Pruning shears, an essential tool to take care of plants

Few tools are as useful and practical as pruning shears . Not only are they comfortable to wear, but they will also help us to do all those little jobs that will keep the plants well cared for and, above all, healthy. But how to choose one? There are many types, and each of them is specially designed for a specific job; and that’s not to mention that we often decide to buy the cheapest ones and in the end we have to discard them because they are not what we expected.

To prevent this from happening to you, we are going to explain the different types there are, and we are also going to recommend some. So you will surely be right with the purchase of your pruning shears.

Index

  • 1 Tips to keep in mind before buying
  • 2 types of pruning shears
    • 2.1 Pole-type scissors or telescopic scissors
    • 2.2 A scissors for each branch
    • 2.3 Pruning shears according to the plant
      • 2.3.1 Trees
      • 2.3.2 Shrubs
      • 2.3.3 Bonsai
      • 2.3.4 Flowers
      • 2.3.5 Hedges
    • 2.4 Electric pruning shears
  • 3 Maintenance or how to get an excellent cut for years

Tips to keep in mind before buying

Bypass type pruning shears

bypass scissor

Pruning shears are very useful tools, but we must choose the one we are going to buy well, since depending on what we are going to use it for, we will have to choose to acquire one type of another.

For this reason, before buying any, you have to be well informed, see which ones there are, what they are for and if they are ergonomic or not , since work in the garden must be carried out in the most comfortable way possible.

Types of pruning shears

Pruning shears, the essential tools to take care of plants

There are two types of pruning shears, and they are as follows:

  • Scissors with sliding or bypass cut: They are those that have a blade that cuts and a counter blade that holds the branch to be pruned. They are especially recommended for cutting thin green woody stems.
  • Anvil scissors: They are the ones with a cutting blade and an anvil that holds the branch. They are indicated for cutting stems of hard or dead wood.

In turn, different sub-types are distinguished, depending on several factors that are:

Pole snips or telescopic snips

They are indicated to cut high branches almost effortlessly . You just have to adapt the length of the control to the height of the branch to be pruned, place the scissors and pull the rope that will make the blade of the scissors close, thus cutting the branch. There are two kinds:

  • With fixed handle, up to 2m high.
  • With telescopic handle, up to 5m high.

A scissors for each branch

Depending on the thickness of the branch, it will be easier for us to cut it with scissors or with others . Thus, if it measures 2.5cm or less, we can choose to use one-handed pruning shears; while if it measures 4-5cm, the ideal will be to opt for two-handed pruning shears.

Pruning shears according to the plant

Depending on the type of plant that we are going to prune, we will have to opt for some scissors or others. Thus, we must take into account that:

Trees

It should be pruned with two-handed scissors, and with a handle if they have already reached a certain height. The ones we recommend are:

Lista telescopic pruning shears with handle up to 1.5m

telescopic pruning shears

Draper 33855 

tree pruning shears

Shrubbery

It is advisable to prune them with one-handed scissors with an anvil cut, since these plants have branches that do not exceed 2.5cm thick. These are highly recommended:

Acorn 3512-21

Bellota brand pruning shears

Felco 7

Felco brand pruning shears

bonsai

They are pruned with one-handed pruning shears, since it is necessary to make the most perfect cuts possible , such as the ones we will obtain using these:

Siena Garden 603130

bonsai pruning shears

Scissors for pinching 

Scissors for small pruning

Flowers

They have to be cut with scissors that have long and thin blades, so that the cut is clean, like these:

Acorn 3520

flower pruning shears

Welcut HC862

Welkut brand scissors for small pruning

hedges

They are pruned with two-handed scissors, with or without a handle (depending on their height), such as these:

Altuna J442 – Aluminum scissors with 69cm handle

Two-handed pruning shears for hedge trimming

You like? get with her

Bahco M33542 

Bahco brand scissors to prune hedges

electric pruning shears

They are the last ones that have come on the market. Although they are expensive, they make the job of pruning easy and done in a short time . And the best thing is that they are available with or without handle, with anvil and by pass. The most advisable are:

Makita

electric pruning shears

yatek

Yatek brand electric pruning shears

Maintenance or how to get an excellent cut for years

Pruning fruit trees with scissors

When we acquire a tool it is very, very important to take good care of it, since otherwise they will fulfill their mission for a very short time. Thus, regardless of what it has cost us, we must ensure that we keep them in the best possible condition. How do you get that? Very easy:

  • We will clean the scissors after each use. To do this, we can use a dishwasher, which will also serve to disinfect them.
  • We will sharpen the leaves with a scissors sharpener, or with sandpaper.
  • So that they do not lose mobility, it is advisable to lubricate them with a special lubricant for pruning shears.
  • We will keep this tool in a case specifically designed for them, in a clean and dry place.

We hope that now you can more easily choose the pruning shears you need 

Pruning shears, an essential tool to take care of plants

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