garden shoes

[momofmine]

What do you wear to your garden? I don't get the point of crocs! They make my feet dirtier than if I just went barefoot! I swear, every time I slip on my crocs to run out to the garden, I come back in and have to wash my feet off before I can walk around my house. There must be something better! But I thought this was the exact kind of thing crocs were designed for!!

[ms.shell]

ikwym.
we told ds he can't wear crocs outside anymore unless he has socks; those things get really dirty.
i wore my birks in the garden until now, and the only problem i had with that is permanently striped suntan feet. our puppy killed those shoes tho, and the pretty sandals i got to replace them for wearing out i dont want to wear in the garden. Mom gave me a pair of black rubber or plastic sandals that i thought would be perfect, but they get water in them and squeak and that black plastic, also, gets (my feet really) dirty. You are right; it is easier just to not wear any shoes and wash off my feet, but i need some good slip on garden shoes. i already told dp i would love green garden clogs for mother's day, but i wonder if those too would be dirty and/or squeaky. maybe flip flops? not sure!
so i am hoping others will chime in with a good solution for garden footwear.

[DeerMother]

I wear chacos and wash my feet. Honestly, though, I'm only washing feet while I'm getting my garden going. After that, I don't seem to get as dirty. If you want to avoid dirty feet all together, I think socks and boots would be the way to go. (seems to be what the folks at farmer's market usually wear)

[Owen'nZoe]

Yeah, I think garden boots are the way to go if you want to keep your feet clean. Personally, I wear Tevas and just hose off before going inside if I need to. I have raised beds and my paths are made of pine bark mulch, so my feet don't usually get very dirty anyway (my hands are another matter ).

[Alyantavid]

I wear flip flops and then wash my feet and rinse off the flip flops. I guess I just expect to get dirty while I'm in the garden and since I wear flip flops so often during the summer anyways, I always just wash them off.

[Chicky2]

I don't think my feet will get dirty at all this year! I put carpet, upside down, in between the raised beds. So I guess my answer is barefeet, crocs, whatever this year!

[mattemma04]

I have some $10 tennis shoes that I use in the garden,coop,and to cut grass. I also have some reika(sp) strechie slip ons that I can toss in the wash,but the tennies shoes cover more of my feet.When they get too nasty I just get another cheap pair. I would love some muck rubber boots for muddy spring days and fall.

[Erinz]

Funny, I'm on the search for something right now too.

I have some really nice and sturdy rain boots I wear in winter/early spring but they get too hot for summer use.

Mostly I wear crocs with socks but they wear out too quicky for my taste and then I get all kinds of stuff poking me through the soles. I have to wear socks with them because they really bother my skin for some reason?

Flip flops are good for quick/easy work trips out there, but for any real work I need something more sturdy with bettyer arch support.

I would like to find a pair of slip-on style leather shoes or breathable tennis shoes or something -- I've even considered some wooden clogs! I have some Slogger slip-ons but they don't stay on my feet great and they are WAY too hot in summer.

Whatever I end up with has to be easy to take off/put on with a babe in arms as I tend to be in and out all.day.long for snacks, potty breaks, naps, cups of water, on and on!

I'll be curious to hear if someone has something they love

[SundayCrepes]

We live in Arizona so I have mulched with straw. I just wear my normal sandals in the garden and my feet don't get dirty.

When we were in Holland we saw lots of farmers wearing honest to god true wooden shoes while mucking through the fields and around the barn. Wonder where you could get some.

[mamahart]

A good pair of broken in slip on Vans (skateboarding shoes) slip on converse, barefeet.
I am really looking at good water boots for some fieldwork, Muck brand boots seem to be callling to me, nice styles, they have a low style you might like.
My husband farms in heavy duty work boots then switches to crocs for lighter work.

[lightheart]

sloggers make some nice rubber boots as well as open heeled shoes, both are waterproof, other than the open heel design which does allow dirt and grime and water to seep in.

They can get hot in the summer because they are rubber, after wearing them allday they can make your feet stinky!

[BAU3]

Just as a side note, I think the crocs were designed with boating in mind..

[JamieCatheryn]

I go barefoot, or if I'm shoveling I use boots or old sneakers.

[lunarlady]

I have a pair of Keens (rafting shoes) that I love for the garden because they are closed toe. I'm a clutz who has (and will agian) dropped my spade right on my foot, so the extra protection from the Keens is great. I sometimes wear Tevas if I'm not going to be around weeds or tools, but that is more just harvest time.

If I'm really going to be out there for hours working, I haul out an old pair of hiking boots. They are SnowSealed, so I can hose off any mud afterward with no worries. I can't stand rubber garden clogs or crocs because my feet get too hot.