My Top 3 Must-Haves for Sustainable DIY Gardening, Plus Creative Ways to Upcycle
Every hobby comes with a steep learning curve, passionate community, and specialty tools for just about every step of the process. For new gardeners, the vast market of seed starting trays, shovels, and soil types can be extremely overwhelming, and that’s before even considering the plants themselves. It takes a lot of time and hands-on experience to pick through all of the various accessories on the market to find the best quality, most durable, and most useful tools for yardwork and gardening.
I’ve been gardening in patio containers for just shy of a decade and in-ground for the past 2 summers. Although I’ve tried out many different techniques and tools for my own planting needs, few have held up to my high expectations and ambitious project list. I’ve bent several hand tools while weeding in hard clay soil, cracked plastic seed trays within hours of getting them (don’t ask me how), and sifted through countless rain barrels, composters, and seed companies in the name of long-term sustainability. This is my ultimate list of tried-and-true favorite tools for backyard gardening.
NJP651 Hori-Hori Knife
If there is one single tool that will make most projects in the garden or landscape possible, it’s this nifty knife from Japan. Hori hori knives — literally translated to ‘dig dig’ — are the ultimate multitools for the garden. The traditional style has a sharp tip on a slightly concave blade, with one smooth edge and the other serrated. There are a lot of different options out there, from big box store spinoffs with notched tips to hand-carved minimalist versions on Etsy. My main criteria while hori hori knife hunting were:
- Made in Japan
- No plastic
- Won’t rust when I inevitably leave it out in the rain
I shopped around for months at different local and national garden stores, but found the hori hori knife that best fit my list on Amazon, of all places. The NJP651 Hori-Hori Weeding and Digging Knife has a comfortable wooden handle, handy etched-in measurements on the stainless steel blade, and a soft leather sheath. The only part I don’t love is the removable red poly strap on the end of the handle, but not enough to actually remove it yet. Since first trying out this garden knife out a little over a month ago, I’ve been joyfully growing my reputation as the neighbor who stomps around the yard every morning with a giant knife in one hand and a coffee cup in the other.
The hori hori knife’s first test was removing bindweed, thistles, dandelions, and more from my neglected front yard — a task that has bent and broken several dedicated weeding tools in the past. I then used it to transplant raspberry bushes, separate delicate seedlings, and eventually carve out a new garden bed in the backyard. While cutting strips of sod out of the new garden bed, the serrated edge of the knife made the task feel a lot like sawing through a giant loaf of bread. Between this tool, a shovel, and a wheelbarrow, there is no DIY task too mighty (so far).
Jora Compost Tumbler 125
There are many different methods for composting and reasons to start doing it. I did consider making a no-cost pile in the backyard, but since I live in an area with a lot of squirrels, skunks, and other nosy critters, making a one-time investment in a high quality composter was most appealing to me. My Notes app list of priorities were, in no particular order:
- Nice to look at
- Hide the mess
- Not made out of plastic (not fixable) or wood (breaks down)
- Keep pests out!
- Accessible year-round
- Easy to use
The Jora Compost Tumbler 125 checked off every bullet point on my list of must-haves. The smallest of 3 models, this 33-gallon tumbler easily handles all of the coffee grounds, tea bags, food scraps, and paper bits generated by this 2-person household. It comes in a lovely muted green that blends into the landscape, with angular steel panels that form the octagonal body of the tumbler. There are several black plastic handles for spinning the tumbler, and although I would have preferred metal, the handles look to be a standard size that should be easy to swap out if they somehow crack or break. The tumbler has two small compartments and sits about waist-high on a metal frame, with separate doors that swing open easily and latch shut securely. The design also incorporates an insulating layer of styrofoam, extending the composting season to all but the coldest months. Composting is gross, but this tumbler adds some ease to the process, and it’s so well-made that I highly doubt I’ll ever have to replace it.
It’s so easy to manage the doors, empty my kitchen compost bucket once or twice a week, and give the tumbler a spin any time I walk by. The left compartment is currently filled with a batch that is close to finished, and I am actively adding new material to the right compartment. Once the compost on the left is finished, I’ll leave the right side alone to finish and start the process all over again on the left. This process provides a small amount of fresh compost to add to my garden beds every few months, with a bit of a lull from December through February.
Note about ordering: you do have to assemble the tumbler yourself, but they provide helpful tutorial resources on the website.
UpCycle 55 Gallon Rain Barrel
Last year, our basement started flooding after heavy rain and hail storms, which turned out to be an issue with how one of the corners of our house was collecting water from our and the neighbor’s gutters. After getting a quote for how much it would cost to professionally fix some of the foundation grading issues, my partner and I decided to see what we could first do by ourselves to fix the issue. Along with giving the gutters a good cleaning and digging out a shallow trench to divert some of the water flow, we added a rain barrel to the corner of the house that is prone to flooding. I had been wanting to start collecting rain water for the garden anyway, so this seemed like a great time to give it a try.
The UpCycle 55 Gallon Rain Barrel is easy to set up, comes with fine mesh mosquito screening to cover the top, and is made from previously used polyethylene barrels. There are a lot of different sizes and styles of rain barrels on the market, but the upcycled materials and option to order directly from the factory are what sold me on this one in particular. There is a threaded spigot on the bottom, plus an overflow valve near the top. We hooked up a long hose to the top valve, directing overflow water away from the house and towards the lawn. If I decide to get another rain barrel in the future, I will most likely go with the version that comes with a wider overflow valve that can better keep up our more intense rainstorms. Even if we weren’t using it as a flood management tool, I love having it available for watering my veggies.
Bonus Freebies: Save These for Planting!
Gardening really, truly does not have to cost a lot of money. I try to cut costs in creative ways, especially for seed starting and potting up plants. While I wouldn’t recommend going out and buying these things just for the sake of planting, these are all great ways to upcycle items that may otherwise go to the landfill or recycling center.
Egg cartons make great seed starting trays. I purchase eggs that come in papery cartons, so all I have to do is pull the seedlings apart and plant them up, container and all. I wouldn’t recommend this method for seeds that take more than 2 weeks to germinate, because this material breaks down fast.
Plastic bread bags are my go-to DIY humidity domes for seed starting in egg cartons and small seed trays. Just remove them once the seedlings have peeked out to prevent mold or dampening off.
Pint containers, such as those that contain sour cream and yogurt, make great containers for potting up seedlings. For best results, cut a hole in the bottom of the DIY pot for drainage and use the lid as a tray to catch the excess water. Several can fit on a kitchen window sill, making it easy to get creative with these containers.
Gallon jugs are widely used for winter sowing. I don’t actually buy anything that comes in these types of containers, but it seems very effective if you have the jugs on hand.
Cardboard boxes come in handy all the time, whether I’m shredding them for the compost pile, laying them down to suppress weeds, or transporting large amounts of tiny things (like seedlings in pint containers).
Squash seeds from grocery store squash can be saved and stored in a cool, dry spot. Some seeds might grow, while others might not, but it’s a fun activity and can produce some tasty results if you have success. This also works with potatoes and garlic cloves.
As long as you have a dedicated spot for collecting clean, reusable materials such as these, it is absolutely worth having them around. Reusing common grocery packaging can become a very useful habit and absolutely saves money on gardening accessories. Save the big bucks for some good dirt!
Was this info helpful? I’d love to hear what you think! I have a lot of upcoming gardening articles on budget-friendly methods, planning a drought-friendly garden, and some of my other adventures in the backyard.
