A Guide to the Best of Southern California : Gardens : Shear Genius

Experienced gardeners know all about Corona pruning shears--drop-forged pruning tools that have been around since the late 1920s. The Corona-based company produced its first pruner for the thriving Riverside County citrus industry and still is the major supplier of tools to the citrus and California grape industries. My grandfather used Corona pruners--so did my dad--and these are the only pruners I would dare leave outdoors overnight. They’re tough. They’re classics.

Now there’s a new line of Corona pruners and shears, a line so handsome it was awarded a silver Industrial Design Excellence Award by the Industrial Designers Society of America. The mid-priced HomePro Garden series includes hand pruners (about $16) and big lopping shears (about $26). It remains to be determined whether these Coronas should be left out at night, but then, who would leave such pretty things outdoors on a cold, damp night, anyway?

Corona products are available at neighborhood nurseries and home centers.