Always select a tool that will perform the task that it is meant to do efficiently. It is also wise to take into account how frequently it is likely to be used as this could determine the amount you arc prepared to spend on it. As a rule spend as much as you can afford because well-designed mid well-made tools are a pleasure to use and will last a lifetime. Cheap tools will soon break or rust.

Spades
Spades are available with shafts of different lengths and blades of different sizes. The standard spade blade measures about 29 x 19cm (11.5 x 7.5in ), smaller spades are 25 x 17 m ( 10 x 6.5 in ), and a border spade is 23 x 14cm (9 x 5.5in). Choose whichever is most comfortable to use and bear in mind that heavy digging will probably be easier with the middle size Choose a shaft length to suit your height. The shaft of the spade should have a gentle crank tot allow maximum leverage. and the strapped or tubular socket should be securely attached to the shaft. Metal tread, Welded to the upper Of tilt' blade makes digging heavy soil less painful to the foot.

Spades that have stainless steel blades are far more expensive than those with blades of forged steel. but they are long lasting and cut into the soil much more easily than ordinary steel spades.

An essential tool for digging the spade is also efficient for skimming weed growth off the soil before cultivation begins. Always hold the spade upright when cutting into tile soil so that the ground is cultivated to the full depth of tile blade. A spade is also useful when you are planting trees and shrubs, and for mixing compost.

Forks
A garden fork is just as useful as a spade and is similarly manufactured. The four tines (prongs) may he square in cross-section, as in the general-purchase or digging fork or flat, as in the potato fork which is designed to avoid damaging tubers at harvesting \The head of the digging fork measures 30 x 19cm (12 x 7.5in), the smaller border fork is 23 x 14cm (9 x 5.5in) Both stainless and forged steel types are available.

A fork is easier to use than a spade for digging- heavy soil. It is essential for breaking down roughly dug soil and for lightly cultivating well-worked ground before seeds are sown and young plant's and shrubs, and a larger fork is useful for moving compost and manure. Both can be used to aerate lawns.

Trowel
This invaluable planting tool Usually has a wooden or polypropylene handle. 10-15cm (4-6in) long. Versions with longer handles are available. but they may be less comfortable to use if you can buy a trowel with Stainless steel rather than a forged steel blade because it will he much easier to use. It will be less likely to bend and will not rust.

A trowel can be used like a shovel or flour scoop and also as if it were a digging claw - use it whichever way is comfortable and effective for you to plant bedding and herbaceous plants, vegetables and bulbs.

Hand Tools
A hand tool will probably be the first thing you buy. One that sits comfortably in your hand and spend as much as you can afford. Forks are the same size of trowels, but with three or four prongs, and are made in the same way.

Use your fork for transplanting seedlings, for working among tightly packed plants, such as alpines in the rock garden, and for intricate planting and weeding. It is an invaluable tool.

Rakes
The most popular type of garden rake has a steel head about 30cm (12in) wide, fitted with teeth 5cm (2in) long. The shaft should be about 1.5m (5ft) long and smooth to allow a good backwards and forwards motion. Larger wooden rakes are useful for gathering up leaves, grass and debris, which get clogged in the teeth of steel rakes, but they are not essential.

The main use of the rake is to level soil that has been previously broken down to a reasonable tilth (fine, crumbly, texture) with a garden fork. Although to rake the soil texture even filter, it should not be over-used or the soil will be inclined to compact. Move the rake backwards and forwards over the soil in a sweeping motion, first in one direction and then right angles to ensure an even finish.

Hoes
Ther are manv different types of hoe, but the two most important are the Dutch hoe and the draw hoe.

Both are equipped with handles about 1.5m (5ft) long and forged of stainless steel blades. The head of the

Dutch hoe has a flat blade, 10-12cm (4-5in) long, designed to cut almost horizontally through the soil. A draw hoe's head is of a similar width, but rectangular or semicircular mid attached at right angles to the handle. It is used with a chopping or scraping motion.

The Dutch hoe is perhaps the best tool for general weeding, as the gardener skims it backwards mid forwards, just below the Surface of the soil while walking backwards. In this way- the cultivated ground is not walked over and the weeds (severed from their roots) are left to dry out in the loose soil. The Dutch hoe is also used for breaking up surface pans.

With the draw hoe the gardener must move forwards, chopping the soil and pulling it towards them slightly or scraping the weeds off the surface. The draw hoe (despite its disadvantage of forcing the gardener to walk over the cultivated soil) is safer to use among closely spaced plants than a Dutch hoe. Both types of hoe can be used to create seed drills against a taut garden line, and the draw hoe is used to earth up (mound soil around) vegetables. Such as potatoes, leeks and celery.

Wheelbarrows
You will need a wheelbarrow only if your garden is large or if you have a vegetable plot, when it will save you a lot of time and energy. Always check the weight distribution of a barrow before buying it - as much of the load as possible should be placed over the wheel so that the barrow, not you, takes most of the weight. Barrows are available with large, inflated, ball-shaped wheels, and these are especially useful if the ground is particularly soft.
Small, two-wheeled barrows call be easier to load, unload and push than single-wheeled types. Models with solid tyres are adequate where the ground is hard enough for sinkage not to be a problem. Make sure that the chosen barrow is large enough but is not too heavy.

If you have a wheelbarrow you will be able to move compost, manure, soil, sacks of fertilizer and all manner of equipment around the garden. Stand the barrow upright against a wall or under cover when it is not in use.

Source: How to garden, Hamlyn