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Hand Tools If
you are into "Green Gardening" then hand tools are the real green
option. Through the years there have been many designs and innovations.
The first spade was probably an Ox shoulder blade bone, the first fork
a tree branch. Certainly the first plough was a forked tree branch
hitched to an Ox by the long side, the short side digging into the
earth and controlled by a whittled down rear end.
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| Care
of Hand Tools Apart from stainless steel tools, all
hand tools will rust unless measures are taken to prevent it. It is common practice
on farms to paint working
surfaces over with oil, I have found that the best oil to use is gear
oil (Hypoid). Engine oil has detergent in it and will allow water to
emulsify with it. In order to not get too thick a coat on, I thin the
gear oil with paraffin which evaporates off.
The
SpadeAlthough
there
are many types of spade, the only ones easily available in the UK
in Garden Centres are the Norfolk Spades. The other spade which I have
found useful is the draining spade, this is a very strong and long
spade (a professional tool). I have found it useful for chopping
through tree and shrub roots. But they are expensive ,
where the Norfolk spade will cost from £10 to £30 the
draining spade will cost £50 to £60.
Norfolk spades are not the strongest design of digging spade, so it is not unknown for them to break. Because of the mass production of Norfolk spades it is possible to buy some at a very low price (I have a stainless steel Norfolk spade which cost only £7). When digging compacted clay, you will find it easier to make three cuts for the first spadeful ( |_| , |=1st & 2nd, _= 3rd ) in a row and then two cuts for the rest of the row ( |_ or _| , |=1st, _= 2nd). The Fork
A
normal digging fork usually costs the same as a Norfolk spade, it is
used to dig normally cultivated soil, clay or loam but not sandy land
as this falls through the tines.
When digging, always dig to a full depth (the top of the blade goes down level with the surface of the ground). If you find it too heavy to lift, take a slightly thinner slice. |
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| Wolf Garten Tools Wolf
Garten is a German Manufacturer of garden tools, they have been known
for many years for their "Multi-change" range. Although slightly
more expensive than normal tools they are very good quality. If you do
not have a lot of storage space they are ideal as you can have a range
of tools with one or two handles.
My range of tools (pictured right) has been collected over many years. 1. Hand Fork 2. Small Rake, suitable for raking between rows of plants. 3. High Reach Shears, for cutting high hedges and topiary. 4. High Reach Tree Lopper. 5. Fruit Picker. 6. Soil Aerator, this has rusted after being lost for several years but still works. 7. A Grubber, for loosening soil or grubbing out roots. Wolf Garten/Tesco
Range
In the early 1980's
Tesco Supermarkets had a garden centre department,
they had Wolf Tools specially made for them. The tools were standard
Wolf range but instead of a red plastic fitting it was black. Some of
my range date from this time.
1. Soil Rake 2. Hand Trowel 3. Lawn Edge Trimmer, no longer available. 4. Hand Fork 5. Lawn Rake 6. Lawn Edging Tool Various lengths of handle are available from 16cm to 165cm. They also make an extending handle (2 to 3 metres), I needed a longer handle so made one up from aluminium tube which is 4.5 metres long. I needed this because my neighbour fails to cut his thorn hedge which is now up to 7 metres high. Many Garden Centres who stock Wolf Garten Tools do special offers of a tool and handle for the price of the handle. My local dealer not only has these offers but has discounted them as well. To be continued |
 Wolf Garten Tools  Wolf Garten/Tesco Tools |
