One of my favorite gardening “tools” is actually a clothing accessory… suspenders!

Gardening often requires what can seem like a day full of bending, stooping, and squatting. If you find that you’re constantly adjusting your pants while gardening, that can be frustrating; and you may be wasting more time and energy than you realize. Also, the garden should be a place of positive health, so don’t over-tighten your pants. In my opinion, constricting vital blood flow is not worth the effort to keep your pants up {though your neighbors might disagree}.

So, what’s the answer to this dilemma faced by many gardeners? For me, it’s suspenders. Yes, when I’m out in the garden with my big hat, long-sleeve shirt, and suspenders holding up my pants, I probably look a little goofy. But, I don’t garden to win any fashion awards anyway. With suspenders, I can wear my pants comfortably loose (without them falling down), stay cooler in the summer, and enjoy longer and more relaxed gardening sessions.

Trousers, pants, shorts, slacks, jeans – whatever you want to call them – if you’ve been fighting to keep them
comfortable in the garden, give suspenders a try.

blog entry by Mark Murphy, CMG

Now that your garden is dormant and most if not all the outdoor tasks are done, it's time to take a closer look at your garden tools and do any cleaning and maintenance before putting them up for the season.