Garden Tools

Provided by: The Garden Moose

To keep a garden looking clean and neat as well as to save you hours of backbreaking work you need to use the right garden tools. Most tools can be found at a nursery, home improvement store, hardware store, or retail chain. No matter what type of garden you maintain, tasks such as planting, weeding, and overall maintenance should be enjoyable, not a dreaded chore.

To get a better understanding of what you will need, let us break this down. First, when you purchase your new tools, price is a consideration. People often think that in order to purchase a quality garden tool they have to pay a higher price, but that just is not the case. Tools are now very reasonably priced and if you wait until late fall or early winter, you can find amazing bargains as stores prepare for the coming year.

To keep your tools in good working order for many years, you should do some specific things. After using your tools for muddy digging, you should hose them off to remove the dirt and then dry them. Never put tools away wet to prevent rusting or handle rot.

After drying, to keep your tools in good order for the winter months, spray the metal parts with some type of penetrating oil. WD40 is a great choice. If your tools have wooden tools, take five minutes to rub the handles with linseed oil to keep them from rotting or cracking. Use an oily rag to rub down the metal parts of shears, pruners, or scissors.

Use a hone to sharpen any cutting tools. If your tools have nicks or gouges, use a heavy metal file to smooth off the edges. If you are not comfortable with this, many companies can provide this service for you. You can check the phone book or your local hardware store.

If you have used tools for chemical applications such as fertilizers or spreading of lime, etc., always clean them thorough with mild soap and hot water, then dry. Some tools are standard and can be used in any type garden while other tools are specific to certain gardens or new gadgets that are fun to try.

Shovel - When starting a garden, the first purchase you should make is a shovel. This is used to dig, scoop, and shovel dirt, soil, or mud from one location to another. For gardening, there is an actual "garden shovel" that has a round point and is generally lighter in weight and smaller in design. A larger shovel could be used for some heavier jobs like removing unwanted deep-rooted plants or small trees, while a garden shovel is for lighter tasks and will probably get the most use. There are many types of shovels. Others include, irrigation shove, square point shovel, transplanting spade, scoop shovel, and D-handle shovels. All have the place in the garden.

Hoe - Another common tool is the hoe. Garden hoes are designed to help weed and groom soil around rooted plants or chop off annual weeks. Hoes come in widths from 2-1/2 to 8 inches and have a long handle with flat blade.

Cultivator and Fork - A cultivator has one to five tines and is great for chopping and pulling to remove shallow rooted weeds as well as break up clumps of dirt. A fork is similar to a cultivator in that it helps to take chunks of dirt and chops them up.

Rake - The Bow rake is the kind of rake that you have probably seen around for years. This is your traditional steel rake and the head ranges from 8 to 24 inches wide. This rake is for the serious jobs and probably the most used.

Shears - This one gardening tool will get a ton of use. The blades have different designs such anvil and hook. These are used for cutting back plants and flowers for maintenance or preparing for the winter. When those rose branches become too full or unruly, you would use shears to cut them back.

Trowel - This tool will be your best friend when planting. Trowels look like miniature shovels and are the ideal tool when planting. Simply dig a small hole for plants or bulbs, and then cover up with soil. This allows you to dig a nice tool for preparing nice even holes at just the right depth.

These are just a few samples of the most used tools for gardening. Visit your local garden store to find out what other great gadgets are available.

About the Author:

Garden Moose is the editor of GardenMoose.com, and a feature contributor to Greenhouses.com a leading internet destination for gardening and greenhouse information and ideas.