Hand Clippers

by Barb Henny

Finland is a frozen land of elk and reindeer. One-third of it lies north of the Arctic Circle. What does icy Finland have in common with tropical Florida?

Fiskars, a Finnish company famous for manufacturing orange-handled scissors, (whose name rhymes with “missed cars,” not “whiskers”), operates a garden products distribution center in Plymouth, Florida. They’ve been making cutting tools for the forestry industry in Finland since 1649. The Plymouth location has operated since the 1970s, when foliage, citrus and nursery industries were at their peak and needed cutting tools.

Scissors can handle light-duty garden chores such as trimming bonsai leaves or cutting delicate begonias. They make a cut as two sharp blades pass each other. Every gardener needs a good pair of scissors. But for most gardeners, a heavier tool is needed for pruning.

There are many brands of hand clippers on the market, including Fiskars, Corona, Felco, ARS, Stihl, Wolverine and A.M. Leonard. I “test drove” all of those brands at a home and garden show recently.

Hand clippers arrange the blades in one of two ways: bypass or anvil. Bypass clippers are most frequently seen among nursery and greenhouse workers. They cut by sliding one sharp curved blade across an unsharpened, thicker edge. The curved blade makes a close cut.

Anvil clippers have a single straight blade that slices down onto a flat head like a knife chopping onto a cutting board. This style is bulkier, but does a clean job on dead wood. Anvil cutters are often preferred by rose growers.

Hand clippers are intended to cut branches less than 1-inch in diameter. Most brands print the maximum size stem diameter that the clipper can safely manage on the front of the package. Hand clippers can break when overloaded. If the stem or branch you want to prune is bigger than 1-inch diameter, upgrade to a saw or a lopper for the job.

Corona clippers were first manufactured in Corona, California in the 1920s for the citrus industry. They are designed to cut close to the stem when fruit is removed from the branch. Corona was recently acquired by a Spanish company to serve the citrus industry abroad, and is a popular choice in citrus regions in China, Brazil and India.

Felco pruners sport bright red handles and are popular with nursery and greenhouse workers. The blades are not rivetted to the handles, so it is easy to replace broken blades. Felco #2 clippers are all-purpose garden tools, cutting anything from twine to branches. Felco #9 clippers are made especially for southpaws.

ARS offers lighter-weight clippers for smaller hands and for bonsai work. Wolverine is Italian, stylish and eye catching. Stihl, a well-known name in chainsaws, offers hand pruners along with loppers and hedge shears. A.M. Leonard offers a selection through their catalog and website.

Whether you need to control unruly crepe myrtles or are harvesting fragrant herbs, pruning is the highest art of horticultural skills. To pick the hand clippers that fit you best, shop around. Go to a garden center where you can hold and squeeze before you buy. Determine if the grip feels comfortable in your hand. Can you squeeze it easily? Many brands offer an ergonomic handle or ratchet action. Reckon the weight. Could you manage it all day? Does it feel too lightweight? Does it feel sturdy? I prefer to lock and unlock the blade with one hand.

Barb Henny loves her ergonomic-handle Fiskars. She is married to Jake, who loves his ARS. They share custody of several pairs of Felco #2’s and Coronas.

© 2013 Barb Henny. Originally published in Florida Gardening, Jun / Jul 2013. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Information about how to prune landscape trees and shrubs: https://ufdc.ufl.edu/IR00002901/00001