Review: Genus Warm and Dry Gardening Trousers

When Genus offered to send me a pair of their Warm and Dry Gardening Trousers, I was certainly interested to try them out, but must admit that I wasn’t sure whether an kitchen gardener and homesteader like myself would really need such snazzy looking trousers. I had never really thought about buying specific gardening trousers, thinking they were more for professional horticulturalists, always making do with old jeans or leggings, with pull-on waterproofs over the top during wet weather, and thermals underneath when temperatures plummeted.

The trousers arrived in mid-November, and I was keen to put them through their paces – once the truly awful weather stopped. It was far too wet to do any gardening. I have been wearing them now in all wintry weathers including snow, rain, wind and ice (except when it really wasn’t sensible to be outside) and for many kinds of gardening tasks, from weeding and harvesting, to pruning back giant bramble bushes and cleaning out the ducks in the pouring rain.

First impressions

The trousers are really comfortable and look good. I thought they might feel bulky (old jeans and waterproofs certainly do) but I was surprised how stretchy and light they felt. They are lined with a fleece which feels pleasant against the skin. The integral padded knees were in the wrong place, but are easy to adjust. You just need to move them into place by adjusting velcro strips, which takes a few tries but feel lovely once located properly. Genus assure me that once these are in place they do not move, not even when the trousers are washed. So far, they have not moved.

There are a lot of pockets!

Moving about

Gardening requires getting into all kinds of positions, and it is important that clothing feels comfortable, doesn’t catch on anything, and doesn’t move about the body. You don’t want to be flashing your undies whilst weeding, or getting draughts up your back in freezing weather because trousers and tops have come adrift. These trousers have a high waistband and, so far, have remained in place whatever gardening jobs I’ve been doing. The straight fitting legs are loose enough to allow full movement without being ‘flappy’ and have studs at the hem for close fitting around boots. They are really easy to get on and off (no jumping about the room trying to remove your trousers!)

I was concerned that the trousers would sound loudly “swishy” when moving about, just like waterproof trousers do, but they don’t, not even when out walking on the hills here.

Pockets for everything

There are nine pockets. The pockets are deep, which is entirely sensible but so often simply not part of trouser design for women. I am forever losing my pocket knife out of my jeans, but these trousers keep everything safe.

At the front, there are two deep zipped hand pockets, where I keep my pocket knife, string, hanky and phone (if I am carrying it about). There are two zipped thigh pockets, for things like seed packets or other fairly flat things.

There are two stab proof pockets for secateurs and other slender hand tools. This is a revelation. I generally stick my secateurs into the pocket of whatever I am wearing, which means that they usually wear through and tear the fabric. The stab proof pockets are deep, so the secateurs don’t fall out and are always to hand, especially useful during the wintertime when there is so much pruning to do.

At the back, there’s two rear pockets plus another zipped pocket just below the belt. This is actually designed for a mobile phone, but I’ve not used it for that.

There’s also a D-ring loop for attaching keys and so forth.

Weather, water and mud

The lined trousers certainly block the icy wind, making it much pleasanter to work outside in wintry weather. I have osteoarthritis and cold, damp weather can create havoc with my joints, so it has been lovely wearing trousers which keep my knees and hips warm. The trousers are made from a showerproof fabric with a waterproof layer. They’ve been perfectly waterproof whilst wearing them in rainy weather.

The ultimate test perhaps was wearing them whilst cleaning out the duck house. After weeks of rain, the duck run was very soggy and cleaning out the house requires kneeling on the ground whilst removing the soiled bedding. I emerged resembling a swamp creature, but underneath my legs were perfectly dry.

The fabric dries quickly, which is ideal as it saves on laundering. Like most gardeners, I am perfectly happy to wear muddy trousers again and again, not seeing much point in washing gardening trousers until they are practically crawling to the washing machine themselves!

The trousers are really warm. I need to put on something else when I come into the house to work on my computer because I’ve found them too warm for indoors if the heating it on.

Resilience

One of the key winter jobs here is cutting back the brambles which have been on a take over bid, after last year’s relentless rain. It is a very prickly job, and I was concerned that the brambles could tear the fabric. However no matter how large the prickles, the trousers have remained undamaged.

I checked with Genus regarding repairing the trousers, as there is no point having work clothing that can not be repaired as accidents can happen. Should something tear the fabric, Genus can supply patches for repairing the tear.

Would I buy them?

Genus Warm and Dry Gardening Trousers are an investment piece. At around £189 they are not a cheap option and need to be considered along with other more expensive items of protective clothing, such as a decent pair of all weather boots or jacket, where one is paying for longevity and durability.

Having tried them out through some truly horrible weather conditions here on a Welsh hillside, would I buy them? I would need to save up, but having lightweight, comfortable, waterproof and warm gardening trousers has genuinely been such a boon this winter that I certainly would consider them to be a worthwhile purchase.

Construction, sizing and other information

They are made from nylon, spandex and polyester. According to the Genus website the fabric is constructed from:

Shell: 93% Nylon 7% spandex with Durable Water Repellency (DWR); Lining: 100% Polyester soft micro-diamond fleece with PU laminate;  Performance: Hydrostatic head 20,000mm/Moisture Vapour Transfer Rate (MVTR) 20,000grams/sq.m/24hrs

I have no idea what much of that means! Like most light weight waterproofs  they are not biodegradable.

Genus Warm and Dry Trousers are available from UK size 8 to 22, and come in a choice of three leg lengths.

Colours: Midnight (a blue so dark it looks black) and New Green

Sizing: UK/8 to 22. Based on M&S jeans sizing they are about the same. (I chose M&S as a comparison because I find that their sizing tends to remain true across all their products.)

Leg length: Short-28″; Medium-30″; Long-32″; X-Long-35″

Menswear: the Warm and Dry trousers are also available in menswear

These trousers were gifted from Genus. I have not been paid to write this review, and am not affiliated with the brand.

 

Reviews

As an expert in the field, I review books, tools and products mostly relating to gardening, homesteading or cooking. I have judged products and books for awards including for the Garden Media Guild, the Guild of Food Writers, the Soil Association BOOM Awards and the Grow Your Own Awards at GLEE.

Please contact me if you would like me to consider reviewing your product. I must like the product in order to review it, and never guarantee that I will write a review. If I have been paid for the review, I will always make it clear in the review – and will never endorse something just for payment.