Garden secateurs, which one to choose for pruning a garden
Only a gardener who does nothing in the garden can do without a pruner.
Content
- Secateurs General Concepts
- Trimming live branches of a plant
- Trimming dry branches and thin knots
- Universal or multifunction pruners
- Specialized Secateurs
- Ratchet Secateurs video
- Shrub secateurs
Secateurs General Concepts
When caring for plants, it is necessary to constantly form this plant, i.e. remove unnecessary processes, branches, cut. To do this, you must have a secateurs, and not one, but several, since each secateurs serve specific purposes. It is important that the tool is comfortable, of high quality and lasts for a long time. The quality of the secateurs depends on what material the secateurs are made of. A low-quality secateurs leads to injury to plants, injuries to the owner of the tool.
pruning shears
First of all, pay attention to the cutting part of the tool, the sharpness and strength is determined by the quality of the steel of which the tool is made. SK5 high carbon steel is used in the manufacture of swords and long knives; these blades retain sharpening for a long time and are reliable in operation.
High-carbon steel blades are supplied with expensive professional secateurs. But there is a reliable and inexpensive metal that is made from medium carbon steel (denoted by S50C or MCS). A blade of such metal is usually installed in pruning shears cheaper.
Stainless steel is used for the manufacture of high-quality secateurs and garden shears, this steel provides corrosion resistance to the blade, secateurs of this type are pleasant in appearance, easy to use. To prevent sticking, when working with live plants, an anti-stick coating is applied to the blade. These coatings come in several forms; they can be applied to both the upper and lower edges of the tool. Remember that pruning shears must be used carefully in work, since it is impossible to restore the quality of laser sharpening at home.
spring
When buying a pruning shears, you need to make sure how easily the spring moves and spreads the blades.
A belt type spring (from a plate) will be more reliable and durable, provided that it is made of high-quality metal.
A spring can also be made of wire, but it is less reliable than a tape. The secateurs in the idle state must be kept closed with the help of a latch, which must also be reliable.
secateurs handle
Secateurs' handles are essential when gardening. They come from different materials. Aluminum handles are good, but they usually fit on expensive pruning shears.
Fiberglass (nylon) handles are good to use, more convenient, they are made ribbed, of various shapes, it is convenient to work with such handles in cold weather. Rubberized inserts are convenient to use, they reduce the load during prolonged use, reduce fatigue of the hand when cutting a large number of branches.
Trimming live branches of a plant
Secateurs are divided according to purpose for living branches, for dry branches and thin knots, universal. When working with live branches, secateurs are used, they work according to the principle of scissors, they have both arched blades. The upper sharp blade is always one-sided sharpening, it moves towards the bottom.
Trimming dry branches and thin knots
Dry branches are pruned with pruning shears. They have one upper knife, in shape it can be straight, or arched, with one-sided or two-sided sharpening.
Instead of the second blade - an anvil plate, it serves as a stop and is located on the cut line. To prevent branches from slipping, the anvil is made of metal or durable plastic with a ribbed surface.
Universal or multifunction pruners
Universal or multi-functional secateurs are made with elongated straight blades of steel with one-sided sharpening, in appearance they look like scissors.
They can be used to trim thin dry shoots, when forming plants in the flower garden, can be used when cutting fruits in the garden, if necessary, cut plastic or rubber.
Specialized Secateurs
In addition to the secateurs mentioned above, there are specialized ones. For trimming tall trees.
grape pruner
The grape pruner has straight, long blades, they are easy to penetrate deep into the grape bush.
flower pruner
To remove inflorescences or cut flowers for a bouquet, use a flower pruner, its working part is similar to a blade of a pruning pruner. The size of the secateurs is equal to its length from the extreme point of the cutting part to the extreme point of the handle, in Russia it is expressed in centimeters, in Europe, the USA or Canada in inches.
People with strong large palms need a secateurs 18 centimeters long. Such large secateurs are convenient for trimming branches with a diameter of 15 to 24 mm. It is inconvenient for people with a small palm to cut thin branches with a large tool.
Ratchet Secateurs
To facilitate the work, when trimming branches with a diameter of up to 24 mm., Models with ratchet mechanism are produced, they cut branches in stages, in steps, this requires less effort. It is good when the pruner is light and its weight does not exceed 1 kg.
In floriculture, as well as lovers of the Japanese bonsai style, small secateurs are needed, their length is from 14 to 16 cm.
The most common secateurs of medium size, their length is 16-18 cm. They have the widest model range, are used when caring for ornamental plants, to create the desired shape of the crown.
Shrub secateurs.
Such tools have long, 3-4 times longer than ordinary handles. Used to cut a large number of thick branches. These secateurs can be double-sided and single-sided cutting.
double cut pruner
Two-sided cutting secateurs have a sickle-shaped support blade, which allows you to fix and trim a branch with a diameter of up to 50 mm. Such secateurs, to reduce the risk of sticking, have a groove for draining the flowing sap of the plant, this reduces the contact area of \u200b\u200bthe cutting edges.
single cut pruner
Single-sided shrub secateurs are used for pruning hard, old, and dead branches. The large surface area of \u200b\u200bthe support blade makes it possible, with a relatively small effort, to cut branches with a diameter of up to 30 mm.
for cutting bushes
Secateurs (scissors) for cutting bushes, hedges has been widely used by gardeners. Beautifully trimmed bushes fit perfectly into the composition of your garden.
If you have to work with the pruner a lot and often, it is better to buy a semi-professional pruner.
Hands get tired less, the blades last longer, and very often the price of a pruner speaks about its quality.
This is only a small part of the information about this tool, in the future we will try to give more, since now electric, battery and gasoline pruners have appeared.
