Ask any pro gardener and they'll tell you the same: the Felco F2 are the best pruners you can buy. I've tested them against dozens of other pruners and they always come out on top. They're comfortable, effective, and best of all, they're durable. Not only are they made from tough steel, but these pruners are completely repairable. You can get spare parts for every inch of them. With a little TLC, these are the last pruners you'll ever need to buy.
However, these pruners have a drawback – they're pretty expensive. They usually cost around $75, which feels like a lot to spend just to prune your roses.
That's why we're so excited to see the Felco F2 on sale during Amazon Prime Day. To be honest, it's not a huge discount, but you may not see them at this price again this year - they don't always go on sale for Black Friday.
What's the deal?
What's so good about these pruners?
I've been a product tester for a few years and the Felco 2 are easily the best pruners I've tested. This classic Swiss design hasn't changed since 1948, and for good reason.
First, they're incredibly durable. With a little oiling and sharpening, Felcos can last for years without breaking. But don't just take my word for it – pro gardener and gardening writer at H&G Drew Swainston also uses these pruners, and they've lasted him for years.
'I have had a trusty pair of Felco pruning shears for over a decade now,' says Drew. 'I used them throughout my professional gardening career for a wide range of pruning tasks and still regularly trim with them now at home and on my allotment.'
Secondly, they're very comfortable. The rubber handles and shock absorbers mean that they're easy to use for long days of pruning. There are ergonomic bumps along the grips to help you hold them, too. I've found that cheaper pruners - like these Felco dupes on Amazon - start to rub painfully on your hands after a few minutes.
This isn't the case with the Felco F2. Drew says, 'I have always found them very easy to handle and comfortable to use - even for long periods of time.' He gave me an example. 'In one garden I worked in we pruned large areas of laurel by hand and my Felcos would still be comfortable to prune with after hours, days - even weeks - of clipping these large swathes of laurel.'
The F2 are also the most effective pruners around. Made from hardened steel, they slice through woody branches better than any pruners I've ever tested. They give an incredibly clean cut that rarely rips the bark of the tree, helping to prevent infection in your plants. Drew told me that 'They are great for pruning shrubs and prove invaluable during many hours of deadheading.'
Even the small touches help. The handles on these pruners are bright red, and while it's not the most stylish choice, it's a practical one. The loud color means that you can't misplace these - if you drop them in a shrub or set them down on a lawn, you'll always be able to see them.
Yet by far my favorite feature is that every part is replaceable. The right to repair your belongings is a movement gaining more and more traction. Many of us have bought cheap products on Amazon that either don't have replacement parts or have void warranties if we attempt to fix them. In older products, it used to be a given that you could repair them, which is increasingly difficult.
However, Felco sells spare parts for the entire pair of pruners, so if your pruners break, you can fix them. 'I have been fortunate that mine haven’t needed new parts yet, but it is good peace of mind to know I can simply replace parts,' says Drew. 'I have known other professionals I worked with who easily swapped parts of their Felcos to prolong their lifespan.'
Are there any drawbacks to the Felco F2?
If this all sounds a little too good to be true, you should bear in mind that there are a couple of small drawbacks.
The first is the price. The usual retail price of $73.99 is pretty expensive, but if you consider that they're the last pair of pruners you'll ever need, that's a pretty good price. Now they're discounted for Prime Day, the price is even better, but it still might seem a little steep for some.
A more prosaic problem is that the Felco F2 are only right-handed. Lefties will have to use the Felco F9, available at Amazon. These don't have the same ergonomic grip, and at the time of writing, aren't on sale for Prime Day.
Other good pruners
The F2 pruners are bypass pruners - that is, they work like scissors. However, this isn't the only type of pruner. There are also anvil pruners, which cut against a hard anvil to slice through the woodiest stems, as well as ratchet pruners, which use a ratchet mechanism to cut through thick branches in stages. Felco also sells exceptional anvil pruners, which are worth considering if you have a lot of tough pruning coming up later in the winter.
Felco also produces the best anvil pruners in the world, the Felco 32. These have all the comfort, durability, and reparability of the Felco F2, but with a brass anvil to help you slice through tough, dead wood.
I've tried these ratchet secateurs a few times, and they offer a simple ratchet mechanism that easily passes through thick branches.
The Okatsune 103 pruners are excellent if you have smaller hands. The red and white handles make it easy to spot these prunes if you drop them into a shrub or onto a lawn by accident, and the safety catch is secure but easy to open with one hand. However, they have much less grip than Felco models.
Pruners are one of the nichest products on sale for Prime Day. There are plenty of other bargains available on Amazon - our experts re hunting down the best bedding deals and best vacuum deals live as they happen.
