Material: KA-70 Carbon Steel, Niwaki Yellow Vinyl Grip handles (removable)

Includes spare spring

PRODUCT CODE: 96327630

ABOUT NIWAKI

Niwaki founder Jake Hobson is a leading pruning specialist who studied pruning, tree-training, and rootballing at Furukawa Teijuen nursery in Osaka, Japan. The owner of a tree farm in Dorset, England, Jake founded Niwaki to bring Japanese techniques he’d mastered to Western gardens. He also introduced a collection of Japanese tools that are made in Japan ranging from tripod ladders and topiary clippers to super sharp secateurs and garden scissors. “What everyone has appreciated is that although these things are all Japanese, they work just as well in western gardens, and on a whole range of plants,” says Jake. “Tripod ladders, it turns out, are just as useful for hedge trimming as they are for pine pruning; and of course, topiary clippers work just as well on box topiary as they do on azalea karikomi.”

Most of Niwaki’s sharp tools are made from carbon steel. This means they will, through regular use, stain (and eventually rust) and gradually lose their edge. Caring for them involves three things.

1. Use correctly: Japanese steel is hard and sharp and can be more brittle than some people are used to - it will chip if abused. Do not cut wire, metal, stone, plastic, or any other hard material. Even bamboo fibers and certain very hard woods, especially the knots and burrs, can damage steel edges. Do not twist or apply uneven pressure. Cut diagonally across branches (not straight across) so you cut along the fibers. Remember, shears are not loppers. Please pay attention to maximum cut dimensions. Use the base of the blades, not the tips, for heavier cuts.

2. Keep clean: Remove leaf resin, rust, and gunk with a Crean Mate Rust Eraser, available at Bloomist here. 

3. Dry, wipe, and store in a dry place.

Note: Do not leave in the rain, and do not fold the secateur lock catch inside the handle.

TIGHTENING YOUR SECATUERS

Through regular use, Secateurs can work a bit loose. 

Loosen the hexagonal nut (it’s a locking nut, so you don’t tighten it to tighten the play of the secateurs)

Undo the bolt, clean the separate parts - a great opportunity to sharpen really well

Rescrew the bolt, and tighten to what feels right. This is how you adjust the play, with the bolt, not the nut

Put the locking nut back on

In theory it’s easy but in practice quite tricky, as the nut can seize up - be sure not to slip and scuff it (or your knuckles) with the spanner. If it seems too daunting, select Niwaki’s Sharpening Service and they’ll sort them out for you.