I would never have bought a collapsible garden container myself so I'm very thankful that my daughter surprised me with one for Christmas. To me, this product seemed as useful as a keg at a teetotalers party.

My normal gardening activity sees me move around the garden deadheading, pruning and weeding leaving little piles of refuse everywhere. Sometimes I cart around my wheelbarrow but more often than not it's full of compost or soil or some other project resource. So the little piles grow and remain until I can be bothered returning to pick them up - or my wife gently nudges me with "When are those rubbish piles going to move, Stuart?"

So, I took my new collapsible container for a test run in the garden yesterday and was pleasantly surprised. Not only was it easy to maneouvre and carry it was also incredibly sturdy and strong enough to carry my edgings and summer prunings. At the end of my gardening tasks it was just as easy to carry the container over to the compost bins and empty - a vast improvement on trying to lift it out of the wheelbarrow with a garden fork.

As I was testing it out, I contemplated the features that impressed me most about this new garden tool. Obviously the "collapsible" thing was a standout winner. Being able to collapse the container when storing it makes it ideal for my limited garden shed. Plus, another neat bonus was that as I was kneeling on the ground picking out weeds, reaching into the bag was effortless - it just collapsed and folded down and then instantly sprang back.

What would I look for if I were going to buy one of these?

1. A handle at the bottom - this is such a helpful addition when you're trying to discard the waste into your compost bins.
2. Solid woven spring - it's the quality of the springed wire woven into the side of the bag that makes it the useful container that it is.
3. Buy one without a lid - I honestly can't see the purpose of this tool having a lid. It would make it too easy to zip up and leave laying around without emptying it, which kind of defeats the purpose - right?
4. Colour - very, very important! Presently, they only seem to come in khaki or black but I'm hoping that some manufacturers may produce these in fashionable prints or at least some more individual colours. Is that too much to expect?
5. Solid base - mine only has a canvas base which should be more than adequate for how I plan to use it. However, if you wanted to get more from your container then I would suggest that a solid base might be a good idea.
6. Canvas/Woven sides - if you're hoping to get a few years out of this garden tool then I would steer clear of the cheap plastic options. Woven sides should last the distance and if looked after may even give you 5 - 10 years at a minimum.

If you don't have a collapsible container for your garden yet then I would seriously suggest you consider it. It is probably the best tool to emerge in the garden over the past few years and will come in very handy for years to come.