Welcome to Red Pig Garden Tools ™ - Made in the USA

Yes, along with our regular line of more than 200 standard tools, we do CUSTOM work as well! Contact us if you have a custom blacksmithing project.

The company is the world’s best garden tools manufacturer supplier. We are your one-stop shop for all needs. Our staff are highly-specialized and will help you find the product you need.

Although we make and usually have in stock more than two hundred different types of tools, we know that many people have that favorite tool that's just worn down and no longer for sale, or a memory of a tool grandpa used. If we don’t have the garden tool or agricultural tool you want on our shelves, let us know and we’ll make it for you. We specialize in making hard-to-find and historic tools, along with one-of-a-kind garden tools. We make more long-handled garden tools—like hoes, drags, spades, and a heck of a lot more besides—than are currently available through our website. Contact us for special orders.

If your tools are broken, we can repair and re-handle them. Dull tools? We sharpen them. Tools that don’t fit you? We’ll modify them. We do this most often locally, due to shipping costs, but if you live somewhere far from us and don't have a local blacksmith, we'll be happy to do the work for you.

We produce many custom tools every year, and take on custom projects and commissions throughout the year. If you live in or are visiting Oregon or the southern Washington area and want to pick up a tool in person let us know. We'll set up a time for you to swing by. It's very informal, but we make do. While the former Red Pig store in Boring no longer carries Red Pig Garden Tools, we hope you'll arrange to visit us by appointment in our workshop in the Lake Oswego/West Linn, Oregon area. 

The proper tool, if well made and well cared for, can help the gardener on your gift list be more efficient and more comfortable during their next project.

It’s the holiday season, and you might be considering giving garden tools to the gardeners in your life or adding a few onto your list for Santa. Selecting the right tool makes gardening easier, safer and gives better results. When buying gardening tools, there are some factors to consider, such as fit, materials, features and uses.

For all tools, how it feels is important to ensure comfort and reduce the risk of injury. As it says in the fairy tale “Goldilocks and the Three Bears,” it has to be “just right.” Weight, handle lengths and widths vary. Tools that are too big or too small may result in hand or back fatigue. Long-handled tools — such as shovels and rakes — that are too short cause the user to bend. A greater than 30 percent bend from vertical may contribute to back fatigue and muscle spasms.

Materials for garden tools differ and are a determinant of price and quality. The metal in garden tools is either forged or stamped steel. Forged steel is heated and shaped for strength. These tools are the most durable and are more expensive. Tools made of forged steel will be labeled “tempered,” “heat-treated” or “forged.” Stamped steel is cut by a high-impact pressing and is weaker than forged.

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Handles are either wood or fiberglass. Both are strong and, if well tended, can last a lifetime. Fiberglass handles are lighter, do not rot but are harder to replace if broken. Wood handles should have grain in the direction of the length of the handle but may crack or break if not maintained. Pruner handles are generally metal, but plastic is used for less expensive models. Adequate padding on the pruner grips increases comfort, and some of the ergonomic models have rotating handles or D-grips, which reduces hand fatigue.

Tools are designed for specific gardening tasks. Select tools that help the gardener with the tasks they do most often. A few to consider are:

Pruners are used to cut plant material. Shown are (from left) bipass, anvil and ratcheted pruners. This bipass, for cutting live plant material, has an ergonomic design with angled head and rotating handles. Anvil pruners cut dry material, and the ratcheted pruner, with the D-grip handle, is a good choice for sore or weak hands.

(Jodi Bay)

For more information, please visit garden hand tools supplier.

These tools are used to remove plant material.

• Pruners are handheld cutting tools and come in three versions. Bypass pruners are for pruning live plants while anvil pruners are designed for cutting dried material. Ratcheted pruners cut in small bites and are helpful for those with sore or weak hands. Pruners will cut material up to ¾ inch thick.
• Loppers are the long-handled version of pruners and can cut branches up to 1½ inches thick.
• Pruning saws cut branches larger than 1½ inches. Consider a pole pruner or saw when cutting branches above shoulder height.

The three shovel types are (from left) rounded (spade), trenching and square point. Rounded is best for digging holes, and the trenching shovel is useful for digging in narrow spaces. The square point helps in moving material such as gravel or sand.

(Jodi Bay)

These tools move soil or other material.

• Shovels come in three types: spade (rounded), square-point and trenching. Spades are best for digging holes. Square-point aid in moving sand, gravel or mulch. They can also be used for cutting sod. Trenching shovels, with their narrow blade, are used for digging irrigation or other narrow trenches.
• Use a spading fork to loosen soil and to add compost.
• A pitchfork is useful for moving mulch, straw or other loose material.
• Trowels are the hand-sized version of a shovel and are used for digging small holes.
• Dibblers make planting seeds and bulbs easier. The best ones have a ruler etched onto them to aid in correct planting depth.

• Scythes come in a variety of sizes and are used to remove weeds, cut grasses and reap grain crops.
• Stand-up weeders help the gardener remove weeds while standing, thus avoiding bending the knees or back. The claw stabilizes the weed and arm grabs it for removal.
• Hand weeders are simple, forked tools where the fork is inserted below the weed and lifts it out.
• Cultivators are three-pronged tools for breaking up and leveling soil, plus weeding.

Hoes are used for weeding and digging. Hoes with an opening are categorized as scuffle hoes; ones that are solid are draw hoes. The first two on the left are push-pull hoes (scuffle hoes), next is an warren or anvil hoe, a paddle hoe (draw hoes), and an oscillating hoe (scuffle hoe). The one at the bottom is a combination field hoe and fork hoe.

(DeLayne Harmon)

Hoes

Hoes are a versatile and broad category of garden tools that are primarily used for weeding and digging.

• Scuffle hoes remove weeds and are open in the center. They disrupt soil up to one inch deep, removing the weed and root.
• Draw hoes are used for digging and have a solid blade.

Multitaskers

These tools assist in more than one task. Some examples are hoe/cultivator, Hori Hori knife and weeder/trowel. They are a good solution for simplification and value.

A trowel/weeder multitasker in action.

(Jodi Bay)

These tools are designed to enable a gardener with pain or mobility challenges to continue gardening.

• Ratcheted pruners cut with each closure of the grip.
• Swivel and D-loop handles ease pressure on hands.
• Ergonomic hand tools have a curved handle or an angled blade that engages the large arm muscles to do the work.
• Tools with telescoping handles help to extend reach.
• A portable stool enables gardening without bending.

If still unsure, gift items that make gardening more comfortable and safer. Hat, gloves, sunscreen, close-toed shoes are all necessary items. If working with chemicals, eye protection is a must and, for those hot days, a refillable water bottle.

In most cases, the better-quality tools are more expensive. Choose one that is within budget, fits the individual and does the job. Frequency of use is also an important decision factor. It is worth investing in a tool that will be used often. A good tool will be a good friend for many years.

For more information on gardening tools, go to the UC Master Gardener of San Diego County Web site, with a page on tool care: mastergardenersd.org/garden-tool-care

Get free gardening advice on the Master Gardener Hotline, (858) 822-6910, or by email at help@mastergardenerssandiego.org. Due to COVID-19, the Master Gardener Hotline staff members are working remotely to ensure that they respond to your questions in a timely manner.

Bay has been a Master Gardener since 2012. She is the chair of the Tool Care committee, whose mission is to educate the gardening public on garden tool types, uses and maintenance. In addition, she is an instructor in the Beginning Vegetable Gardening workshops, which teach new gardeners how to grow healthy and bountiful vegetables.

If you want to learn more, please visit our website Pruning Tools Manufacturer.