Generally .... kind of...... yes. At least I start off with one of 'em on my right hand. It usually doesn't stay on very long especially if I'm weeding. You just can't pull up those tiny oxalis plants with gloves on, but it's nice to have one in the back pocket when I come across a stinging nettle plant.

If I'm trimming the climbing rose, most definitely YES. Those thorns are really painful. However I've kind of come up with a new technique when dealing with the rose. I use a pruner in each hand. One to hold the rose stem, the other to cut the rose stem. Then I pick up the cut rose stem with one pruner and cut it into small pieces with the other pruner. I even use the pruner to pick the small pieces up if they fall on the ground.

In general if I am using gloves, I've come to prefer the heavy duty rubber ones. They really protect the hands a lot better.

Kevin

I only wear gloves when my hands are actually touching the soil and that's because.........I'm afraid of worms!

I know, go ahead and laugh, a gardener that hates worms.

I always have every intention of wearing gloves since the soil seems to really dry out my hands. I can never take care of gloves though and they get left in the rain and turn into a stiff dirty mess.. I'll buy more but half the time I can't find a clean decent pair of gloves so it's au naturale for me. I haven't gotten sick from soil organisms yet but I like to take wild crazy risks like that.

Actually, I think I read a study that said a certain bacteria found in soil increases serotonin levels in the brain. So digging in the dirt can be a mood elevator.

Kevin- don't the rubber gloves make your hands sweaty? I hate that..

I only wear mine when handling bark usually. As far as concerns about what is in the soil, I don't have any. There is so much fear about germs in this country it drives me nuts. I wash my hands regularly, don't touch my face or mouth and avoid worrying about things (like exactly what is in the soil) as much as possible.

Kate

I am not a glove-type person at all. A lot of the time gardening "just happens" when I wasn't expecting it, e.g. I got out of the car on the way home and saw something that needed doing. Next thing you know I've been out there for half an hour, still in my office clothes (this drives my husband crazy).

However, I've had to start being a little more diligent about gloves. This winter I started getting this awful, painful, itchy and weeping rash on my hands between my fingers. It started when I was winter sowing. The only thing I can figure out is something in the Pro Mix irritated my hands. Now it seems to flare up anytime I come into contact with any soil, not neccesarily Pro Mix.

I have found a cream that seems to be helping a lot (Aveeno naturals). I haven't had a problem since I started using this cream a couple of weeks ago, thank goodness because that was getting really old!

Before this winter I'd never had a problem, in 15 years of not caring whether I had gloves on or not. It almost had to be the Pro Mix that started it.

I wear my gloves almost all the time. If I'm watering, no, and if I see weeds that need pulling while I water, I won't worry about putting gloves on, I rinse the dirt off with the sprayer. But generally, yes, I wear gloves, because I don't like dirt under my fingernails. If I'm planting seeds or tiny plants, no gloves, bigger plants, yes.

Karen

What Karen says is pretty much what I do....

Also, I don't wear gloves when deadheading coneflowers, shastas and other plants with distinct stems, but I wear them when shearing nepeta and lavender due to all the bees. I gently push the bees aside so that I can trim the plants!

Now -- can we get suggestions for the best gloves? I go through gloves about once a month, so I just buy cheap ones these days. I'd rather find a brand that will last at least the summer!

Yes and no, I like the black rubber gloves the fishermen use when cleaning fish. Get the right size and they fit my hand well. I wear them when potting up a lot plants and sometimes out in the garden but most of the time I'm bare handed when weeding, pruning and digging. Most of the spring and summer my hands are NOT things of beauty, nope, not by a long shot LOL.

Annette

Always wear gloves.
I use surgical gloves from Walgreen or any outlet.
Purchase a few boxes. Sometimes they are 3 for $10.
They fit your hand as if you don't have a glove on. Dirt doesn't get in them.

I keep one at the garage door. One in at the back door and one in my car. You never know what your touching so it's better to be safe than sorry.

Doesn't work on Roses...heavy gloves but with the surgical ones underneath...keeps finger nails clean!

ishareflowers, you'll get over the worms soon enough lol :)! Pretty soon you'll be like, oh look a worm and go on digging!

I also never touch my face, nose, or mouth while I'm out there in the dirt, and wash my hands really well as soon as I come in.

I have those heavy duty black rubber gloves that I use for the euphorbia, and gauntlet gloves for the roses, which are somewhat clumsy to use most of the time. I have the "Bear Wallow" gauntlet gloves, which are really nice but it's hard to manuver things with those goat skins on.

When I first started gardening, I had those pretty, flowery looking short cotton gardening gloves they sell everywhere. They didn't last long!

None of my gloves last worth a darn! I've been using surgical gloves some this summer, but I always manage to bust a hole in them within a short time.

I like the feel of those nitrile gloves that are so hot right now, but the tips of the fingers wear out pretty fast. Still, they're cheap so it's not a huge deal to buy several pairs and trash them when they're done. But I would like to find a pair that was a thinner profile and actually lasted.

Trust me...if you lived in fire ant country, as I do, garden gloves would always be be in the back pocket ready for use. Even using them does not end that heart stopping moment when one disturbs an unseen mound of them and within seconds hundreds are swarming up your arms, biting and stinging all the way! The southern gardener learns to move slowly in the garden watching for fire ants and copperheads.

ABSOLUTELY!

Never mind I *hate* the feeling of dirt on my hands/under my nails, there is the issue of soil-borne diseases.

Make sure your tetanus booster is up to date (need a booster every ten year) - tetanus spores can live in soil and animal poop.

I don't wear gloves when I water, that's about the only time I don't, occasionally I'll skip the gloves if I'm taking a cutting of flowers or herbs. Otherwise, I prefer to wear them.

I mostly use the el-cheapo jersey or cotton ones can get at any hardware/mass merchandise store - whichever is the least expensive at that particular time and fits my hands. They're easy to toss in the wash if needed, and when they eventually wear out they're inexpensive to replace.

For digging/planting/mulching, though, I use a layer of nitrile gloves beneath the "mud gloves". The mud gloves do a good job of keeping stuff off my hands, but I don't like how they feel against my skin so I layer underneath. In a pinch I'll layer the jersey gloves underneath, but the fit is tight/bulky, but it works.

For rose pruning, I have goatskin gauntlet gloves - I consider them a MUST when working with rugosas, those thorns on older branches...yikes....

Always (well, sorta) if I'm touching the dirt. I have lymphedema in my right arm and am ALWAYS supposed to use gloves when gardening. I don't for deadheading, though...

cheleinri - Yes, I guess your hands do get sweaty with the rubber gloves, but that doesn't bother me. I actually like the whole "becoming a sweaty, dirty mess when working in the garden" thing. They protect my hands better especially if I've working with shovels, pitch forks etc. I don't get the blisters I normally would. They also come off and go on quicker IMO. I like that.

Kevin

Let me start by saying that I HATE GLOVES! Whew, I feel better, but.... I wear them all the time.

I also have 2 outdoor cats and they have discovered that my flower beds are so easy to dig in when they don't feel like walking up into the woods for a little more privacy, and I also have a host of other wildlife visitors. I found "Quickie" brand (the people who make sponges and mops) disposable gloves in the Dollar Tree and I bought a pack of 10 gloves on a whim. They are great, I have never torn through them while planting and weeding. I use them all the time. I recently went back and bought 5 more packs.

A gardening friend of mine contracted scabies a few years ago and the doctor attributed it to organisms in their garden soil. I don't want to have to deal with that, so as they say, "individually wrapped for my protection". LOL

Carol

I wear gloves almost all the time, and different gloves in different seasons. I'm not afraid of anything in the soil, worms or disease (or I'd be dead by now) but my hands get so dirty that I just can't get them clean enough afterwards. Also, I blush to tell, I do get a manicure and this is an attempt to keep it intact.

I have mud gloves for the muddy spring or wet days, and cheap cotton gloves with reinforced fingertips for the rest of the time. I take them off whe I deadhead or prune perennials which I do with sewing shears I bought just for that purpose. More surgical than my Felco.

Yes! I have about a dozen pair in my shed.

I wear long rubber ones when it is cool, short rubber ones when it is warmer and cotton backed rubber grip ones when it is hot.

I'm not afraid of anything in the soil but I hate dirt under my fingernails and my cuticles tear and rip really easily and that hurts plus I have dry skin.

All three of my gloves are from Ultimate Goods and are on this page.

Here is a link that might be useful: Ultimate Gloves

I forgot to say that I don't like the Nitrile ones and I use heavy leather ones that go up to my elbows for rose and barberry pruning. I have some with a plastic sleeve sewn on to them for working in my ponds and water features and they go all the way up to my shoulders. Now, they are sweaty!

I have multiple pairs of the same gloves because my hands are small and I don't find smalls that often for sale so I buy multiples plus they can dry out if they get sweaty which really isn't a huge problem for me in this climate.

I wear them only when it's cold, but when the warm/hot/humid weather hits, I don't wear them for medicinal purposes. In hot humid weather, my fingers develop tiny blisters which used to be treated with a gauze called Sulfra Tulle - a vaseline medication with sulfur in it to 'burn' the blisters. As some of you have said, the soil dries the skin, and since I began gardening, I haven't developed my summer allergy. I would rather get my tetanus shot than get my allergies again!! :O)

Absolutely not! ;) For most gardening, I prefer an actual/literal hands-on, touchy-feely sort of experience.

The only time I wear gloves is when pulling or pruning nasty weeds/plants.

Here's to dirt under your nails. This is a good thing IMO. ;)

I never wore gloves until this year. We don't have animals and I garden organically, so I've never felt there was a problem in touching the soil. I had tried a few of the cotton variety and hated them. I felt I couldn't do anything in them that required dexterity. Someone on GW recommended those Nitrile gloves and someone gave me two pair for Christmas. I gave one to my DH and we both tried them out this spring. DH just loves his and they are keeping his hands in better condition than they usually are in the summer. I was pleasantly surprised that they allowed me to do most things without taking them off. I like the feel of dirt and putting my hands in the dirt, but I am constantly rinsing the dirt off between jobs.

Now with the gloves, sometimes I forget to put them on and find I've already gotten dirty before I remember so what's the point then. [g] I take them off before deadheading and I don't touch any foliage that might have a foliar disease when wearing them. I take them off when I'm going to use the hose. So there are lots of opportunity to put them down, forget where I laid them and forget to put them back on. I am very glad to have them though and I do use them a lot. I am planning on buying a few more pairs.

When working in the garden I wear atlas gloves they are tough with latex palm coating and breathable back, and outstanding grip. I used to wear out my gloves long before the season was over the atlas gloves last for the entire season plus. They get a real workout in my fairly large garden while keeping my nails clean and my nails don't wear holes in the fingertips. I always keep several pairs on hand if one gets wet or dirty and needs washing I have a spare.

I wouldn't, but I always get blisters if I don't. I have discovered that the gloves my DH brings home from work (very similar to Atlas Gloves, but the brand is Vtek) are excellent for gardening- very flexible, well fitting, and can be easily washed. They don't get stiff from getting wet and then drying, either. I have no problem with dirt, but I don't like blisters!

I always wear them unless I am just watering. During the warmer weather I wear ones that are sort of a spandex type material swith rubber finger tips and palms. My hands still get dirty, but not as bad as without gloves, and it seems to make a big difference of my hands drying out. During cooler weather I wear cloth covered rubber gloves that a comfortable, but too warm for summer. Those are waterproof.

I would prefer to go without gloves, but my hands got really dry. I don't worry about germs. I used to walk barefoot with cows and chickens when I was a kid!

Yes, I almost always wear gloves for gardening and just about everything else, washing dishes, working on walls, mowing the lawn, etc. Dirt under my fingernails annoys me, and I do a lot of rugged work which would otherwise beat my hands up. Just today I was working with some metal flashing and wire, and despite wearing nitrile gloves I am nursing at least 3 slits in my fingers (ouch they sting, had to put on some New-skin).

For gardening and yard work, I have heavy leather gloves, mud gloves, and nitrile gloves, also brown cotton gloves, depending on the gardening chores. When transplanting seedlings will usually wear vinyl or latex disposables.

I found these cheap orange nitrile (medium weight) gloves at Home Depot, $5 for a pack of 5, they have become my new favorite gardening gloves.

I do try and wear gloves. I'm digging and planting a lot, and there's something about our soil that seems to draw the moisture out of my skin. It can quickly dry out my finger tips.

I also learned early on that my yard, which had never been worked before me, used to be the neighborhood Lover's Lane. You wouldn't believe what I've come across! I've been very glad I had gloves on.

I really need to avoid getting any infections on my hands, so wearing gloves when I work in the garden is a must. I have been wearing Foxgloves for a long time and am so used to them now that I feel "naked" if I am in the garden without them on! I know, everyone says, they are so expensive: but they last several seasons, they fit really well, they don't make my hands sweat like rubber gloves do, so the investment is worth it--no infections so far. And no poison ivy, either.

I wear gloves for only a few gardening tasks. The only pair I have is Atlas nitrile gloves and only 1 pair! I can never seem to find a size that fits my small hands. But this one pair of gloves has lasted me the last 2 years and they are still in good shape. I really like this particular pair of gloves.

I use them pretty much whenever I plant anything. I tend to plant in "mud" and just don't care for that gooey feeling. I also use them for pruning roses (although my neighbors definitely hear me swear as I prune because they don't work too well for that chore!) And I wear them when pruning evergreens or deadheading things like gasplant, euphorbia, etc.

I ALWAYS always always put on gloves, even if I'm not planning to actually touch a plant because I'm very allergic to substances on plants and get a kind of poison ivy reaction from them--bummer. The reaction ranges from mere itching to actual blisters forming, so it's worth taking the time to put them on. I also have to wash them frequently so I don't pick up a reaction from just handling the gloves and taking them off. I prefer the Atlas gloves--very lightweight.

Yep. I wear them religiously: also because a) I am vain of my hands and b) because I am a sitting duck for contact dermatitis. I even wear gloves when I am picking snap beans to avoid getting the little bristles into my skin. It can take a week to clear up my skin after that. Found out today that I am also allergic to the white sap on figs..... :(

Last year, I developed an allergy to nitrile, which I really hate because those have been my favorite fit and longest wearing gloves for years.

Fortunately, I found a similar glove at WalMart made of 100% cotton but still coated with the green rubber stuff. I like them very nearly as much as the nitrile and they are holding up well, though they are stained the most icky color imaginable.

I keep seven pairs of gardening gloves, and wash them in a load of their own every week on laundry day.....I know. o.c.

I only wear gardening gloves when I'm fertilizing or when there are masses of spiders in my garden (which happens often). Those spiders bite!!!

What about shoes? I love the feeling of dirt between my toes and generally only wear shoes when I am wearing gloves (for the same reasons)! It means I always have to wash my hands and feet off before I go inside but that's ok by me.

Foxgloves. I've seen those at one of the garden stores I frequent. I may try them if they hold up pretty well. They might be good because they're long and the soil can't get down in them, too.

It seems that it takes very little contact with the soil these days to break my hands out. :( This cream is keeping it at bay, but I just wonder why all of a sudden is it doing this? Very weird.

I hate using gloves but since I just got a manicure, I guess I'll have to.

My problem is I have very tiny hands (my ring finger is a size 4) but long fingers. It's very, very hard to find gloves that fit.

if anyone has a suggestion, I'd appreciate it.

I almost always wear gloves. I wear a nitrile- or latex-covered cotton glove in summer and a heavier leather glove in winter. My skin can get very dry, so I'll often put on lotion before I put on my gloves. It helps keep the dirt out from under my fingernails (which can happen even with gloves on) and keeps my hands moisturized.

I would have to give up gardening if there weren't such things as gloves. It isn't the act of having dirt on my hands or under my nails that drives me crazy but the sensation of the soil drying on my skin.

{{gwi:246428}}

I only wear gloves in the garden when working around thorny roses, or pruning ornamental grasses. Otherwise I avoid them due to their bulk, limitations on fine motor function, and (I'm searching for a polite way to say this) loss of tactile sensation that's a pleasurable part of gardening, much as if one were using, um, prophylactics.

"A gardening friend of mine contracted scabies a few years ago and the doctor attributed it to organisms in their garden soil. "

You get scabies from close contact with people who have it, not from garden soil. In my part of the country it would be rare to encounter any kind of pest/parasite in the course of gardening for which gloves would be protective.
It's been years since I gardened in fire ant country, but I've still got the reflexes (any pinching/stinging sensation provokes immediate withdrawal and a check for rampaging ants). A full-scale fire ant assault is not easily forgotten.

I suspect a lot of 'older' middle aged gardeners got away without wearing gloves for a long time. Skin changes, gets thinner (over exposure to sun contributes to collagen loss=thinner less elasticity) I believe repeated exposure to Poison Ivy has made me much more reactive. What used to be a two day rash becomes intolerable itching burning blisters.
Another thing, I go into people's homes for my work and I just can't go with a "ring around the cuticle" Must be clean and the soil just tears up my cuticles splits nails.

I loved the nitrile gloves I found and lost in one day.
KT that picture spoke to me! Does your dog bury the odd ones?

I believe repeated exposure to Poison Ivy has made me much more reactive

Idabean - funny thing I used to be much more reactive to poison ivy when I was younger. I have had such bad cases of poison ivy in my 20s that half my face was a blistery mess with the eye swollen closed. Repeated exposure seemed to have the opposite effect and now I have more immunity. Still wouldn't go near it without long pants/sleeves and good 'ole gloves though!

I try to wear gloves 100% of the time - just seems that when I don't, I can't get the embedded dirt out of my skin and fingernails. :)

The big orange box store had a couple kinds (the knit ones dipped in latex or nitrile) in packs of five pairs for $5 early in the year. I bought a bunch and keep them in a cupboard by the back door. Try to always take a pair out with me, even when I'm just wandering through the garden with my coffee...you know how that goes - something always needs pulled!

When I come in, if I've used them, they go in a plastic grocery bag, then in the laundry basket. When I collect enough, I wash them and usually air dry them.

So far, they're still pretty much like new (and I'm hard on gloves!), but even when they start wearing out, it's kind of like buying a lot of the same socks - you can always find a pair!

Loved your picture runktun. I can identify. The short answer if someone is keeping tabs, Yes, I wear gloves - 99.9% of the time. And my Tetanus booster is up to date also.

I keep a working pair and an old pair, but no..........I dn't wear gloves unless there are extenuating circumstances. Pruning roses is one of them, likewise berry bushes.

I do wear them if I know I am coming in contact with poison ivy.

And since I garden for a living, I wear them when I am working anything with a handle(spade, shovel, loppers, pruners) for half a day or longer. The palms of my hands are so calloused gloves are redundant.

Yep. Just had a tetanus booster. Yes, I do wash my hands before anything goes to my mouth or eyes. I live in Ohio too, but I am an ex nurse. I also don't think you can get scabies from soil, and in this area a lot of the parasites like hook worms are not a problem like in a warmer zone....but we have plenty of racoons, fox, coyote, possum, skunk, chipmunks and other fur-bearing rodents and animals, and don't ever assume they don't carry some esoteric parasites in their feces you can gather under your nails and consume if you aren't careful.