Choosing a garden tool

Author of the article: Svetlana Galitsina | Updated: 06/13/2020

Every summer resident is familiar first-hand with such gardening tools as a hoe. With the help of a simple device, you can successfully destroy weeds, loosen the soil, or perfectly aerate the soil in your summer cottage with your own hands.

• 1 Design description
• 2 Technical features
• 3 How to do it yourself
• 4 Video “Choppers with a handle at work”
• 5 Practical tips
• 6 Video “Correct sharpening and bending of the chopper”

Shovel

A shovel is the main tool for deep tillage of the soil, which is always useful not only in the garden, but also in the household in general. However, before choosing a shovel, you need to figure out what exactly you need it for. Yes, yes, many of us, having only one shovel on the farm, do not even suspect that for each type of land work there is its own type of this tool. And the right shovel will help save a lot of time.

There are many types of shovels: bayonet shovels, shovels, scrapers, scoops and earthen shovels, trenching shovels and half-moon shovels, as well as hand augers and scrapers, which are also considered shovels. But for agricultural needs, of all this variety, only the first 3 are used : bayonet, scoop and stripping shovels, the differences and purposes of which we will talk about.

Bayonet shovel, universal

A bayonet shovel is the most popular and versatile soil cultivation tool. She is “subject to” a wide range of work, from digging up hard soils to cutting small roots. Therefore, it is indispensable, especially if you simply have nowhere to store a large amount of equipment, which, you see, is not uncommon in small summer cottages.

A bayonet shovel can be a standard size or smaller - a lighter, curb shovel, which women will undoubtedly appreciate. A “lightweight” version of the bayonet shovel is the automatic shovel. Thanks to its design, it will save you from tiring bending, which means the load on the spine will be significantly less, and work will become much easier. Regardless of the size and type of bayonet shovel, the main thing is that its edge is always sharpened, and that the curved edge gives the foot good support: this will also make your work much easier, believe me.

Drainage shovel

The drainage shovel has a narrow, long working blade, slightly curved edges and a rounded tip. Such a shovel will be an ideal assistant in the sometimes difficult task of replanting small shrubs and planting different flowers. In addition, a drainage shovel is very convenient for cleaning existing trenches. It is also simply indispensable for digging trenches intended for watering systems, electrical wiring around the site, etc.

Shovel

Scoop shovels, not intended for digging soil and digging trenches and holes, are indispensable when working with various bulk materials - sand, crushed stone, snow, etc. The family of shovels is one of the most numerous and “different-sized”. So, a shovel can be: a collection shovel , or, as it is also called, a sand shovel, a snow shovel, a universal shovel (“American”), a bread shovel, a potato shovel , and even an ordinary garbage shovel is also a subspecies of a shovel. The shovel has rather high edges that are bent at right angles .

How to choose a shovel?

Regardless of which shovel you decide to purchase - bayonet, scoop or stripper - the first thing you need to consider is the material from which the blade is made . It will be just perfect if it is titanium . The only drawback of such a tool is its fairly high cost. It would be great if the blade of the drainage and bayonet shovel is made of stainless steel . Such a shovel will serve you for a very long time, and its cost in comparison with titanium is acceptable. It’s not bad if the shovel blade is made of ordinary steel , but keep in mind that it will have to be sharpened much more often. In addition, it will be susceptible to corrosion, which means you will have to take care of such an instrument very carefully. And it is completely undesirable for the blade of a drainage and bayonet shovel to be made of aluminum , even if it is coated with super-resistant anti-corrosion paint on top. Believe me, such a shovel will not last long for you.

As for shovels, things are a little different. Depending on the type, the working blade of a shovel can be made of steel, aluminum, plastic, wood (for example, a bread shovel) and even plywood - a snow shovel.

Size and weight are also extremely important

The size of the working plane of a bayonet shovel, marked with the letters “LU”, is 21x26 cm. And the convenient length of the handle is no more than 130 cm. A classic shovel (also called a digging shovel), marked with the letters “LP”, has a working plane size of 195x260 mm, and a length its handle should not exceed 110 cm. The working plane of the drainage shovel should be 12x27 cm, and the length of its handle should not exceed 85 cm.

The handle of any shovel, regardless of type, must be made of well-processed wood , absolutely smooth to the touch: only in this case there will be no splinters on your hands. It is advisable that the wooden handle be treated with a special antiseptic composition, but not with varnish or paint. Varnished, painted, plastic and metal cuttings are very inconvenient to use, because... will constantly slip in your hands.

The dimensions of the working plane of various shovels, depending on the manufacturer and type, may deviate slightly in one direction or another. In addition, you should not blindly adhere to recommendations regarding the height of the shovel, everything is individual. So, for example, if you are 155 cm tall, it is unlikely that you will be comfortable working with a shovel whose handle is 130 cm high. A shovel whose height is approximately 10 cm below your shoulder is considered optimal.

When choosing a shovel, pay attention not only to its size, but also to its weight. Ideally, a shovel should not cause you to strain your muscles, i.e. should not be too heavy.

Practical advice

Let's consider the option of using an old saw blade to create a shield for a hoe, since this is what experienced gardeners most often recommend for use. The material for the saw is of increased strength, but at the same time it is quite flexible and has increased resistance to wear. One such hoe, assembled with your own hands, will be enough for you for a season of active work.

Stage 1. Preparation of material. Break off a piece of metal of the required length from an old saw. The most convenient length is considered to be 25cm, but you can make the piece wider or a little smaller, thereby adjusting the tool to suit you. Next, using a grinder and the thinnest grinding disc, the blade is sawed at an angle of 45 degrees relative to the saw teeth so that this part is shorter. This simple technique will reduce the weight of the tool without reducing its working area.

Stage 2. Mounting holes. At a distance of 2 cm on the side of the saw teeth, drill 3-4 holes, leaving uniform distances of 3-4 cm between them. We drill the same holes in the metal corner. As a result, the holes on both parts should match.

Stage 3. Attaching the holder. At this stage you will need two parts with holes and a metal pipe 25cm and 30mm in diameter. We hammer one part 4-5cm inside and make two holes to tighten the corner. Afterwards, all that remains is to connect all the parts, and in the end you will get a hybrid of a hoe with teeth, fixed on an angle, which is connected to a metal pipe.

Stage 4. Wooden handle. The holder can be made of any material, like a shovel, with which it will be convenient for you to work: pine, maple, larch. The diameter of the handle is at least 3.5 cm. We grind one edge of the holder and hammer it into the pipe. To prevent the wooden holder from falling out, you can fix it with a bolt, after drilling a hole, or hammer a nail.

Stage 5. Sharpening the working tool. Once the garden tool is almost ready, all you have to do is cut off the teeth with a grinder. If you are making a tool for loosening the soil with your own hands, then you can leave the teeth on the contrary. The grinding disk will help you sharpen the hoe, and then in the process of work we sharpen it with a regular file.

The second frequently used option for “home” production is a hoe made from a shovel. In this case, you will need a bayonet steel shovel, which is no longer suitable for its intended purpose. Using a grinder, we cut off the lower part of the shovel and get a triangle. Using a file, we remove the burrs on the cutting side, then you need to make two holes for attaching the metal holder with rivets. Now all that remains is to insert and fix the wooden handle in the holder, and the garden hoe is ready for work.

The third option for making garden tools with your own hands is a hoe made from a piece of metal. If you don’t have an unnecessary shovel or an old saw, but you have an unnecessary piece of metal, then making and sharpening a hoe is as easy as shelling pears. It is best to take 2mm thick steel sheet as the metal, and then several stages of work:

1. cut a rectangle 7 by 25 cm using a straight cut. Treat the edges of the canvas to avoid injury;
2. we knock down an ordinary corner 25 by 25 cm and weld it to the metal sheet;
3. using metal clamps we attach the handle to the corner;
4. sharpen the blade of the hoe with a grinder, and grind the handle and varnish it;
5. This is how you can quickly and as economically make a tool with your own hands from improvised means for working in the garden.

Pitchfork

Used for digging and loosening the soil, cleaning the area, moving various materials and even collecting root crops, garden forks can also be called a universal gardening tool. And, surprisingly, it is often much more convenient not only to remove weeds, but also to dig up an area with a pitchfork than with a shovel.

Forks are distinguished by the number of teeth, which, depending on the purpose, can be from 2 to 4:

Double-horned forks are used for deep loosening of soil and harvesting hay.

Three-horn forks are used for deep loosening and even digging up soil.

Four-arm forks are the most popular and come in several types: regular, border and flower. Conventional four-arm forks are used for loosening and digging soil, spreading organic fertilizers, collecting root crops, and also for carrying garbage. Border forks are used to remove weeds between rows. And with light, compact, short-toothed flower forks, it is convenient to care for seedlings.

In addition, there is another type - forks for digging up potatoes . Their main feature is that special rubber tips are placed on large flat teeth to protect potato tubers. With the tips removed, these forks can also be used for picking root vegetables, carrying garden debris and spreading organic fertilizers.

How to choose a pitchfork?

If you want your garden forks to last for more than one season, choose an all-metal carbon steel fork . The length of the handle, just like that of a shovel, should be 10 cm below your shoulder, but not higher than 120 cm. A handle that fits tightly into the neck of the socket along its entire length will provide the fork with additional strength. It is advisable that it is not made of metal or plastic, which slide in your hands, but of well-processed wood.

Choosing a garden tool

Garden tools help us both in caring for and harvesting crops all year round. Almost every season something new appears on the market: either hoes and shovels made of rail steel, or pitchforks of extraordinary sharpness, strength and reliability. Buy high-quality gardening tools - and they will serve you for many years.

Which shovel should you choose?

A shovel is a tool that no gardener can do without. And her choice should be approached with all responsibility.

1. We recommend purchasing a shovel with a height of about 120 cm - this is the optimal height for the average person, which does not force you to bend over too much and does not interfere with digging.
2. The width of the bayonet should be slightly more than 20 cm, and its height should be at the level of 25-28 cm. A handle 12-13 cm wide fits best in the hands.
3. When purchasing, be sure to pay attention to the thickness of the steel at the bayonet of the shovel. Only steel with a thickness of 1.5-1.6 mm will last a long time, and only it will be pleasant and easy to work with.

What types of shovels are there?

It has a straight, most often pointed or rounded blade. Designed for digging up any type of soil (depending on the material and shape of the canvas), loosening and hilling.

It is worth considering:

• the sharpened blade is designed for working with hard soil,
• rectangular - with loose soils.

Cutting

1. Wooden : lightweight but short-lived. However, if it breaks, it can be replaced.
2. Metal : Suitable for frequent use, but some are susceptible to corrosion. The can has a curved shape, which reduces the load on the hands when working.

In addition, it is worth paying attention to shovels with telescopic handles . These shovels are easy to use, store and transport.

Dimensions

Preferred canvas sizes:

• 23-25 ​​cm wide,
• 30-32 cm in length.

Photo: Pointed bayonet shovel Blade materials

1. Steel : Depending on the thickness, it can work with different soils.
2. Aluminum : does not withstand heavy loads and requires frequent sharpening.
3. Titanium : very durable. Can work with clay and other dense soils.

Currently, there are improved models of shovels with slots in the blade, which makes the shovel itself lighter and prevents soil from sticking during operation.

For example, an excellent tool is produced by Fiskars. The shovels are light, compact, high quality and reliable, with an ideal blade angle. The D-shaped handle is generally recognized as the most comfortable handle all over the world. This shovel is suitable for any type of gardening work, will serve you for as long as possible and may well become a family garden heirloom, used for several generations.

Photo: Rectangular bayonet shovel

It has a wider blade with folded edges compared to a bayonet shovel. It is located at an angle of 120° to the handle.

• Designed for collecting garbage, collecting soil in heaps, and applying fertilizers to the soil.
• For country work, a classic rectangular shovel is best suited.

Preferred sizes are 30*20-25 cm.

Materials

1. Steel : working with heavy materials. Wear-resistant. Sturdy, does not bend or corrode.
2. Aluminum : for working with lightweight materials. Lightweight, does not rust.

The handles of shovels are most often wooden.

Photo: Shovel

There are two types:

1. long and narrow - for small deep holes;
2. short and wide - for shallow, wide holes. Photo: Garden scoop

It is made of steel or aluminum and often has an anti-corrosion coating of chrome, Teflon or polyvinyl chloride. Cutting

• tree;
• plastic;
• metal.

The cuttings of garden blades can be of various shapes to ease the stress on the hand during work. In this case, it is better to choose rubberized handles with a thumb rest.

Photo: Garden scoop

Which hoe should you choose?

Every summer resident must have a hoe. It is very, very difficult to control weeds without a hoe. But sometimes not only weeds, but also the tool itself causes a lot of inconvenience. Most often, such choppers have an uncomfortable handle and a blade that is always dull or brittle.

For example, a Harz forged steel hoe from Idealspaten appeared on the market, which rarely requires sharpening. Its nozzle head is a single unit with the fasteners that hold it on the handle.

1. It is best to choose a hoe with a handle made of ash. It is very difficult to break, it does not dry out, has no knots, lasts a very long time and will not give you calluses. In addition, the ash handle is very light - you literally don’t feel the hoe in your hand.
2. When buying a hoe, be sure to pay attention to the blade . It should be about 15 cm wide and about 7-8 cm deep. This design of the hoe will allow you to easily process almost all types of soil.

Photo: Garden hoes

Which pitchfork should you choose?

1. It is better to choose forks made of hardened steel - these will not bend or break.
2. Don't go for a five-prong fork, go for a traditional four-prong fork.
3. The length of the teeth together with the pen holder should be 32-35 cm, and the width 18-20 cm; weight about 1.5 kg. These forks are convenient and pleasant to work with.

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SHOVEL, FORK, GREW, HOES: WHAT THERE SHOULD BE AND HOW TO MAKE WITH YOUR OWN HANDS

Photo: Garden forks

Which watering can to choose?

A garden watering can is an indispensable attribute of any summer cottage, and its choice must be approached with all responsibility. Despite the advent of automatic watering systems, watering cans stubbornly refuse to give up their positions. They are indispensable when applying fertilizing, and not everyone in their garden plots has uninterrupted access to water.

With or without nozzle?

The nozzle is necessary for watering young plants to avoid soil erosion.

• The holes in the nozzle should have a diameter of 0.8 to 1.5 mm.
• It is best to have several nozzles of different sizes in stock.

But for fertilizing, it is better to refuse the nozzle. Watering can size

There is a large selection of watering cans of various sizes on the market. You can even buy gardening products, including watering cans and gardening gloves, in online stores.

1. A watering can that is too small will force you to frequently run to the barrel for a new portion of water.
2. A large watering can will be too heavy for women and older people.
3. In addition, with a large watering can it is quite inconvenient to water in greenhouses. Yes, and drawing water from a barrel will be problematic.

The ideal option is to purchase several watering cans of different sizes.

What types of watering cans are there?

Plastic and metal watering cans remain the most popular. The latter are usually made of galvanized steel.

When buying a metal watering can, pay attention to the quality of the welds - this is their most vulnerable spot.

The advantages of metal watering cans include:

1. relative durability
2. high strength
3. property of zinc and copper watering cans to purify and disinfect water
4. Possibility of repair in case of leakage

Disadvantages of metal watering cans:

• heavy weight (a 10 liter watering can will weigh about 1 kg)
• quite high cost
• susceptibility to corrosion
• requires maintenance to prevent rust

Photo: Metal watering can

When choosing a plastic watering can, look at it through the light: cloudy plastic with stains will not last long.

Choose watering cans made from high-density polyethylene, as they are more durable.

Advantages of plastic watering cans

Plastic watering cans also have a number of advantages:

1. wide variety of shapes and colors
2. light weight
3. thanks to the use of modern materials, they have high wear resistance and resistance to external factors (temperature, humidity)
4. does not react with chemicals
5. low cost

Photo: Plastic watering can

Hoe, in common parlance a chopper (hoe)

The most popular tool for weeding, hilling, aerating the soil and even creating small planting holes and furrows is a hoe. It undoubtedly exists in every dacha household. But not every owner is aware of the huge number of types and even names of this instrument.

The names we are familiar with—hoe, hoe, cutmen, weeder, and even flat cutter—are all types of hoes. There are trapezoidal and triangular hoes, which differ in the shape of the corners and the width of the blade, and each of these tools has its own purpose. For example, a hoe for loosening heavy soil and digging is a fairly powerful tool with one or two blades.

A triangular hoe is used for weeding ; it is low and has sharp corners. It makes it very convenient to make V-shaped furrows when sowing seeds. hilling hoe , on the contrary, has a high blade , which is beveled almost at a right angle along the edge. A combination hoe with a double-sided working surface (a hoe on one side and a fork on the other) can be used not only to make V-shaped furrows, but also more traditionally for hilling and weeding.

There is even a special lawn hoe , the blade of which is rounded. With its help, as you may have guessed, it is very convenient to trim the edges of the lawn, but you should not use it for weeding and hilling.

How to choose a hoe

Before purchasing a hoe, decide what exactly you need it for. If it’s hard to decide, take a universal tool, then you definitely won’t go wrong. And keep in mind: in addition to the fact that hoes are distinguished by purpose, they are also different in size: the working surface can be up to 15 cm in height, and from 10 to 25 cm in width. Moreover, the length of the hoe handle should not exceed 140 cm, and The cutting should ideally be made of smooth wood.

Rake

Another important tool for tillage is a rake. They will help you not only perfectly loosen the soil before planting, but also level it.

How to choose a rake

Rakes come in wood and metal. Wooden ones are quite rare today, and they are also too light, which makes them difficult to work with. Therefore, if you intend to use a rake not only to remove hay and fallen leaves, but also to level and even harrow the soil, it is better to give preference to a metal rake. But remember: metal rakes can also be different in quality. It will be just fine if you give preference to all-metal rakes, and worse if their main part is riveted, that is, consisting of several parts.

In addition to the fact that rakes come in metal and wood , they can be:

stamped straight ones , which are used for leveling surfaces - soil, pebbles, sand, etc., as well as for collecting various garden debris. The width of their working surface, depending on the manufacturer, can vary from 30 to 60 cm;

stamped, the teeth of which are turned to the side , and the width of the working surface can reach 60 cm. Such rakes are intended for harrowing the soil;

nails , which are convenient for collecting fallen leaves, mown grass and scattering various natural fertilizers.

The width of the working surface of such rakes, also depending on the manufacturer, can vary from 40 to 65 cm. By the way, the width of the rake is not such an insignificant selection criterion as it might seem at first glance. So, the wider the working surface of the rake, the faster you can cope with the task, because with such a tool it will be possible to cover the largest possible area.

In addition, there are ordinary garden and fan rakes . And they are distinguished as follows: garden rakes have teeth that are quite wide and rounded at the end, while fan (lawn) rakes, on the contrary, have thin teeth arranged in a fan. Garden rakes are indispensable in the process of leveling the soil. Fan rakes are designed for garden cleaning: collecting fallen leaves, mown grass, etc.

In addition to the usual shovels, hoes, rakes and pitchforks, there are not so popular, but no less useful tools that will greatly facilitate your work.

Rippers

A ripper will help you loosen the soil in the beds and flower gardens - a simple hand tool that will become a real assistant for every summer resident. Rippers, depending on the manufacturer, can have from 3 to 7 teeth with a working width from 10 to 30 cm.

How to choose a ripper

One of the important indicators of the quality of a manual ripper is the weight of the tool: it should not be too heavy or too light. Therefore, before purchasing a ripper, compare several models and choose the most convenient one.

Marker

Another tool is a hand marker, which is used in beds and flower beds to mark rows. There are two types of markers: jagged , used for marking holes, and slatted , which is used for marking furrows. The marker can be made from either wood or metal. Which one you prefer is up to you.

Technical features

If we talk about the technical characteristics of a country tool, then, in fact, a hoe is a small metal shield, which is attached at an angle of 90 degrees to a long wooden handle. The shield is made in the following shapes:

• rectangular;
• triangular;
• trapezoidal.

When purchasing, choose the type that is most suitable for the work ahead. Pay attention to the material used to make the metal blade, as this is what determines the quality of the purchased tool. Often, farms need hoees and shovels of different lengths and shapes for hilling, forming beds and removing weeds.

Hand cultivators

Loosen the soil before sowing seeds and mix fertilizers with the soil, trim the root system of weeds and destroy the earth crust, thereby adjusting the air and water regime of the soil - nothing is easier if you have a hand cultivator. It consists of a steel attachment attached to a long handle, on which, in turn, 4 rotating disks are attached (most often they are made in the shape of stars, which is why the cultivator is called a star cultivator) and a special pruning knife.

The width of the working surface of a hand-held cultivator, depending on the model and manufacturer, varies from 6 to 16 cm. To put the hand-held cultivator into action, you need to lightly press the tool and move it along the surface of the soil. The discs will cut the roots of the weeds and, together with a special pruning knife, will loosen the ground.

As for the material from which hand cultivators are made, most often it is ordinary or structural steel. In the second case, the products are of higher quality and more durable, but they are much more expensive.

How to do it yourself

Today you can easily buy the necessary garden tools at any specialized store. But if you are a “homely” summer resident and like to do everything with your own hands, then why not make a hoe yourself.

So, let's look at how to assemble garden tools from scrap materials with your own hands. For the handle, you can use any long stick from the available tools, and for the blade, you can sharpen any hardened metal from what you have in the shed and is no longer quite working.

Fokina flat cutter

A relatively new, but incredibly popular today Fokina flat cutter is nothing more than an ordinary metal bracket, sharpened on one side and attached to a long handle. Many gardeners claim that the Fokina flat cutter works wonders and can replace almost all tools for cultivating the soil - a shovel, a ripper, a hoe. But is this really so, we just have to figure it out. The Fokina flat cutter, despite its growing popularity, remains a completely mysterious tool for many. That is why I propose to discuss all its pros and cons in one of the following articles.

Of course, I have not listed all the tools for cultivating the soil, but only the most popular ones. There are still many different devices that are created to make our lives easier and make work in our summer cottage less burdensome and more productive. Some meet our expectations, others, on the contrary, disappoint. But we, summer residents :), I think, would like to know about each of these tools. That is why I ask you to complete me. Tell us in the comments what soil cultivation tools you use and why. What do you like or dislike about them?

Source: 7dach