garden apron or belt or...how do you carry your pruners etc around with you?

My neighbor apparently received a hand-sewn apron for Christmas.  She promptly folded the bottom up and sewed two vertical lines in the middle, creating 3 total pockets.  She was pruning her ornamentals and I noticed it.

She puts her phone in one pocket, pruning shears in another, and (harvests?--except she grows "useless" plants--in my opinion, of course--) in the middle.

I need something similar but was wondering what people use?

I tried carrying my pruners in my pocket, but the pointy tip poked holes in it.  Typically, I don't take it out with me to water, then regret not having it.

I can't do a sling on a belt, since I don't wear a belt (I'm usually out there in long pants or shorts) but figured a pocketed apron might work.  I don't want anything too big, since it's hot enough in the summer especially, without wearing something else.

I usually have keys in one pants pocket, gloves in another, but also tuck some small harvested items (beans, twisties, seeds, bits of plastic to throw away, okra) in another.  It starts to get full, especially when I carry ties in there too, made from strips of old fabric, underwear elastic, t-shirt necklines, that sort of thing.

What do you all use for pruners, etc. carrying with you on a daily basis?

I did the same with an old apron I had last summer.  Most women’s pants don’t have pockets and I need pockets for those small garden tools.  The big pruners I constantly lay down on the ground and then spend more time searching for them than actual work.  Haven’t found a workable solution for that yet.  Still missing a fencing tool and other small items, lost somewhere in the tall grass or perhaps buried under mulch in the garden.  

Yes, I have "found" knives in the compost bin when screening finished compost.  Unfortunately, by that time, they are usually ruined.

This thread has a photo of a upcycled pair of jeans made into an apron that would be perfect for carrying your gardening tools in https://permies.com/t/169867/permaculture-upcycling/ungarbage/creative-permie-jeans

I'm a guy, for what it's worth. I wear cargo pants for the garden. Though I do have an apron for woodworking, it's mostly just to keep sawdust off.

Cargo pants are pretty wonderful, though I do sometimes find myself wishing I had an apron or belt with plentiful pockets.

If you are storing pruners in a pocket it's nice to have a leather sheath for them, it helps prevent poked holes.

My biggest problem with cargo pants full of things is they want to fall down... so I have to wear a rather tight belt. I hear suspenders help with that, but I haven't gone down that road yet. The apron would help with the falling down bit as well. Seems like a good solution to me.

i have tried all kinds of aprons and ultimately my solution is to buy a pair of pants specifically for garden work that has all the pockets and hammer loop and all that. If I just have 5 minutes to run out and do something quick I'll bring a basket or wear an apron, but anything more than 5 min i put on those pants (with a belt, since it gets heavy with all the crap i stuff in those pockets).
They used to be Carhartt carpenter pants, I recently replaced them with a pair of pants from Job Lot that had the same number of pockets and loops and reinforced knees (and cost about 50 bucks less).

Alina, I don't usually wear an apron because I don't own one.

I thought you or others might enjoy these threads:



https://permies.com/t/47911/Roo-Gardening-Apron



https://permies.com/t/154065/sewing/fiber-arts/Sew-apron#1206691

There is even some PEP BB (Badge Bits) for making an apron:

https://permies.com/wiki/167580/pep-textiles/Create-full-bib-apron-substantial

https://permies.com/wiki/159850/pep-textiles/Sew-full-bib-apron-PEP

I even found a couple on Pinterest that look neet:


source


source

I have learned to wear a short shop apron.  It saves my  clothes and my tools.

I have also borrowed an idea from another thread.  I am in the process of placing 6 mailboxes around my 11 acres  (2 are in place).  Those mail boxes contain the appropriate tools for their location. ….usually some combination of tape, bailing wire, hammer, nails, screws,  fencing tool, pliers ,  adjustable wrench, pruning tool, hori knife, and 2 screw drivers.  No, they aren’t my best tools, but they are enough to make a fast repair.  And, any given mail box will not contain all of the above.  The two boxes in place have already saved me many steps

I started using a fly fishing chest paclk It holds my tools and I modified it to hold my tablet that I enter use to keep data on various projects. I'm usually a paper pencil guy but the tablet allows immediate sharing with others working on the same projects. They make similar, military chest molle packs they call admin packs that would do the same thing.

I love my Roo apron for harvesting and planting, with greens or seeds in the main pouch. However, I drop tools out of it often unless they’re securely clipped on in a scabbard. Even then, probably because I alternate between the African “r” and East Asian “M” body positions for working on the ground, even those tools in scabbards will fall out if attached to my upper body while bending over at the waste. I have ruined too many garden knives and pruners that way by not noticing them falling out, and now use a thin but sturdy Chaco strap belt for my tool scabbards.

Wow, thanks, lots of ideas here.

I DID think about a mailbox just a few days ago...might be a good idea to do a combo of both mailbox idea, plus carrying something or other.

In the past couple years I've taken to Duluth Trading Company Women's Fire Hose Flex Shift Relaxed Leg Pants: the pockets hold clippers, knife, cell phone, hankie, and much more, all without it feeling like my pants will fall off. They are IMHO, better built, (better material and fit) and yet less expensive than carharts. I like the idea of an apron but have the experiences others mention: things fall out when bending over, which I do a lot.

I use a potholder that was made just for the handles (straight) of pans. Works great! It’s padded. I needed something especially because the lock to hold the pruners was broken. Now I keep I my pruners in my car under the backseat and am comfortable that it won’t poke or damage anything. When I’m using them , they are right in my back pocket.

I’ve tried most of these ideas and I always go back to Duluth garden pants, with pockets,loops, Velcro, zippers, and a five gallon paint bucket with a pocket “apron” on it. If I’m doing one specific task(yeah, right), like pruning, maybe I can get it done without the bucket - but more often than not…

I like to keep multiple tool storage spots (e.g. keep a set of pruners in the garage and another set 200 feet away in a mailbox at the edge of the garden) and then grab a few tools from the nearest location that I'll use for the next hour or two and keep those few tools in the back pockets of my pants or coverall pockets in cold weather. Sometimes it results in forgetting to put the tools away before I head to the house and then I have a small pile of tools on my back porch that I need to re-distribute to the tool storage spots the next time I head in that direction.

My profession of the homestead is archaeologist. While I actually spend more time educating kids than excavating, I have a deep appreciation for the lessons learned doing CRM (cultural resource management) work sometimes called contract archaeology. Lesson #1 Never get separated from your lunch. Lesson #2 wear the right clothing/gear for the job. I invested in a pair of garden pants from Duluth Trading Company and I wear the ever-loving heck out of them. I've had them for 3 years. The reason I mention them is that they have POCKETS!!! I love pockets that are appropriate for what I'm carrying. The left leg tool pocket is great for my shears, knife, shovel etc. There is also a pocket on the right leg perfect for my phone which tags along for the audio books, music, or podcast I'm listening to. Since these pants are actually not my favorite in the summer as they can be extra warm, I have a canvas apron recently purchased which also keeps me cleaner for quick chores before work. The apron tends to get in my way for some tasks, but is worth having when I have multiple tools or items to tote around. I have contemplated customizing an apron for myself with pockets specific to my needs more than just a big pouch which I tend to overfill on occasion.

Well I'm a newbie to outdoor gardening (other than houseplants...old pro at that).  I got some overalls and some carhart pants recently - haven't figured out what works for me in terms of pockets, etc. because most of the tools I've been using so far are big.  But, I have a Duluth down the street and think I need to go try on their garden pants because I may suffocate in the heavy overalls my kids got me .  Loving all of these ideas.  Anybody have a favorite arm covering/protectant?  Or do you just wear long sleeves?  It will be a million degrees here before I know it...if it wouldn't scare/blind the neighbors, bikini gardening would be my jam (ha!).  

I traditionally keep just a few tools with me and abuse my pockets in various ways or keep them in the nearby yard-cart. But for Valentine's Day, my wife made me a little tool apron which I'll try once spring arrives (with the big melt we had a couple weeks ago, we're down to two feet of snow...too early for gardening). So I'm not in a position to exactly recommend it yet, but I have a nice garden apron and my wife wrote about it here, so you could read that and see pictures.

I have the belt only style of the purple Roo apron shown in Ann Miller’s post and love it! There are 3 pockets for tools and a huge cargo area  for whatever you pick up along the way. The big pocket has a fold and cords that hold it closed so you can dump out your harvest from the bottom and not dump out your pockets full of tools. I like it because you can gently let your harvest roll out the bottom without bruising it or breaking eggs but still keeping your tools where you want them.

I use a couple different clip on tool holsters, one is a simple pruner holster and another is a bigger technician’s pouch, it holds everything for grafting. I also try to always have a sling style reusable grocery bag stuffed in a back pocket for harvesting.

My wife has a foraging “purse” that is a sling style daypack and filled with all the stuff she needs to gather whatever she finds on the way. A bunch of gallon ziplock bags, paper towels, sharpie, hori hori, pruners, labels, etc.

Neither one of us is that happy with the summer solutions, the clip on holders don’t work without a belt and the bag or apron are too hot or get in the way when bending down.

After tools falling out of pockets and getting lost, getting put down and lost, or tools making holes in pockets, or my best effort yet -- trying to lay my secateurs on the top of a pipe fence post while wrestling a huge bundle of monster weeds toward the compost heap and having the secateurs fall down irretrievably inside the pipe! -- I need a garden apron. But the prices! Pockets that things would just fall straight out of when I bent over. And too many have ties behind the neck. Nope - my neck would not be happy to carry the weight of a bunch of tools!

One of my current projects is upcycling a cheap second-hand denim dungaree dress with extra pockets, elastic straps, and clips for garden tools. It has a top like overalls, but with a skirt. I'll slit the back of the skirt to waist height so I can squat and bend and move more easily in it, and the weight of the tools will be on my shoulders, not my neck.

Hoping that will work as I want to start buying better quality tools, ones I won't be able to afford to lose!

I carry mine in my back pocket… although my wife just got me a mini saker saw that’s battery operated so I may have a new tool in my arsenal of tree pruning

Hello. I feel that I have some expertise in this subject. I work in a commercial wine vineyard in Ohio. I use an Okatsune leather holster that allows me to carry two pairs of pruners. It is an invaluable piece of kit for me. Being able to draw the pruners and return them to the holster one handed is essential for speed and patience.

Also I highly suggest the extra large pair of okatsune hand pruners. (Red and white handles). I am a gear nerd and these are my preferred pair. They are smooth, and cut just like sharp scissors on paper. Their locking mechanism can be used one handed and against your body or the holster. The sound they make is really satisfying as well. The little things matter at the end of the day.

Hi Kurt,

Welcome to Permies.

Kurt Grapes wrote:Also I highly suggest the extra large pair of okatsune hand pruners. (Red and white handles). I am a gear nerd and these are my preferred pair.

Kurt, I was looking at pruners and noticed the two different types of springs, as shown in your two pruners. Are the ones you mention with the longer shaped spring easier to use?

John F Dean wrote:Hi Kurt,

Welcome to Permies.

Thank you! Long time fan of the forum, first time participating.

Kurt, I was looking at pruners and noticed the two different types of springs, as shown in your two pruners. Are the ones you mention with the longer shaped spring easier to use

Hello Jane,
Yes the longer spring ones (Okatsune) are easier to use. The Okatsune are smooth as silk and are put together very well with zero wiggle. Other pruners have friction on the springs or the springs are stiff. Also they do not jolt your hand upon completion of a cut. As I mentioned before the sound they make is very satisfying as well. They can be locked and unlocked with one hand even with thick gloves on. No other pruners I have used or seen my co workers use are as easy to lock and unlock with gloves on one handed. They also stay sharper far longer than any others I have seen. The steel is very hard.  The springs are available on Amazon for under 10 bucks which isn't cheap but my spring has never been an issue.

I have seen springs fly off other pruner types. My professor/boss/mentor carries an extra spring on him just in case for his felco 13s.

Further hand pruner ramblings. ..The picture of the ones with black handles are Stihl brand and are slightly bigger than the Okatsune. Sometimes one trys to cut something that are beyond the pruners capability. The felco 13s (not pictured)do best here because the ease in which you can use two hands they are pricey. A second place are the corona BP7100D (red handled) which open up extra wide but you don't get much leverage and it takes a lot of strength. The stihls (black handles) are a close third, they are very stout and feel very durable. But I discovered that loppers or a pruning saw are much better for this oversized job. The okatsune are the smaller capacity of the 4 I have been talking about. The smaller size almost lets you know when it is time to grab the pruning saw or loppers while the others make you feel as if you can tackle the job.

Long winded but after a year of working in the vineyards extra large okatsunes in a leather holster and a corona folding saw will tackle nearly anything you come acrossed.

Thank you, Kurt! That's excellent advice and it's clear you know what you're talking about!

This is a timely thread for me. I found a pair of secateurs I had forgotten I had lost today. It must have been lost a few years ago and unfortunately the handle appears to be made of alloy and has rotten. The spring may be OK with a clean and might repair one of my other pairs of secateurs that has lost it's spring. The blade also seems OK, so will be cleaned and put away somewhere. I try to train the dogs to 'find mummy's tools' but they're rubbish at it!
I usually put my secateurs in my overalls pocket, but as has been said that soon leads to holes. The hip pocket is also uncomfortable as it digs in when I move sometimes. One of my overalls has a thigh pocket and that is much more comfortable, but again needs reinforcing at the bottom to avoid damage.

Electricians, plumbers and woodworkers all over use these. Durable and cheap, easy to obtain from any work wear retailer.

Christmas present from hubby.  I love it.

I use a 5 Gallon bucket to carry all the tools I'll need and then some.  I don't prune and harvest at the same time. What I harvest depends on what container I'll use.  Those 5 Gallon buckets are cheap and plentiful at Home Depot and Loews. I have a number of them I store in my garden.

Its hit or miss, but I have pick up old leather electrician tool pouches at estate sales. They work great for garden tooling.

My garden apron, and how I made it, was in the other thread on aprons ...
Here's a link: apron

I have a gardening business and we've had to make ourselves habitually return the pruners to the clip on holster. You can put the holster in a short pocket of pants or apron, or clip on your belt to keep them handy. They're an expensive loss so very worth developing the habit of putting them immediately back in the holster. If you keep the holster in the same place every time, you will look like a ninja in the garden! I haven't learned to spin them on my finger to show off yet.  : D  But I know people watch us out their windows.

Wow! All the great ideas!
Thanks for the tips on secateurs, Kurt! I'll start looking to see what I have and what needs replacing right away, versus what can wait for sales or special holidays.

I have a cobbler apron left over from my days as a volunteer for a local hospital. I worked for the library, there, so having two very large pockets was handy while reshelving or mending books.
Now, one of those pockets carries at least one chicken apron, a couple of interesting feathers, a small pair of scissors, and, usually, a pen or pencil. The other pocket tends to get whatever trash blew in and I collected, left over strings from feed sacks, bits of wire, and Random Stuff.
I can, and have, fit a pair of bypass pruners, a folding pruning saw, a multifunction tool (though that always seems to do better in my pants pocket), and a water bottle.
Being a cobbler apron, it keeps whatever weight  there is on my shoulders.

I have a smaller three pocket "gardening" apron from who knows where. It's a very simple thing that ties around my waist with attached fabric ties. I always seem to forget about it until I'm already doing things, so it doesn't get as much play as it should.

The rest of my regular "outside stuff" outfit is a pair of pants, usually jeans, a long sleeved shirt with pockets, a pair of gloves appropriate to what I'm planning to do, and a good brimmed hat.
I prefer the heavier fabrics, like denim, for the pants, for the protection from sun and random environmental factors. I do have some lighter weight long pants for late summer days when the heat hits 100F+., but use the heavier ones as long as possible.
The long sleeved shirt is an old fire retardant one from my husband's work. I generally roll up the sleeves so they hit about 7/8ths length (about mid-forearm), and two buttoned pockets. It satisfies all the requirements from doctors and is a useful tool for tossing over angry chickens, distracting stray dogs, and can be soaked with the hose for any number of reasons.

In answer to the earlier question about what different people do for sun protection in hot times, I wear long sleeves. I have a long sleeved 50 SPF athletic spandex dry weave shirt with a kangaroo pocket that I found somewhere years ago. When it's just too hot for the damp (and therefore cooler) fire retardant shirt, I wear the athletic shirt instead. It doesn't have as many uses. but allows me to get out, do things, and get back inside reasonably quickly.
Since I have to keep my arms covered when I'm outside, being able to swap between the two if needed is a workable solution for me.

When you get to... a ripe old age, you may want to not carry too many things in your pockets, on your back or in your belt, and just like others in this forum, when I carry something in my pockets, I pull the darn thing out of my pocket and... misplace it.
I have finally figured out that having either a sled in winter of a wheeled contraption saves me a lot of aggravation.
Also, before I set out, I realize that I had better have... this... and this... and might as well bring that other thing too, just in case, because I'd hate to have to walk all the way back for this one item.
Now, when I pull my stuff [and lots of it] in my little wagon, I also have a place to put it. And while it is really easy to misplace knives, pruners or other what-cha-might-call it, I can usually find my little wagon... and in it, all the stuff I've hauled to the garden or the orchard.
Do you know when I misplace stuff? It is when I carry only one thing or two.
There is something about feeling cocky that "Meh...I'll remember that" if I only carry one or two things... and that is when forgetfulness strikes!
And the previous owner of this property did the same thing: He lost a few knives, a really nice and sturdy one I still have and cherish, bolts, and stuff. I just wish he had lost them all together, in one place. It would be easier to locate. It would be nice to get a full set, for a change!

I now have my third mailbox up for tool storage.  I have added one additional tool.  A bottle of water that I bottled myself.   I will remove them with the first frost.