Dear KG,
I have just read with interest your article on garden safety and I was rather concerned to see that you did not mention one of the most important things to keep you safe in your garden.
Ear Defenders! Hearing loss is cumulative and permenant. As a professional gardener it has long been one of the things I have to wear to keep me safe. Mowers, strimmers, chainsaws and hammer action drills are the biggest culprits but if the machine has a symbol for over 80 decibels then ear defenders must be worn. The noise will cause damage each and every time you use the machine, I suspect the odds of injury are less for all the other dangers you mention...
Defenders do not cost a lot even for the very good ones and are a lot less inconvenient to wear for a few hours than hearing aids all day, every day.
Regards Sally Wright

Sally,
Many thanks for the common sense reminder about ear defenders.
I am a motorcyclist and always use them when on the bike, but never related the noise of the mower (which incidentally is a lot louder than the bike) requiring ear defenders.
Will be taking your advice from now on, thank you.

Stan