In the Fiskars Garden

Fiskars Receives DRA - Eagle Award (2007)

As one of four companies across the US, Fiskars receives the prestigous DRA Eagle Award for Universal Design and Ease-Of-Use.  Other winners:  Little People, Big World, Starbucks, IBM.

Hardware Show Preview Event - NY (Nov, 2007)

Miami Herald (Dec, 2007)

Preparation and gift guide for spring gardeners (actual clipping not available)

JEFF RUGG

As 2008 near its end, it is time put away your garden tools and start planning how to make it easier to .work in next spring's garden and landscape. It also time to find the right gift for the gardener on your list.

Perhaps you are the gardener. If so, you might wish to leave this article in a place where someone will see it and get the hint.

One of my favorite pruning tools is the Extended Reach Power-Lever Shears from Fiskars. It is a long name for a long tool. I used it yesterday to cut down a weedy-looking perennial bed next to my driveway. The eight-inch cutting edge on the scissor-like blades is on the end of three-footlong handles.

The blades can be kept straight like a huge pair of scissors or they can be turned at right angles to the handle. The handle ends also have a right-angle extension to make pruning easy at any angle.

With them, I was able to cut the old perennial stalks near the ground without bending over. I use the same tool on a wide yew hedge to keep the top flat and the sides smooth. Your local Fiskars dealer should have them for under $100.

If your hands and arms get sore when you prune, you might consider Fiskars PowerGear tools. They have a patented gear design that provides maximum leverage near the middle of the cut, where resistance is greatest.

They feature handles that roll to follow your hand's natural clenching motion as you make cuts, reducing stress and fatigue. While it takes getting used to at first, it soon becomes second nature. The pruners are winners of the Arthritis Foundation's Ease-of-Use .Commendation and are ideal for people with arthritis, rheumatism, or carpal tunnel syndrome.

When I dig small holes for annuals and bulbs, or dig up weeds growing in tight spots, I use a couple of small trowels from Radius Garden. Their handles are semicircular, which allows my hands and wrists to be in a comfortable straight line with the hole, rather than at an awkward right angle as with a other trowels.

The trowel blades are made from a lightweight blend of magnesium and aluminum that has a finish to keep dirt from sticking to them. The handles are made from a bright, green thermoplastic, which helps me locate them. Radius Green trowels remains warm in cool weather and cool in hot weather, and their handles are easy to grip even when wet.

I use the narrow-bladed Weeder tool to dig many of my holes because it cuts through soil more easily than a wide-bladed tool. Radius Garden alos offers a line of garden shovels with a circle at the top of their handles to give gardeners a better grip from any angle.

Instead of hand digging to turn over a vegetable garden, it might be time to buy a rototiller. You could rent a heavy monstrosity, but here is an easier way. The Mantis gas-powered tiller has been around for years, but now they have a 21-pound electric model. It comes with a risk-free, oneyear home trial; how can you pass that up The Mantis is light enough to be carried and to to till small areas between established perennials. It also has an attachment that replaces the blades in order to edge flower beds.

Because tools won't be' used for several months, it is important to store them properly. This means taking the time to clean them, repair them, protect them and prepare them for future use. If the tool has metal surfaces, clean it with a kitchen pot-and-pan scrub pad, and replace the kitchen one. If you can't sneak the pad out of the house, a barbecue-grill scrubber will also work. Remove all the dirt and scrub off as much rust as possible.

Sharpen all blades on shovels, hoes, hand pruners, loppers and power tools. Use a file or grinder - with safety glasses, of course to remove nicks. Try to keep the edge sharpened at the original angle. Twosided blades, like those on lawn mowers, should have the same amount of metal on each side. Check the balance by hanging it on a nail to see if it hangs eveniy- Re-paint or lightly coat the metal with oil or WD40. The WD stands for water displacement and the 40 is for the 40th attempted formula. This will prevent metal from rusting.

Don't forget wooden handles. Check for splinters and cracks. Wash and sand them with fine sandpaper, if necessary. Coat with paint, linseed oil or varnish.

Before storing gas-powered motors you can run the engine until the gas runs out or you can add a fuel stabilizer. If the motor has a separate oil tank, you should replace the oil. Another way to handle this chore is to have it serviced at a repair shop, especially if it takes more than one or two pulls to start the motor. In fact, you might get an early bird special.

Clean or replace spark plugs and filters. Oil all moving parts and check all rubber gaskets. Check pull cords on power tools for wear and tear.

While you are at it, inspect electrical extension cords for nicks. Look at plugs for frayed insulation and loose wires. If a cord has a big nick in it, you can cut the cord in two and replace the ends with new plugs. This will replace the damaged cord with two safer cords, which together will be nearly as long as the old original.

E-mail questions to Jeff Rugg at info@greenerview.com.

Fiskars Ease-Of-Use Tools Praised on: Garden-Tools-Guide.com (Dec, 2007)

Fiskars Garden Tool Brand - Symbolizes Ease of Use.

Fiskars garden tool division is part of the larger Fiskars Corporation group which is the second oldest corporation in the world, having been established in 1649! This is of course testament to a well-run and ever evolving company as only successful companies can survive for over 350 years!

The Fiskars brand certainly follows this tradition of evolution, as Fiskars are best known for their innovative product designs which are intended to make gardening accessible, by manufacturing easy to use, less strenuous tools.

If you love gardening but are finding it a little difficult due to suffering from arthritis, Fiskars garden tools could be a great solution for you. It’s not nice to be stuck indoors when you’d rather be out working on your garden, but many tools require a lot of strength in order to work effectively and with arthritis you just can’t operate them.

However, Fiskars have recently been awarded the Ease-Of-Use Commendation by the Arthritis Foundation for tools in their PowerGear range – a range which operates using gears to give the strength behind the cut rather than just raw human power. The featured rolling handle also minimizes the amount of strain enforced on the hand as it moves with the natural movement rather than forcing the hand into an un-natural position, as most conventional cutters do. The Ease-of-Use commendation applies to the PowerGear patented technology on a variety of tools, including pruners, loppers and shears.

Another of Fiskars innovative designs is their range of Kangaroos. No, we’re not referring to the jumping Australian animal, but rather a gardening bag which pops up from being virtually flat, into a sturdy bag for your garden debris! These come in two capacities, either 30 gallon or 10 gallon and several different models.

The standard 10 gallon and 30 gallon containers are made from a vinyl-coated polyester which is strong but light, meaning it can easily hold a mass of leaves or grass clippings. The internal spring makes opening and closing easy and straightforward.

The HardShell Kangaroo is based on exactly the same principle, but comes with a harder shell, as the name suggests! And the Kangaroo Utility Container is again based on the same principle but this one is constructed with watertight tarpaulin so can be used for wet garden debris without fear of damaging it. All of these Kangaroos come with a lifetime warranty and when not in use they collapse to just 3 inches thick, making them easy to store and handle.

Amongst the other garden tools made by Fiskars you will find all of the most common tools you need for gardening, but, as mentioned, the key with Fiskars gardening tools is that they have been designed with ease of use in mind. Comfortable and ergonomic handles and hand-grips are featured, and all types of tools are available in several different models to ensure that you always have the right tool for the job.

So if you suffer from arthritis, or even if you don’t, the innovative approach used in every Fiskars garden tool could be the ideal answer for you.

US Weekly - Usher & Fiskars (Dec, 2007)

Getting Dirty TV Series Photos

This HGTV program will debut in the Spring of 2008.  The photos are courtesy of the show. GOL has excellent placement of our complete line of tools.  Stay tuned for live video as it becomes available.

The Longmont Daily Times, News & Web (Dec, 2007)

  (Click on Image to Enlarge)

Birmingham News (2007)

Garden Time TV - Adapative Tools

Check out this YouTube video segment of Garden Time TV.  It features Fiskars PowerGear technology.  Watch it here:  http://youtube.com/watch?v=frPtx81tkOM

 

New Tools Help Gardeners With Their Discomfort (2007)

By Molly Day
Muskogee Garden Club

...One of the Fiskars products, the Big Grip Garden Knife has a large, soft molded handle, one serrated and one smooth knife-edge plus a notched weeding tip. Several jobs can be accomplished with one tool...

Read More:  http://www.muskogeephoenix.com/archivesearch/local_story_283225830.html