These Ryobi Power Tools Will Make Landscaping Easier Than Ever

Landscaping your property involves a variety of different steps and requires a wide range of tools. Power tools can make the process a lot easier by saving you both time and manual labor, just like they do for other applications like carpentry and mechanical work. Of course, you'll need power tools that are well made, won't break down on you, and have all the features and attributes you need for your specific tasks.

Thankfully, Ryobi makes several power tools that can be used for landscaping. The brand also makes tools and equipment that are great for gardening and lawn care, like Ryobi mowers and edgers. Landscaping can require its own set of products, however, since it's more related to setting up the design of your yard in the first place, as well as maintaining it. There's no shortage of things to do, as you'll need to clear debris, dig holes, cultivate soil, and trim overgrowth. 

Whether it's the start of a new season or you're landscaping the property around a new home, you'll want to make sure you have the right gear for the job. Here are power tools made by Ryobi that will make landscaping easier than ever.

Ryobi makes several different leaf blowers, which you'll likely need to clear your yard before landscaping as well as maintain it through the fall. The best option for this is using the 40V HP Jet Fan Blower/Vacuum because it can also suck up leaves and mulch them at a 20:1 ratio, compacting your bags of debris. It's also cordless and lightweight, making it easy to use, even if you're far from the house and any power outlets. A dial will instantly switch the tool's function from blow to vacuum, and you can use variable-speed cruise control to cover more ground with less effort.

Despite being cordless, the blower can provide 600 cfm, and its airspeed can reach 100 mph with the included speed tip. One drawback to the product is that it quickly uses up its battery life — even with the two included 40-volt batteries, you'll only have about 18 minutes of runtime. If you're okay with stocking up on extra batteries or can cover your entire yard in less than 20 minutes, the quality of the blower still makes it worth adding to your collection of landscaping tools. 

Ryobi's 40V HP Jet Fan Blower/Vacuum — product code RY404150 — is available at Home Depot for $469, with an included charger and two 4 Ah batteries.

An earth auger is essential to landscaping unless you want to use a shovel to manually dig every hole you'll need when planting trees or shrubs and placing fence posts. A motorized earth auger will save you time and the backbreaking work of digging these holes as you lay out the landscaping design of your property. Ryobi's 40V HP Brushless 8-inch Cordless Earth Auger frees you to use the tool anywhere, regardless of proximity to a power outlet, and its 40-volt battery gives it enough power to match a 52cc gas-powered auger. That means it can dig up to 30 holes before needing a recharge.

It's lightweight and is controlled by a simple trigger, making it very simple to use. It generates less vibration than gas augers, which also makes it easier to handle. The tool comes with forward and reverse functions, as well as three different digging speeds. If you're working around rocks and roots, the auger's anti-kickback system will help protect you from flying debris. The biggest downside to the tool is its price — in fact, it's one of the most expensive power tools made by Ryobi.

 The Ryobi 40V HP Brushless 8-inch Earth Auger with 4.0 Ah Battery and Charger, product code RY40710VNM, is sold by Home Depot for $499.

If you start your landscaping as the weather gets nicer, you'll likely need to clean up the bushes that have been growing over the winter. A powered hedge trimmer can do just that, as well as help you maintain them throughout the year. The Ryobi 18V One+ HP Brushless Whisper Series 24-inch Hedge Trimmer is a great trimmer to use for several reasons. As part of Ryobi's 18-volt One+ system, it can share interchangeable batteries with many other Ryobi cordless tools. In addition, as a part of the brand's Whisper series, it's built to be a quieter product than other trimmers. Both your neighbors and your own ears will appreciate the latter.

The tool is lightweight and its 24-inch dual-action blades give you an extended reach and one-inch cut capacity. It runs at two speeds and has minimal vibration, which — when coupled with its ergonomic design — gives you more control. It's not the strongest hedge trimmer made by Ryobi, however. If you have thicker shrubs or need a longer-lasting and more powerful tool, you'll want to opt for Ryobi's 40-volt option, though that tool isn't as quiet as the 18-volt trimmer and costs more money. Ryobi's 18V ONE+ HP Brushless Whisper Series 24-Inch Hedge Trimmer, product code P26110VNM, costs $199 and comes with a 2Ah battery and charger.

A motorized cultivator will make it a lot easier to prepare the soil in your yard for planting, taking a lot of manual labor out of the equation and saving you time. Ryobi's 16-inch 13.5 Amp Electric Cultivator is a powerful option that will be one of the most essential landscaping tools in your arsenal. It comes with adjustable steel tines that can quickly cultivate the ground in swaths that are between 11 and 16 inches wide and trenches up to eight inches deep, making it a great tool for bigger yards. The tines are durable and can last for years, so you can use the cultivator each season to refresh the dirt on your property before planting.

The cultivator is also simple to use because the motor starts with a single push of a button. It comes with a fold-down handle that shrinks the size of the tool, making it easier to store until you need to bring it out again next season. Unfortunately, since the tool is corded, you won't be able to use it too far from your home without extension cords, which can make your landscaping work a lot more tedious. Ryobi sells a smaller, battery-powered cultivator that is one of the best gardening tools made by the brand, but if you want a larger tool that (quite literally) covers more ground, you'll want to opt for the 16-inch option. 

The Ryobi 13.5 Amp 16-Inch Electric Cultivator, which has product code RYAC701, is available for $299 from Home Depot.

The Ryobi 18V One+ 20 GPM Submersible Water Transfer Pump is a versatile power tool that isn't used just for landscaping — it's also great for clearing out flooded basements or draining pools. What makes it a great landscaping tool is that you can relocate water to your soil for planting, saving you money on your water bill. If you have places in your yard that annoyingly amass liquid, like pool covers or sloped parts of your patio, you can kill two birds with one stone by using that water for your lawn or garden. You can also set up a rain bucket and attach the pump to landscape your home in a more sustainable fashion.

The pump drains water down to 1-1/6 inches, so it isn't perfect — depending on the size of the area you're draining, it can leave a lot of liquid behind. However, what it can pump, it pumps quickly, thanks to a 1/6 horsepower motor that can transfer 20 gallons of water per minute. Features include an integrated strainer that filters debris, as well as a shutdown timer and a sensor that will turn the pump off when there is no water left for it to drain. 

Ryobi's 18V One+ 20 GPM Submersible Water Transfer Pump has product code P3020 and is priced at $199 at Home Depot, which includes a 4 Ah battery and charger.