The Best Trimmers for Shaping Your Topiary
Putting hedges in your yard involves two promises: Your hedges promise to do what you need—block your view of the street or your neighbor's view of your living room—and you promise to keep your hedges neat and trim and looking good. We tested three of the best new trimmers on 300 square feet of dormant yet entirely out-of-control rose of Sharon bushes (and one poodle, but only pretend). Most were ? to ? inch thick, with a few as thick as an inch across.
Gilmour 938 - $25
Overall Length: 22 ? in.
Cutting Edge: 8 in.
Weight: 2.2 lb
Likes: The rubber-coated aluminum handles have a comfortable oval cross section, and the arch of the handle makes it easier to come in over branches without snagging your hands. We also appreciated the rubber bumpers just below the blades to reduce closing impact, and the small notch in the right blade, which was very helpful on thicker branches.
Dislikes: The hanging hole in the right blade isn't big enough to actually be useful.
Fiskars HS551 - $42
Overall Length: 23 ? in.
Cutting Edge: 8 ? in.
Weight: 2.4 lb
Likes: Fiskars use gears to increase mechanical advantage. You can feel the difference when you sink into a thick branch.
Dislikes: There's no branch notch, so thicker limbs took a lot of sawing. More disappointing, the first pair we tested somehow turned the steel edge of the blade, keeping the two blades from fully closing. Fiskars quickly replaced the faulty trimmers, and the new pair had no problems.
Corona HS 4244 - $41
Overall Length: 21 in.
Cutting Edge: 8 in.
Weight: 2.2 lb
Likes: Special gel grips made a huge difference on our hands, especially after 20 minutes of cutting. But even better is the shock guard, which allows the blades to extend slightly past overlapping when closed. It feels like you're squeezing a marshmallow. The top blade's serrated cutting edge and one-inch branch notch made these our go-to shears on the toughest branches.
Dislikes: None.
*This article originally appeared in the July/August 2016 issue of Popular Mechanics.
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