Garden Shredder

Just a word of warning, never, ever by accident put a snail down the feeding chute of your garden shredder. Other than that they get the OK from me, nothing like a nice little patch of woodchip to burrow down into, nice place to lay some eggs I should think.

The right garden shredder is a tremendously practical piece of kit to have in the garden shed. They can scale down waste matter to a manageable form and can equip the gardener to clean up and clear waste materials away whilst reducing the need to light bonfires or make never ending outings to a recycling centre with garden waste. But the truth is, the serious appeal of the garden shredder is what it will let you make with this garden refuse. The chipped waste can be an extremely useful addition to your compost bin, adding carbon dense bulk you will find hard to source in significant enough amounts elsewhere, and there is no such thing as sufficient home made compost! The chips can be utilized to make trails around the vegetable garden or plot. Also you can use the shredded prunnings as a general mulch to retain moisture and to protect soil from wind and rain on the actual flower and veg beds, but unless the plants are ericaceous, do just set the prunnings apart for three or four weeks to facilitate any acidity to leach away prior to application. You can also set your shredder to shred those stubborn sprout and cabbage stalks that never break down in the compost heap. There are actually 2 models of garden shredder on the market.




Rapid garden shredders, sometimes termed an impact garden shredder, are light weight and probably the lower priced option. Rapid shredders operate using a revolving metal disc, this can make them quite noisy to work with, putting on ear-defenders is certainly a good idea if go for this model. It is likely that at some time you will find yourself having to buy a replacement blade, for that reason getting a model from a reputable maker is advised to make sure that spares continue to be available. Impact garden shredders are best suited for smaller prunnings and leafy materials. If the majority of your waste comes from the hedge trimmer it follows that this is probably the perfect kind of garden shredder for your needs.



Quiet garden shredders, as the name hints, are much quieter as opposed to impact shredders. These actually pulverise branches by just pulling it in using a cog which in turn grinds against a tough metal plate. Quiet shredders are generally more powerful and sturdy and are undoubtedly more highly-priced, on the other hand it is rare to have to replace parts on the grounds that there are no blades to ruin. Quiet shredders are better suited to thicker, woody trimmings and are capable of shredding branches up to a thickness of 4.5cm. A great many come with collection boxes and offer a helpful self-feed function. If you regularly pollard or coppice larger shrubs and trees then this shredder is almost certainly the more suitable kind of shredder for your needs.



As with all gardening equipment, it is important to observe various straightforward safety protocols whenever you use a garden shredder. Never fail to make certain you've got on a pair of long lasting heavy-duty leather gloves and naturally do not stick your hand down the neck of the feeder. (ouch!) If you are using an impact shredder you ought to use ear-defenders to protect your ability to hear, then again this can be a good idea with both types of shredder to prevent flying debris lodging itself in your ears. For the same reason, you must always wear safety eye-goggles. Remember that old, brittle wood is more inclined to fly consequently make an effort to shred garden refuse at the earliest opportunity after cutting. It is often less dangerous to put the stout end of branches through the machine first of all. Be certain that gravel and other obstructions don’t find their way into your shredder.

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