Lawn care is one of those tasks in gardening that is both important and complex. Unless you hire a lawn service to handle the weekly chores of lawn care, every homeowner needs a few essential lawn care tools to finish the task.

There are power tools and some hand tools needed for lawn care. These tools each meet different purposes and have their own different characteristics. This article will provide you with a detailed introduction to them.

Essential Lawn Care Tools

1. Lawn Mower

Almost every homeowner who tends to their lawn will want to own a lawn mower. Mowers are usually of two types: reel mowers, which shear bed knives with a set of laterally mounted blades as the wheels turn, or rotary mowers, which cut with high-speed rotating blades hidden under a metal deck.

In the days before power mowers, reel mowers used to be the standard. There has been a resurgence in reel mowers as people seek non-polluting alternatives. While there are some gasoline-powered reel mowers for commercial applications, reel mowers for home use are usually powered only by the force of the gardener pushing them. Reel mowers are completely pollution-free and provide more exercise for the user.

Rotary mowers include most of the push-powered mowers used in homes across the country. They come in many, many different forms, from small push mowers to large riding mowers that resemble small tractors.

Among these push mowers, increasingly common are those operated by plug-in cords and those operated by rechargeable batteries. The various electric models have many advantages, not the least of which is the absence of polluting fumes from burning oil and gasoline. And electric mowers are usually much quieter than gasoline-powered mowers.

2. Spreaders and Sprayers

To feed and weed your lawn, a spreader for spreading granules is an essential lawn care tool. It spreads fertilizer evenly over a wide, curved area. For spot treatment of weeds, the average size garden a small volume (from one to three gallons) pressure sprayer for spraying herbicides. For lots over half an acre, gardeners may need a backpack sprayer capable of holding four or more gallons.

3. Rakes

The rake is a basic garden long-handled tool for digging, spreading and collecting in lawn care. And there's a surprising variety to choose from. Hard, metal-tined landscape rakes or garden rakes are ideal for weeding, spreading, separating rocks from the soil and laying mulch. If you want to remove dead leaves, grass clippings and other debris from your lawn, the more flexible and lightweight plastic leaf rakes are better.

4. Shears

In addition to lawns, some owners like to have some landscaping with grass in their gardens. Grass shears or large hedge shears are the best tools for trimming these landscapes. Small hand pruners are suitable for decorative plants and can cut branches, shrubs and vines.

Grass shears can help you keep the grass high so the landscape doesn't look cluttered. When there are a few scattered weeds popping up and you don't want to bother starting the mower, that's when grass shears come into play as a lawn care tool.

5. Hand Trowel

This little gem of a lawn tool has multiple uses. Use it as a miniature shovel for digging small holes for planting seedlings and bulbs, or use it for weed eradication tasks. Some models are actually multi-purpose tools with serrated blades and markers that allow you to measure the exact depth of your garden digging.

6. Wheelbarrow

Moving things from one place to another can be a chore, even in a modestly sized yard. Wheelbarrows are great tools for transporting soil, plants, mulch, hay and other lawn equipment, no matter the distance.

Using these essential lawn care tools to maintain the health of your lawn is sure to keep your entire outdoor living space beautiful this spring and summer. Boost your curb appeal, enjoy your beautiful lawn, and revel in the compliments you receive from your neighbors!