Favorite Flower Farming and Floral Design Tools

After over 5 years into this flower farming journey, I find myself reaching for the same tools season after season. Like most aspects of my life, I like to keep my supplies simple. Having the right tools can make your growing season much more enjoyable!  This list is not full of gadgets or new fads, just flower-farming tools that get the job done!

I have broken down the list into two categories: Essential Flower Farming Tools and Essential Floral Tools. I hope you find it helpful.

Essential Flower Farming Tools 

These are the tools I use daily in the field and hoophouse. Most of them are basic and you can find them at your local hardware store. I like to check garage and barn sales for old shovels and metal rakes, you can find some real treasures. They don’t make tools like they used to!

Butter Knife

During early spring when we are planting plugs like crazy, our best tool is a butter knife! It is perfect for popping plugs out of a seed tray and it is perfect for “pre-drilling” a hole in the ground for your little plugs. A small shovel is too big for new plugs, therefore the butter knife is perfect! I would buy a cheap multipack because these are easy to lose in the field. The soil we plant in is fairly loose so we do not need a soil knife, which I often see recommended.

Pointy Shovel

I like to keep a few pointy shovels in my tool chest for when we are planting larger plugs or potted plants. Make sure the tip of the shovel is sharp, a dull shovel will get you nowhere and frustrated. I usually have at least three at a time, that way my kids can shovel alongside me and if we lose one I can find another. They are usually pretty cheap, just remember pointy tip!!!

Sharp Digger

A small hand rank, or what we call a “digger” is an essential tool for weed control and breaking up hard soil. Make sure the tips of the claw are sharp and pointed, I’ve bought a dull digger before and it was annoying and useless. Using this tool to break up hard soil is usually the first step I take in prepping a garden bed for fresh plants and seedlings. 

Long Hand Rake

There is nothing as satisfying as freshly weeded soil followed up with a smoothing rake. I like this rake because it is light and easy on the wrist. It is small enough to get in between plantings and gentle enough it doesn’t disturb fresh plantings. It is perfect for the final sweep of a garden bed before you plant it. 

Tool Belt

A tool belt is handy to keep snips, phone, garden pins, and labels in. I’ve even kept a baby monitor in it before when I would plant during naptime. There are a few different varieties. I was gifted the Floret Leather Belt and the quality is spectacular, I imagine it will last quite some time. There is a dickies tool belt that is recommended too. 

Floral Snips

The ARS brand floral snips are sort of an industry standard. I buy multiple pairs a year.   They are great for a wide variety of flowers, even woody stems. They are sharp enough to make clean cuts on tough stems.  As a flower farmer, I keep them everywhere! In my glove box, in my purse, and in my coat pockets! Do your best to keep clean snips and ensure you are cutting with a sharp blade. I can assure you these are a farmer florist favorite! These would make a great gift for any flower lover. 

Watering Wand

There is nothing quite as peaceful as early mornings spent watering. But nothing is more annoying than a drippy hose connector or watering wand. I love the long wand that can reach the middle of our garden bed. It is also worth the extra cost to buy a wand that has a mister setting for watering in seeds.  We have good luck with the Dramm brand.

Essential Floral Design Tools

I have listed sources for some of the tools mentioned below, you should be able to find most of them at your local craft store.

Rubber bands

 I use basic rubber bands to tie all of my market-style bouquets. It is the easiest way to quickly bundle a bunch of stems together. I loop one stem and then wrap the whole bouquet a couple of times and loop another stem to secure the band. I do not suggest wrapping the stems like a “ponytail”, that is too tight and will take away the natural shape of your fresh-cut flowers. 

Flower Buckets

Stackable flower buckets are handy to have for fresh-cut flower stems. If you look online they are pricey!  Most grocery stores that carry flowers will have a surplus of them and will give them to you for free or for a small price. Find someone in the floral or grocery department and they should be able to help you out! Make sure you give them a good clean before you use them for your own flowers. Clean buckets are very important for ensuring fresh-cut stems have a long vase life. Bacteria-filled water lurking in your flower buckets can cause your stems to fade quickly. I like to clean my flower buckets with dish soap, warm water, and a toilet brush. If they are left in a stack for a long time, I will spray a small amount of bleach on them to sterilize them. 

Floral Tape

This is used to bunch stems together for boutoneries, corsages, and floral crowns. This is a waxy green or brown tape that is specifically for floral stems, this is not to be confused with clear tape. It holds up in water well unlike plastic tape. 

Clear Floral Tape

This is handy for taping the top of large opening jars. Anything bigger than a wide-mouth mason jar should be taped. I tape in a grid pattern on a clean vase, this helps give you a sturdy base to keep stems put. Make sure the rim of your jar is dry before you tape. 

Wire Cutters

If you are doing any design work with chicken wire or florist wire, you need wire cutters. DO NOT use your floral snips, those are specifically reserved for your precious fresh-cut flower stems! A basic pair from the hardware store will do fine, I don’t use them often during the growing season but for wreath work and fancy floral arrangements, they come in handy. 

Chicken Wire 

Incorporating chicken wire into your design work is a great way to do larger floral installations and can be used in place of floral foam. It can also be used in the bottom of larger, tall vases to help stems stay put.  Cut a small square with your wire cutters and bunch it up into a ball shape and place it in the bottom of your container. Then, when placing the stems in the container you can slide the stem in the holes of the chicken wire for a sturdy hold. You can reuse them. 

Floral Wire

This is handy if you are doing large installments that require a little extra support. If you are installing something like an arbor piece, I recommend extra large zip ties. But we mostly use floral wire, especially during wreath work.   I like to keep a few different strengths on hand for different needs, I love this one for making flower crowns. 

Turn Table

A turn table is nice to have if you are doing 360-degree designs. These are designs that are going to be seen from every angle, like centerpieces sitting in the middle of a round table. I didn’t use one of these for years and I can’t believe I made it so long. I am hooked and feel lost without one now. This is a simple way to make your design work much easier.  

Florist Glue

This glue is handy if you’re doing delicate work like flower crowns, boutoneries, and corsages. It is messy so use it with caution!

Corsage and Boutonniere pins and wristlets

I like the pearl pins for boutoneires, they are timeless and go with most color themes. I also like the metal cuffs instead of the elastic corsage wristlets. When making the metal cuffs, floral glue comes in handy!

I hope you found some helpful information that you can integrate into your flower farm and floral design work. Let me know what flower farming tools I missed below, Happy Growing!

This post contains affiliate links, which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you.