The Longest Yard - Featured in Phoenix Magazine
Spring is the season when the desert sprouts spectacular displays of wildflowers... and your yard tends to propagate equally astounding crops of weeds, especially after a winter of El Niño rains.
Normally the HEAT is among the horticulturally challenged. But a neighbor brought over a great gadget, the Superstar Weed Cutter, a deceptively simple kind of hoe that makes short work of the most deep-rooted dandelions. Invented by farmer Don Janek of Queen Creek, it is manufactured locally by Quail Run Building Materials, an innovative designer of tools and trellises. Word of the wunderkind weeder is spreading through the gardening grapevine: Maricopa County and state crews buy them by the batch and orders are pouring in from around the globe, reports Quail Run's owner This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
The Farm At South Mountain
Quail Run,
This letter is to affirm how pleased we are with you Super Star Weed Cutter. We have used numerous so-called weed cutting devices in our four acre organic garden through the last several years and none of them have been effective as your Super Star Weed Cutter.
Donna Hart, one of our head gardeners, thought when picking up the tool that it was to heavy. But, once she started using it, she found the weight of the tool to be very advantageous and allowed her the capability to cut through larger weeds and tighter soils. Charlie Collins, our other head gardener, expressed pleasure in that the forward and backward motion worked well to cut effectively in both directions and allowed extreme accuracy in and among the smaller plants in the garden. What pleases me is the durability of the cutter, in that there are no bolts to fall off or parts that will need to be replaced. It appears to be a tool that will be with us for a long time and will get many hours of quality work from it.
A. Wayne SmithThe Farm At South Mountain, Inc.Public Horticulturist
Quail Run,
The Super Star Weed Cutter is a great tool for my xeriscaped yard with decomposed granite and drip irrigation system. It easily takes care of encroaching Bermuda grass and nutsedge ( a desert gardener's nightmare...) I can use it close to plants without injuring their roots systems, and can go through an area without disturbing or damaging drip lines. It's great for my vegetable and herb beds as well!
I'd much rather spend time enjoying my plants that battling weeds, and the Super Star Weed Cutter definitely helps.
At my workplace, the Super Star really makes a quick job of weeding the propagation area. It's easy to work around the potted plants on the ground, and weeding under benches is a snap.
Kirti MathuraPresident, Arizona Herb AssociationMaster Gardener, Maricopa CountyPublic Horticulturist, Desert Botanical GardenAgronomist, Seeds West Inc.
Quail Run,
I was very impressed with how easy the Super Star is to use. Just a simple back and forth motion and the extremely sharp blade sliced off the prostrate spurge in my xeriscape without disturbing the gravel. All other weeding tools I've used have left half the spurge behind and messed up my granite. I also used my Super Star Weed Cutter on some mature Cheese Mallows with large tough trunks. This fantastic tool had no trouble slicing through the half inch and larger stems.
It is easy to use and the long comfortable handle really helps to make weeding less back-breaking. The padded, large size grip really helps when your hands are already sore from other yardwork. I have recommended this tool to friends & neighbors, and hope that it will be available in local outlets soon.
Mike HillsMaster Gardener, Maricopa CountyBoard Member & Past President, Arizona Herb Assoc.Agronomist, Seeds West Inc.