbon steel trenching spade (which I also use for filling the cement mixer and wheelbarrow - I have never got on with the angled shovel) and my most used - an all-steel un-named tapered variety which I call the 'teaspoon' which doubles as my all time favourite border spade (and has the extra flanges welded on).

I have had numerous ash handled and carbon fibre jobs, ranging from bargain bucket to hand-forged sneerboer...and all of them break at some point due to enthusiastic (impatient) transplanting.

Le Chameau boots have reinforced rubber toecaps and heel bits and a strong sole...but I am fairly sure I wouldn't be stumping up for new ones (mine were a gift).

I see that Mucks are available over here, mind.

Wow Camp, you are an industrial-grade gardener! I actually have a cement mixer and it's based on a popular model on the UK, but with a 120V motor put in. (or perhaps with your country's curious penchant for extreme risk aversion and the use of balanced 120V electrics on commercial job sites, just a US plug fitted!) I've actually seen it in the background of a BBC show. I think it's the Belle Minimix. Still sold in the US, I think they were new here when I got it.

Ahh yes, forgot we have to have a 60 Hz motor over here:

http://www.bellegroup.com/?p=products&id=5

That's the one - a bright orange Baby Belle.

I was a landscaper with my partner from 2001 after finally losing heart as a social worker- I am semi-retired (60) and just do a bit of jobbing gardening now. I did the designing while Sweetheart did the skilled rendering, wetwork, wall and patio laying and general hard landscaping such as pond building, while I worked mainly with timber ( pergolas, arbours, fencing). I had done a City and Guilds certificate in carpentry and joinery and taught woodwork at a city college before going into social work so it was like going back to my roots. My dad was a skilled tradesman and so was my partner's so we both grew up with a familiarity with tools (although I cannot drive a car!).

As it happens, regarding risk aversion, my dad was blacklisted for years as a commie (Eric the Red) mainly after speaking out about health and safety issues within the building trade. A recent landmark legal ruling has finally bought the blacklisting of union sympathisers out into the open but too late for my dad who died still protesting about the corrupt construction industry. A 7 year apprenticeship and he was forced to take crappy lowpaid unskilled jobs, often moonlighting to keep our household afloat.

I cast another vote for Sloggers clogs...mine are 6 years old and even spent a New England winter outside one year. I wear them to run errands and even to and from work in rainy weather.

I wear my LL BEan muckaluks - I or go barefoot- depending on the work I'm doing.

Before the muckaluks I destroyed several shoes / boots. These last forever.

My red paisley rainbows that I wear in the garden were used while I sprayed paint on three huge cabinets. They turned white. I scrubbed them off with thinner.