Master Weed Twister User  - Advanced Techniques and Multi-Tasking Applications - The Teacher Debris Lifting - What kinds of debris can the Weed Twister pick up? Water Nozzle Support - Can I fix my hose nozzle anywhere I want? Working on Wheels - Can I work in my garden from a wheel chair? Walking Staff  - Need a Mountain Trail Hiking Stick?  Need a Cushioned Cane for pavement? Hole Digging - How low can you go with this tool? Drain Clearing - How to remove Tree Roots from open drain pipes? Reforestation - Can this tool help to plant trees? Transplanting - Lawn Repair:  How can I patch up bare spots of soil in my lawn?  Or transplant volunteer herbs? Seedling and Sapling Removal - How about big weeds with deep roots? Treasure Hunting - What can I dig up in the dirt? Mountain Lion Protection - Need protection against wild cats, coyotes or aggressive dogs in the city or while camping? Agricultural Applications - Is this tool ready for agriculture? Holiday Lights - Can the Weed Twister help me hang or remove my holiday lights? High-Reach Plant Grooming - Can you help me train or pull tall vines, roses, potato vines? Fruit Picking - Can the Weed Twister pick fruit from trees? Sand or Snow Probe  - Do you have a complete Emergency Survival Kit? Mole Control - Removal - Can I get rid of moles without killing them? Gravesite Care - How can the Weed Twister help around the cemetery?

1. Debris Lifting:  In addition to grasping the weeds from the soil, the WEED TWISTER coils can also be used to pick

   up other objects from the ground.  Leaves and other plant matter can usually be lifted with a simple poking or hooking motion, depending on the shape and texture of the objects.  With a little practice and agility, you may also be able to grasp papers and twigs from the earth for back-saving disposal.
   The sharpened tines make it easy to puncture and pick up aluminum cans, plastic cups, containers and other objects that litter public pathways.  Having a Weed Twister enables you to volunteer for neighborhood cleanup events and accomplish more work with less effort and strain on your back!
   Even from a wheelchair, this amazing tool can be manipulated by a motivated quadriplegic lady to pick up debris and also remove fruit from a tree!  A remarkable feat for someone with very limited hand and arm control!

2. Water Nozzle Support:  A water nozzle with a handle can be hooked over the "T" handle of the WEED TWISTER to support sprinkling your garden in just about any place it's needed.  It's easy to screw the tines into the soil or grass to provide an elevated support for your nozzle and hose.  

3. Working on Wheels:  A lot of work can be accomplished with the WEED TWISTER while sitting down!  Whether on a stationary chair or wheel chair, the Master Weed Twister may remove weeds, till the soil and pick up debris while sitting on her or his throne!  Whether gardening is your hobby or your principal occupation, there are times when a versatile tool like the WEED TWISTER can improve your outlook on life and even your economic survival!  An Enabled Master Weed Twister is a physically impaired individual who demonstrates advanced Weed Twister skills despite having otherwise disabling impairments.  Ergonica encourages all government organizations and corporate entities to employ Enabled Master Weed Twisters.  Government agencies may request a free sample of the WEED TWISTER on the government page.

4. Walking Staff:  When ambling on soft terrain or lawns, many users may instinctively use the adaptable WEED TWISTER to provide some support.  If you like to hike in rugged terrain, use the tool to push aside brush that may impede your path. This is especially useful if your legs or arms are exposed and thorny or poisonous plants may encroach your path.  Depending on the length of the WEED TWISTER model you use, your height, the terrain, and whether you are climbing or descending, different hand grips may be more useful.  These special Walking Staff Hand Grips as well as some links to beautiful desert scenes with the WEED TWISTER Trail Buddy are described below.  Also included is a picture of a Weed Twister enhanced with a golf ball as an adaptation to walk on pavement or sidewalks.  With a little ingenuity, this tool can help you walk in any direction you can shake a stick at!

   Top Fist Grip is shown at right using the expanded T-Handle grip available as an optional accessory for all WEED TWISTER models.  The Top Fist Grip is a comfortable grip with lots of support for most any situation.  This also gives you extra support especially when descending steep paths or climbing down a hillside.  The Top Fist Grip is also the basic grip used for twisting out weeds.  People over 6 feet tall will most likely use this grip most of the time.
   Top Thumb Grip is particularly useful for climbing a slope to give you a lift with your arm.  If you are under 6 feet tall, this may be more comfortable for you, especially with the longer WEED TWISTER models.  The longer 42" model and the 48" model will be very handy especially when descending steep terrain because they can reach a lower part of your path ahead of you to support your descent.  The longer models are also recommended for protection against aggressive animals that you may encounter in some wild areas.
   Shaft Fist Grip is also useful for many situations, especially when the terrain is level and extra support from the top is not necessary.  Children and smaller than average people may also find this to be more comfortable, especially when using longer WEED TWISTER models.  Although children may not need help when walking, it's a good idea to have protection in the hands of each child especially in wild areas.  See below for more information for using your WEED TWISTER as a Trail Buddy.
   Shaft Pencil Grip is an alternative to the Shaft Fist Grip, especially for people with big, strong hands.  This grip was actually invented by one of our WEED TWISTER fans, Richard Benda, who beautifully demonstrates the use of various grips on the Sabino Canyon trail in Tucson, Arizona.  More trail scenes with the WEED TWISTER are shown below.
   Trail Buddy Scenes: Credit goes to Richard Benda for photographing some beautiful desert scenes in Sabino Canyon and showing how he uses the WEED TWISTER as a walking stick on the trail.  This hardy hiker also took on Blackett's Ridge Trail in Tucson with the WEED TWISTER  as his Trail Buddy.  The scene to the right is from the selection of scenes of the Blackett's Ridge Trail in the PDF prepared by the photographer.
   Top Palm Grip is particularly useful for reaching up and extending your reach to clear the path of thorny brush or sharp leaves.  In most cases on the trail, there is no need to harm the plant, only to push a stem or branch out of your way.  You can also hook the coils around a branch to push or pull it in any direction.  If you encounter poison oak or ivy, this adaptable tool could protect you and your family from harm.  The standard 4-inch T-Handle is shown in this picture.  When on the trail, either the 4-inch or 8-inch extended T-Handle will do quite well, although some people may prefer the extra support provided by the larger handle which is long enough for grasping with two hands at the same time.
   Walking on Pavement (or bricks) with the Weed Twister is easily accomplished by popping a golf ball into the coiled tines.  This will give you a secure and cushioned feeling with the added benefit of a little spring steel suspension. You can easily remove the golf ball when you enter dirt paths or when you need to pull a weed in one of your neighbors' yards.  The size of the golf ball also gives you a good measure of the diameter of a root that this tool can handle!  Of course, if you carry your twister in your golf club bag, you may also use it when necessary to pluck your ball from any unusual destinations.  And if an aggressive dog crosses your path, you're ready to guard against his bite with a quick snap on the head, as well!

    

5. Hole Digging:  The WEED TWISTER may efficiently loosen the soil before applying a trowel or hoe.  The Weed Twister and the trowel is a natural combination: first twist, then trowel.  An ideal solution for planting seeds and small seedlings.  (See Reforestation below).

6. Drain Pipe Clearing: Once a drain pipe or sewer line has been opened, the Weed Twister has been shown to be an effective way of grabbing and twisting out stubborn roots and other debris that is compacted in the pipe.
    

   The 48-inch Weed Twister can be a helpful tool for clearing an open drain pipe, as shown in this video.  Here a 12-foot pit was dug out to gain access to the 6-inch diameter sewer drain that was severely clogged and busted up by tree roots.  This house was built in the 1920's and the nearby trees have been growing for many years.  The drill-powered Turbo Weed Twister can get the job done even faster.  A 60-inch manual Weed Twister model has more recently been used by plumbers and extended in length for Deep Sewer Pipe Root Extraction.

7. Reforestation:  How can a little tool like the WEED TWISTER help in the reforestation of our depleted forests?  By helping to efficiently make thousands of little holes for planting new tree seeds and seedlings!  In the process of making holes, this tool also tills and aerates the surrounding soil.  Its light weight also makes the WEED TWISTER easier to carry up steep mountain slopes than shovels and picks.  (Suggested by Debbie Kruger February, 2000.)

8. Transplanting - Lawn Repair:  Closer to home, your WEED TWISTER can help you transplant patches of grass from one area to another or remove and transport a misplaced plant to a cultivating pot, planter or designated area of your garden.  As you remove misplaced herbs with this tool, such as purslane or dandelions, for example, you can also replant these herbs in preferable locations where they can more adequately be nurtured and harvested.  In one operation, you can pluck out the misplaced herb from one spot and poke it into a more appropriate location with the same tool.  If you have bare patches of soil in your lawn, use your WEED TWISTER to pluck out a patch of grass from edges or corners of your lawn where it won't be missed and replant the grass by simply twisting the tool with the plug of grass and dirt in the coils into the desired bare spot.  You can also use this tool to cultivate bare lawn patches and push grass stems and roots at the edges towards the bare soil.  If you have a lot of bare patches, purchase a couple of square feet of sod and cut the sod into two-inch squares to pluck and plug where needed.  Use your Weed Twister to dig a hole deep enough for the full depth of the sod plug.  Overseeding bare patches will be more effective with careful cultivation, mulching and fertilizing with the help of this precise tool.  See the Weed Twister vs. Crabgrass page for more details. You have a lawn weeder and lawn repair helper and plugging device in one multitasking tool!

9. Seedling and Sapling Removal:  Although the WEED TWISTER can be used effectively to remove small seedlings or saplings, it is not designed to remove larger plants with roots more than two inches in diameter.  The WEED TWISTER has been successful in removing some fairly large Tree of Heaven saplings, for example, as tall as 4-5 feet.  When working with large plants, it may be helpful to loosen the soil surrounding the plant by moistening the soil and tilling or probing with the WEED TWISTER prior to attempting to remove the plant. The Extended  8-inch T-Handle will be especially helpful in penetrating tough soil and twisting out larger root systems with this tool.

10. Treasure Hunting:  The efficiency of the twisting coils in penetrating the soil may lend itself to several applications, such as treasure hunting or searching for pipes or other solid objects beneath the soil.  You may twist the coils to penetrate over a foot or two deep to locate a solid object or hook onto whatever fibrous objects may be caught in the coils.  This will save a great deal of effort compared with pick and shovel labor.  Is the Weed Twister a natural divining rod?  Let us know what you discover with your twister?

11. Need protection against big cats, coyotes, aggressive dogs, snakes?  Need a Trail Buddy™ to take along?
    Don't leave camp without it!  Some people have asked if the WEED TWISTER can serve as protection against mountain lions and other aggressive animals, such as dogs, wolves, bob cats or even snakes and large rodents. Even though it was  designed for removing weeds, if you're hiking in a wild area, the WEED TWISTER can also serve as a great walking stick, as described above, and also help to clear brush from your path as well as keep predatory critters at a safe distance from you.  Even a small critter like a Fire Ant can cause a big bite!  Weed Twister = Fire Ant Evictor to the rescue!
     

    Depending on the situation, you may strike the aggressor or poke the sharp end of the tool into the face or other part of the animal. If the animal is trying to bite you or someone in your party, you can jab the coils into the mouth of the animal to hinder its bite. It's easy to take a big swing with the WEED TWISTER and swat an animal on the torso or on top of the head.  For larger animals, such as bears, for example, if you don't have a fire arm in your grasp, this tool may at least give you a fighting chance to deter his advance.  When facing a bear, you may have better odds with the 54-inch Dual Grip model in your hands so that you can stay beyond the reach of his long and powerful arms.  Most experts recommend that you do not turn your back on an advancing bear or mountain lion.  f you can't get around a snake, you can position the coils over the head of the snake to pin him to the ground.
    Preparation:  For people of average height, we recommend the 42-inch Ergonomic Weed Twister for a handy walking stick and wild critter defense weapon, unless you're in bear country where you may need a longer 48-inch or 54-inch stick. For half-pint kids, the 36-inch model will keep them from getting weary on the trail and make them feel more confident, as well. Before you enter wild trails, we suggest you practice your defensive moves with the Weed Twister so that you can quickly protect yourself if caught by surprise. This practice should include both poking and swatting from various angles.   To the right, we see Suzanne Wakefield practicing her defense moves with the 54-inch Weed Twister against a stack of hay.
    To make your practice more realistic, use an old stuffed animal or a large noxious weed as your target.  You finally found a good use for those old teddies taking space in your attic!  Please remember this is only for self defense, and not for aggressive assaults on animals in the wild or pets in the neighborhood. On the right we see Suzanne's son AJ, age 11, showing his stuff as he practices his defense moves.  The 54-inch Weed Twister with the Dual Grip gives an average size 10-11-year-old kid a fighting chance against wild animals, aggressive dogs and big cats.  If you don't have a stack of hay handy for practicing, you can hang a discarded tire on a tree and fill it with cardboard, old stuffed animals or other materials to make a practice target.
    Horseback Riding:  Here we see Monica, age 13, AJ's sister, who loves to ride horses.  While riding on the trail, snakes and other critters can threaten the horses and riders and possibly cause accidents or other problems.  The kids and mom can feel much safer knowing that they have a defense weapons that can provide 36 to 54 inches of steel as a barrier between them and an aggressive animal.    Biking:  If you ride wild trails with your bike, you can fasten the tool to your bike frame or your back pack with a bungee chord. Since it only weights about one pound, depending on which model you choose,  it won't present a burden. Of course, if a mountain lion jumps on your back without warning, as happened recently in California (2007), the only thing you can do is hope that someone else in your party grabs your WEED TWISTER and comes to your rescue!

    Cleaning up:  Some people bring trash bags with them as good citizens to help clean up litter from public parks and mountain trails. The WEED TWISTER can also help you pick up trash and debris and place it in a bag or can.  While camping or at home, the WEED TWISTER can also serve as a temporary tie pole for your dog or your tent.  Just twist the tool into the soil about 6-12 inches, depending on how much support is needed, and you can tie a rope to it to secure your pet, tent or other objects.  Your pets may also be prey for wild animals, so be sure to bring your Trail Buddy tool to protect yourself, your children, your pets, and other people in your party. 
     

12. Agricultural Applications:  The WEED TWISTER has been demonstrated to efficiently remove weeds in agricultural

    rows and furrows. The newest 60-inch model provides more reach. The drill-powered Turbo Weed Twisters with 36" and 42" lengths provide added speed and efficiency and can be applied to larger late-season weeds, as well as small seedling weeds. This is especially important to crops like celery, cabbage, lettuce, broccoli, spinach, carrots and strawberries, for example. Some nursery crops also require precise weeding. In agriculture, the WEED TWISTER has been shown to effectively remove such weeds as little mallow, goosefoot, yellow nutsedge, purslane, nightshades and lambsquarters. Weed Twister advantages have been successfully applied in potato farms in Japan to remove unharvested tubers between seasons as a potato blight prevention measure. In nurseries, the WEED TWISTER can also be applied to most containers of the 5 gallon size or larger.  For more information please see the White Paper On the Weed Twister and Other Alternatives to Precise Hand Weeding in Agricultural Applications.

13. Hanging and Removing Holiday Lights:  Need a long pole with a hook to help you hang or remove holiday lights?  The Weed Twister can extend your reach by 3-4 feet depending on the model you choose.  Or you can piggyback two Weed Twisters for a longer reach up to 7 feet. 

The photo to the right shows how to insert the shaft of one Weed Twister into the coil of the other.  Adjustable clamps will secure the connection by wrapping around both shafts.  The smart way to hang lights on your house is to use big hooks and place your hooks in such a way that they can be used again each year.  If you have eaves that drop about 8-10 feet above the ground, use the lowest level possible to attach your hooks.  Once your hooks are in place, you may be able to avoid using the ladder by using your Weed Twister or another type of pole, such as the poles designed to reach high light bulbs and unscrew them.  For safety, be sure everything is in place before connecting the lights to the power source.   Be careful to disconnect the power source before handling the lights or electric power chords with your hands or any tool.  After the holiday season, use your Weed Twister to remove the lights, as well.

If you hung the wires correctly, you should be able to remove them simply by lifting them off the hooks with your Weed Twister!  Next year, no ladder!  Simply use the same hooks again and your Weed Twister!  For a more conventional approach to planning and hanging holiday lights, see the HomeTips.com website.  Any type of wire, cable, flexible tube, string or rope can be lifted and guided into hooks or over objects with ease with the Weed Twister.  Click on the photos for enlarged images of these photos. See below for examples of other objects and plants that can be moved and manipulated by the extended Weed Twister.

14.  High-Reach Plant Grooming with the Extended Weed Twister:   With one or two Weed Twisters piggybacked as shown above,

    you can also reach wayward branches of tall vines, bougainvilleas, rose trees or other plants to control their shape or guide them through a trellis.  This is also a great way to reach, hook and remove tall air potato vines, kudzu weeds and Spanish moss in Florida, Alabama and other Southern States.  You can also pick fruit from trees, such as lemons, oranges, grapefruit, etc.  Just place a hammock under the tree to catch the harvest! The video clip at right shows how Maria picks a lemon from a high branch of a lemon tree.  Maria is using a 48-inch Weed Twister for this spontaneous demonstration.  By piggybacking two Weed Twisters, you can reach even higher to pick fruits from bigger trees, such as avocado trees, for example.  After a little harvesting, you can also twist out a few weeds beneath the tree, as well, with the same tool!  Is this a good tool for picking bunches of grapes from a grapevine?   You be the judge!  Check out your local vineyard to see how it's done.

    This bougainvillea branch stretches about 12 feet above the ground.  The extended Weed Twister hooks around the branch and guides the branch to another direction without damaging the branch.  Because of the large thorns on this plant, one branch will simply hook into a thorn of another branch by guiding the branch in the right direction.  Bougainvillea branches are very flexible, but they can be broken if bent too tightly.  Guiding branches in preferred directions produces beautiful arrays without cutting or retarding growth.
    A very fast growing rose tree, like the one on the right, stretches towards the sun in this scene and is guided back to a trellis by the extended Weed Twister.  If you need to trim tall or high branches, you can use this tool to grab the end of the branch and bring it into reach of pruning tools.  There are also pruners with extended poles that can be used along with the Weed Twister.  Lower branches can also be manipulated by a single, unextended Weed Twister in order to protect your fingers from the thorns.  The coils can also be twisted when wrapped around a branch in order to guide the end of the branch in a preferred direction.
    Guiding a mist-spraying tube around a branch of a jacaranda tree can be done safely from the ground with the extended Weed Twister.  If you enjoy having refreshing water sprays from overhead branches and other objects, the Weed Twister can help you reach up to 12 feet including your own height.  In all these examples, the primary objective of using the Weed Twister is to reduce the risk and effort of using a ladder, as well as having the facility to accomplish these tasks in places where ladders cannot safely be supported.  Save time, reduce risks, and get the job done well, with the Weed Twister!

15. Snow Probe or Emergency Rubble Probe and Hole Digger:  Sometimes you need to look for something under snow, mud or rubble and need a quick and easy way to do it.  In an emergency, you may need to look for objects buried under snow or mud.  The Weed Twister is an efficient and quick way to probe snow, mud or debris to a depth of up to 4 feet depending on the model you select.  You can also use this tool to look for pipes, roots, gold nuggets or other hard objects buried under mud, sand or soil.  Instead of using a shovel to dig a large hole, which takes a lot of effort and time, you may be able to find what you're looking for very quickly by twisting this tool in the snow, sand or mud.  After a fire, hurricane or tornado, you may need to sift through piles of rubble to find missing objects of value.  The Weed Twister enables you to penetrate, lift and move hot or cold material that may be hazardous to your skin.  This tool is also less damaging to surrounding objects since it only penetrates a small area by twisting in the exact area you wish to probe.  Make this tool a part of your Emergency Survival Kit!  For protection, keep a Weed Twister in the trunk of your car at all times, just in case!

16. Garden Mole Control - Removal - Killing: Use your Weed Twister to damage the holes of moles.  Moles will not return to damaged holes.  Just poke a few holes into the direction of the hole below the visible dirt mound.  Eventually, your menacing mole will look for  greener pastures.  Mole treatment diligence and a little geometry will be the key to mole control in your garden.  Remember that moles do not directly damage or consume plants or roots.  Moles are not rodents or rats. Their main prey are earthworms, grubs and bugs.  Moles can dig surface tunnels at approximately 18 feet/hour.  They can eat some roots, bulbs, and other plant material, but generally the greatest problem caused by moles is their burrowing, which dislodges plants and dries out their roots.  In lawn areas, the mounds and ridges resulting from their burrowing are unsightly and disfiguring.  If you happen to stab a mole in the process of digging for tunnels, consider this fate in comparison with being attacked by a cat.   If you were a mole, which fate would you prefer:  A quick stab with a metal point?  Or a tortuous engagement with a predatory cat?  Don't forget to reward your cat if she presents you with a dead mole on your doorstep!  Visit the Ohio State University website, Pesticide.org or UC Davis Integrated Pest Management for more tips about mole poisons, trapping and related advice.  Michigan State University offers instructions on how to use the direct killing or hunting technique for certain types of moles.  GardenOrganic also suggests some nontoxic methods for controlling moles.  They also claim that the dirt mounds deposited by moles make excellent potting soil!  You may also find other permaculture mole control solutions (nothing is wasted) through your favorite search engine.  To force a mole out of its hole, you may try using a yard blower or even a long drain snake or drain auger.  The longer the cable, better.  The yard blower could also help you find the other end of a tunnel.  Using baby powder or some other fine powder or flour, you can blow it into one hole and see if it exits another hole.  If you decide to use a mole trap, as recommended by most experts, you can also use your Weed Twister to find and identify the active mole tunnels for your traps.  And use your Weed Twister to dig the holes in which to place your mole traps.  Hole digging with the Weed Twister is more precise than shovels or trowels and allows you to find the mole tunnels as deep as 12-18 inches or more, without damaging an excessive amount of lawn or disturbing more soil than necessary.  To till or to kill?  That is the question!  Ideally, minimum trauma to the poor mole, and to your lawn, is the way to go!  ... Have a Fire Ant problem?

17. Gravesite Care and Maintenance:   Weeding and cleaning around the cemetery is easy with your Weed Twister in one hand and a bunch of flowers in the other as you visit your departed loved ones.  Check with the cemetery management about their use of herbicides.  Some cemeteries have environmentally friendly policies and may allow you to manually control weeds to avoid the use of toxic chemicals.  Some toxic chemicals may cause harm to markers and tombstones.  You may also feel sensitive to the use of harsh herbicides over the remains of your loved ones.  If you wish to leave your twister by the gravesite for convenience, or to protect your loved ones in your absence, be sure the management or maintenance people won't automatically remove it.  Engrave your name on the tool or stick an identifying label on it in case someone moves it or borrows it while you're away.    Sharing tools should be encouraged if you're so inclined.  More graveyard maintenance suggestions.  Interested in a Green Cemetery?  For a temporary gravesite marker, twist the tool 6-8 inches into the soil for firm support.  Whether for a relative or dear animal pet, you can display a sign and hang flowers or wreaths on the twister.  For a larger display, use two 48 or 54 inch Weed Twisters, one on each side of your display.  You can also cross two Weed Twisters in an "X" formation, with a tie at the crossing, for more structural support.  An even stronger mini-teepee structure or small pyramid can be erected with 3 or 4 Weed Twisters.  Adorn and protect the remains of your loved ones with this handy tool.

	Advanced Weed Twister - More Efficiency and Safety
	Expert Weed Twister - Special Techniques to Improve your Skills