Although many gardeners enjoy collecting specialty tools that make doing specific tasks easier, having a shed full of tools isn't a requirement for gardening. You really need only eight basic pieces of equipment and you're ready to start.

There are two schools of thought on buying tools: Get cheap tools so you haven't lost a big investment if you decide you don't like gardening; or, buy good tools, because they can make the difference between a good gardening experience and a bad one.

I adhere to the latter. Good tools last longer and, more importantly, make the work easier. Many of today's tools have been designed to be ergonomically correct, to save wear and tear on the most important garden implement - your body.

Here are my recommended eight tools.

Spading fork - You'll begin by working your soil, so start with the tool that does the job. A spading fork, also called a digging fork or garden fork, looks like a short-handled pitchfork but has wider tines. It does a great job of loosening the soil and breaking up clods, as well as incorporating compost into the soil to improve its structure.

Hoe - There are lots of different styles of hoes, with different shaped heads and pivots, but all you need for starters is the standard square-head hoe. It is the best weeding device out there if it's sharp and used at the proper angle, but make sure you get one with right handle length. Resting on the ground, it should come up to your nose. That way, you can use it without bending and skip the backache.

Shovel - Your basic garden shovel has a concave blade that's tapered at the tip. Shovels come in both short-handled and long-handled styles, so start out with the long handle. Use them to load and move soil, compost, mulch, whatever, and to dig planting holes and backfill them.

Watering can - The classic watering can has a bowed handle on one side and a long spout on the opposite side. Some have a tapered opening at the end of the spout, others have the sprinkling head attached. Whether you choose plastic or metal, the main thing is to get one that's big enough to hold at least a gallon of water without being so heavy you can't carry it. Don't leave water sitting in the can - we have enough mosquitoes already, thank you - and store the can inside over the winter.

Trowel - Sometimes called a hand trowel, this little digger has a tapered tip and comes with wide or narrow concave blades. It's great for setting out small plants, as well as planting or digging bulbs. Trowels often are sold in sets with hand-cultivators, for loosening the soil, and hand-weeders, which essentially are miniature hoes.

Garden shears - These small pruners come in a variety of sizes, depending on the intended task, but they're all small enough to fit in one hand. The trick is to make sure you get one that's the right size. You don't want one that opens wider that your hand, because you'll have trouble keeping a grip. They come with anvil blades or bypass blades, and a left-handed version is available.

Sprayer - Whether you stick to organic methods or make use of every chemical compound on the market, you'll find yourself in need of a sprayer. A small hand-held pump sprayer will make the job easier, but you can get by with a plastic spray bottle. Either way, it's a good idea to dedicate a separate sprayer for herbicides and pesticides - the potions that kill something - and one for fertilizers. Rinse all of them thoroughly after using and don't store solutions in the sprayers.

Gloves - This is a matter of personal preference for many gardeners, but the point of wearing gloves isn't so much about keeping your hands clean as it is about preventing blisters. When I'm poking around in the soil, I want to feel the texture and moisture content so I take off the gloves. When I'm using shovels, hoes, garden forks and the like, I wear gloves. Make sure you get a pair that fits your hand, otherwise they'll rub and you'll still get blisters. Ones with leather palms are best. Those cute little flowery cotton ones are fine if you're just trying not to get dirty.

There are a few other implements that aren't critical but are nice to have and make the work easier - a garden spade, which has a flat end instead of a tapered one; a garden rake; a sharpening file; a garden hose and attachments, including nozzles and watering wands; and a wheelbarrow.

That's my list of essential garden tools. What's on your list? Go to Tallahassee.com and click on the "Story Chat" link with this story to share your recommendations.

When Tom German began managing his family's Iowa farm eight years ago, he looked at his 40 beef cows as ideal no-till farming tools.

German is the third generation to farm the 350 acres near Holstein. Rather than investing in specialized conservation equipment, German and his wife, Kristi, converted the entire farm into a grass-fed beef operation.

"It made sense for our farm, and it fit our lifestyle," says German. He and Kristi have three school-age children. The Germans now finish 400 cattle a year without feeding grain. They sell about 25 head directly to consumers, and the rest are marketed to packers specializing in grass-fed beef.

U.S. anthropologists have found evidence of ancient maize farming in the Gulf Coast region near Tabasco, Mexico.

Florida State University anthropology Professor Mary Pohl and colleagues discovered farmers in Mexico were cultivating an early form of maize, the forerunner of modern corn, about 7,300 years ago -- 1,200 years earlier than scholars previously thought.

Pohl conducted an analysis of sediments in the region and concluded people were planting crops in the New World of the Americas around 5,300 B.C.

These are significant new findings that fill out knowledge of the patterns of early farming, said Pohl. It expands on research that demonstrates that maize spread quickly from its hearth of domestication in southwest Mexico to southeast Mexico and other tropical areas in the New World, including Panama and South America.

The results of Pohl's study -- conducted with Dolores Piperno of the National Museum of Natural History in Washington; Kevin Pope of Geo Arc Research; and John Jones of Washington State University -- appears in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

House Bill 59 is back. HB 59 was withdrawn for rewording and has been resubmitted to the House Agriculture Affairs Committee. The original bill closed to the public all results from state laboratories. The reworked bill is reworded, but the intent is the same.

Often when bills are passed with broad language, the impacts reach far beyond the bill’s sponsors intended targets. It appears the impetus for passing this bill is to shield companies or individuals submitting tests to the state labs from the prying eyes of competitors who misuse the information for unfair business advantage or environmental watch dogs. The reaction or overreaction is to have a bill closing all results, except those with enforcement actions, to public view.

The intended results will be achieved but with what collateral damage? The unintended results could shield numerous "bad actors" from public scrutiny. Unscrupulous characters could be emboldened by the cloaking of lab results into pushing the limits -- knowing full well that if marginal seeds, animals or soil tests don’t pass, they will be protected from the eyes of the public and, thus, preserving a possibly undeserved reputation.

Generally it is not in the public’s best interest to shield the guilty along with the innocent. If unscrupulous dairymen, elk breeders or seed companies are using public information obtained from state labs for personal advantage, it can easily be side-tracked with the caveat no negative results will be released. Therefore, only the "bad actors" that submit tests resulting in positive tests for regulated or non-regulated diseases or tests yielding levels outside of the allowable range would be released.

As written, the bill relies on the Idaho State Department of Agriculture director to police the results and only release those deemed necessary. While Director Celia Gould is highly respected, this is still a politically appointed position answerable only to the governor. To think it is unlikely the director would not yield to political pressure applied by the IDA or others is naive.

An informed and knowledgeable citizenry is the most effective weapon against those who would endanger the environment or health of Idahoans.

Bill Bitzenburg is a member of the Times-News editorial board and lives in Filer, where he owns and operates a farm. He is also a member of the Idaho Bean Commission.