I don’t know if you mean something like this but I have one and it rules: Nisaku NJP650 Hori-Hori Weeding & Digging Knife, Authentic Tomita (Est. 1960) Japanese Stainless Steel, 7.25" Blade, Wood Handle https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0007WFG2I/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_dl_6W8GE947HEDGGK0V3F92?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
I dig mine up with one of these, also grow your grass longer so they don't get as much sunlight. As long as they aren't flowering I don't really worry about them too much in my grass, there are much worse weeds to have in it (like thistles ugh).
Side note - Invest in a Hori Hori. A good one. Seriously it's one of my most used garden tools.
I second the Hori Hori it is the handiest thing I've had this one for years https://www.amazon.com/Nisaku-NJP650-Hori-Hori-Authentic-Stainless/dp/B0007WFG2I/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=F95OI6IO1M54&keywords=hori+hori+garden+knife&qid=1637595415&sprefix=hori+%2Caps%2C209&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGV...
I second the hori, hori this is the one I have and I love it. https://www.amazon.com/Nisaku-NJP650-Hori-Hori-Authentic-Stainless/dp/B0007WFG2I/ref=sr_1_5?crid=1C0HV4SKLQFYL&dchild=1&keywords=hori+hori+garden+knife&qid=1606277313&sprefix=hori+hori%2Caps%2C224&sr=8-5
Japanese Hori Hori (ホリホリ) crop knives are cheap, unique and small to pack in your lugage. They are all around farm tool used for harvesting things like cabbages, weeding, planting, etc. https://www.amazon.com/Nisaku-NJP650-Hori-Hori-Stainless-Weeding/dp/B0007WFG2I
You have to get one! It is absolutely far and away my favorite garden tool. I have two, an old one that is always around the garden for random digging and weeding, and the one pictured which I usually keep sheathed and mostly bust out for occasion. Cuts roots like butter.
Do yourself a favor and find a good one on amazon for about $30 or so, stainless, made in Japan. The good ones come SHARP. You won't regret it.
I think this is the one I bought:
https://www.amazon.com/Japanese-Garden-Landscaping-Digging-Stainless/dp/B0007WFG2I
Hmm, for boring people I always go with food or something that can be consumed.
I have a garden knife, they are pretty multipurpose and practical. It might be nice to get him carolina reaper seeds instead of actual peppers, that way he can plant them when the season is right.
Has he ever made hot sauce? If he hasn't, it might be a hobby he would like. You could get him a kit or a cookbook.
Yikes! I'll be removing them ASAP, then. Thank you for the heads up. Any tips on how to thoroughly and properly remove them? I was just thinking of taking this gardening tool to them and uprooting them.
It's my experience that setting up a home garden is a LOT of work. Plan to realize that as you put all your energy and time and sweat into getting a garden set up is going to be much less garden than you think. If you're not prepared to invest your effort for MORE than the first year, you will probably NOT be getting back what you're putting in.
Lots of people have great dreams of gardening, but then hours of weeding every week all summer exhausts their plans. People have dreams of amending the soil and growing more, but the effort and cost becomes prohibitive unless you're starting small. Realize that starting small actually means starting hard and fast and all the time of everything you can do, until you build up your stamina and experience for what needs doing.
If you're not discouraged yet,
I'd strongly recommend: https://duckduckgo.com/?q=vegetables+in+clay+soil&t=ffab&ia=web
I'd suggest getting a good hand tool like this, a sun hat, a 5 gallon bucket with a seat addition so you can sit and take a breather now and then while your body's doing all this work out there (it can also hold your tools or be used for lugging water), and some good bug spray and sunscreen.
Then, start with planting what types of vegetables will work in the soil you have now in the zone you are in when it's time to plant. Not all vegetables do well in clay soil. For those types of produce that do not do well in your clay-heavy soil, you will need to either amend the soil (over the course of a few years IF you start NOW), or, purchase garden soil and add it to your garden, or build raised beds (and fill them with garden soil.)
Since soil is heavy and expensive in the quantities you would need for a heavily-producing garden, the less you need to add, the better. It might be better to start with the kinds of produce the soil you have now will work with best, and look at it as a learning curve not only in growing crops and upkeep of gardening, but also as a learning curve for when it's time to harvest and preserve your harvest. Which is a whole other, time sensitive speed run for most cases.
Hope the feedback helps.
If you are completely green at this it might be worth your time and money to hire a local professional gardener to come by and help you ID plants and answer your questions. It can be pricey but you will be paying for what you get!
Another option is to join some local garden groups either online, in person or both and they can help give you free advice.
The tools I use to revamp the yard are: pruners, loppers, Japanese pruning saw for large branches (and a second one just for cutting out roots), hand trowel, large spade, gloves and buckets for holding weeds etc.
I use zero chemical means to remove plants or grow them (no man made fertilizers), it can disrupt the ecosystem in your garden and if used improperly cause health issues as well as ending up where you don't want it and causing issues that way. This means no vinegar or salt or soap either, all of those are chemicals as well even though they are in your kitchen. Weeds when hand pulled and tossed before they go to seed usually never come back, weeds sprayed with week killer can go to seed faster than before (weed killer causes plants to speed up their growth cycle) and you have more of an issue next year. The only exception for me are weeds that just won't die after being pulled many times, but weed killer is applied using a q-tip directly to the stem after it's cut down to soil level using gloves.
As for what to do after you've cleaned out the weeds. Watch the garden for a year and make a list of what you want from your garden. Zen oasis, wildlife sanctuary, super manicured park-like yard, place to hang out with friends, safe space for pets and kids. Whatever. Then get out a piece of grid paper and map your garden out to scale. Decide where all the pathways, patios, gazebos, firepits and other hardscaping will go. Then you get to have fun with plants! This can be tricky, you need to consider light, water, bloom time, height/width at maturity and drainage. If it's a lot for you another consultation can help, there are usually tons of good landscape designers in every area but again they don't come cheap.
Have the right tools and it’ll make your job much easier…Hand Tiller…Digging/Weeding Knife
Understand what your veggies are and if they grow outward or upward. Spacing if outward and creating trellis’ or staking if upward or both.
Know what zone you’re in, when the frost comes and goes, if your plants need full sun or partial sun… a little bit of knowledge goes a long way so good luck
Get yourself a Hori Hori knife (THE best trowel I've ever had), some rotating pruners and a bag of compost or manure. Some easy flowers to grow from seed are sunflowers, cosmos, zinnias, nigella, nasturtiums (may need to be started inside depending on zone). I'm sure there are lots more that I haven't listed. Look into no-till gardening, it'll save you weeding, watering and time and make your plants happier in the long run. Have fun!
A hori hori is my most favorite garden tool probably
I'm recently getting into gardening myself, I bought a Nisaku garden knife for $23 made in Japan, very high quality (made with REAL Japanese steel). It's a great all around tool, weeding, cutting, digging, etc.
Amazon link:
https://www.amazon.com/Nisaku-NJP650-Hori-Hori-Authentic-Stainless/dp/B0007WFG2I/
Their other tools look really nice too.
Product name: Nisaku NJP650 Hori-Hori Weeding & Digging Knife, Authentic Tomita (Est. 1960) Japanese Stainless Steel, 7.25" Blade, Wood Handle
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Highest price ever: $37.15
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Previous price: $23.95
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The item was in stock as of 08/04/2021 17:31:01 (UTC)
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I have always had good luck with a Japanese Hori Hori
https://www.amazon.com/Japanese-Garden-Landscaping-Digging-Stainless/dp/B0007WFG2I
Very durable and compact but still can do lots of work.
I take a hori hori with me for light digging tasks
https://www.amazon.com/Japanese-Garden-Landscaping-Digging-Stainless/dp/B0007WFG2I
Oh my goodness. I misidentified your little shovel in a way that gave me a great idea: a Hori Hori to serve as knife and shovel.
http://www.amazon.com/Japanese-Garden-Landscaping-Digging-Stainless/dp/B0007WFG2I