Hand pruning shears are one of the most frequently used gardening tools. They are used to cut back and prune plants, hedges and small trees, in order to encourage new growth, to deadhead (remove dead) flowers, and are useful for harvesting some crops. As they are used so frequently in the garden, it’s a good idea to make an investment in a high quality comfortable pair.
A good quality pair of hand pruning shears should last you many years but to extend the life of your shears it’s recommended that you clean them in soapy water after extensive use to remove any left over plant material. In the case of any hard to remove material, rubbing alcohol can be used. They should then be thoroughly dried before they are stored away in your garden shed.
Over time you should also consider oiling the spring mechanisms to help to keep them cutting freely and if needed have the blades sharpened. Should any rust spots eventually appear on your shears you can simply buff them off with some steel wool.
There are two main types of hand pruning shears – “micro” or “precision shears”, and standard hand pruning shears. They are identical in their function, the only difference is their size. Micro shears being smaller and useful for more precision jobs, where standard shears might be too cumbersome, such as floral work or working with smaller plants.
Here are some of the best selling & highest rated hand pruning shears that you might like to consider adding to your gardening toolbox…
The Fiskars Non-stick Softgrip Micro-Tip Pruning Snips are precision shears useful for making precise cuts such as deadheading flowers and trimming & shaping smaller plants. The blades have a non-stick coating which helps to reduce the chances of the blades jamming and also helps to stop the build up of plant residue and resin. The non-stick coating also make cleaning a lot easier.
The shears are designed to automatically open back up after each cut to help make cutting easier, and these precision shears have actually earned the “Arthritis Foundation’s Ease of Use” commendation. The blades are made from hardened stainless steel to ensure they retain their sharpness even with heavy use and to also help protect against rusting. They also have a lock to keep them closed when not in use and come with a blade cover to protect the blades during storage. Getting two pairs at this price is a very good buy. As previous customers have said…
“These pruners are a fantastic value for the price. I have a pretty extensive terrace garden, and these pruners are perfect for everything from deadheading faded flowers to snipping stems and overeager morning glory vines. The pruners hold up very well, and they have a surprising degree of cutting power given their relatively small size. After two growing seasons of heavy use, they’re functioning as well as they did the first time I used them. The edges have retained their sharp, hard quality…”
“One of the best clippers I’ve had the pleasure of using. Easy to clean with alcohol prep pads to get any sticky residue left on then when trimming your herbs. They’re spring loaded, so always pop open. They come with flexible rubber tips to protect the tips when not in use…”
The Fiskars All Steel Bypass Pruning Shears are standard size pruning shares, useful for most jobs around the garden including cutting stems and smaller branches and general pruning tasks. They have a maximum cutting capacity of 5/8 inch diamater.
Made from hardened stainless steel they have a non-stick low friction coating to help the blades cut through wood and resist residue build up. They also have a self-cleaning sap groove to keep the blades from sticking. The handle includes non-slip grips & a small sliding lock mechanism that can be used to keep the blades closed when storing. A good robust pair of hand pruning shears that will tackle most jobs with ease. As previous customers have said…
“Tough set of clippers! I’m a bee keeper, and bought these snips to aid in removing swarms from trees. I needed quality snips that cut clean and easy, not ones that build up force from squeezing and chops (thus violently shaking the branch)… super sharp blade and perfect lever action is what you get with these snips…”
“I love these Pruning Shears!!! I purchased them to trim some hanging branches and some shrubs. They worked like a charm! They are so sharp and easy to use. I didn’t have to squeeze very hard on most of them…”
The Gonicc 8″ Professional Pruning Shears (GPPS-1003) have titanium steel blades that can cut up to 3/4″ diameter size tree branches. The blades are ultra fine polished to give a clean and easy cut and they also contain a self cleaning sap groove to help keep them from sticking by automatically channeling off tree sap. The handles are Ergonomically designed and come with a comfortable non slip covering. These drop forged pruning shears are super tough and useful for most pruning jobs around the garden. As previous customers have said…
“Oh – these are VERY nice! I tend to use items until they have zero life left in them and after sharpening my old pruner again and again I decided to buy new. The grip is solid but soft and the blades are wonderfully sharp. After using them for Fall cleanup, all my plants got clean cuts and I never had any jamming of material. It’s great to have a new tool that really works and seems to be very well made…”
“I bought one of these 12 years ago. It still does the job. I have been looking for a new one for a while and was lucky to find this one on Amazon. This is the best anvil pruning shear I ever found; it is like the old one but improved and made of metal. If you can get it in the jaws it will cut it…”
The Power Drive Ratchet Anvil Hand Pruning Shears are ideal for heavy pruning jobs with thick branches. The ratchet system provides you with 5 times more cutting power than conventional garden shears. As you squeeze the shears they latch in place so you can release and then squeeze again to continually increase the pressure on the branch until the cut is made. This way the shears are doing all of the heavy work, rather than your hand.
The blades are made from hardened steel and are coated with non-stick Teflon to resist sap and other residue build up and to make cleaning easier. The handles have an ergonomic comfortable design to make pruning easier and reduce the strain and fatigue on your hands. If you have some heavy pruning jobs, these well made hand pruning shears will take the punishment rather than your hands. As previous customers have said…
“These are probably the best “ratchet” pruning shears we’ve every bought, and we’ve bought maybe 10 pairs in our 50 years of gardening. These cost a little more but are worth every penny…”
“These do what they said they’d do. The ratchet is great and lets me cut through thick stock that would break my anvil cutters. Definitely worth the price. I’d buy them again…”
Do yourself and your hands a favor and get Bahco pruners with a sharpener. No more hand cramps no matter how much pruning. Cuts like butter. Sharper than my pocket knife. Handles come in 3 sizes for different hands, blades in 3 sizes too. Heavy duty plastic handle so light weight and not cold for winter pruning.
Reply