How many pieces do I actually need in a garden tool set?

Specialist gardeners we read repeatedly converge on a small core: a trowel, a transplanter, a hand cultivator/rake, and a good pair of pruners. Large 12-piece and 60-plus-piece gift kits add gloves, totes, kneeling pads and spray bottles that are nice for gifting but rarely change the quality of the actual digging tools. Buy for the quality of the core tools, not the headline piece count.