With all the power tools on the market, many people may wonder why they would even think about hand gardening tools as they plant their annual vegetable and flowering plants. However, for some it is a labor of love, getting their hands dirty and believing they haven’t done any work if their backs don’t hurt at the end of the day. For others, it is easier to get around some of the plants with hand gardening tools such as a small handheld cultivator than it is with their 10-horsepower gas-driven cultivator.
While the power equipment can help with a weekend project of getting the garden ready for planting, once everything is growing and fruit is starting to show on the vines, getting that equipment between rows can be a hazard to the growing plants. This is where some of the hand gardening tools can come in handy to get the job done without fear of damaging the ones already growing.
Additionally, people with smaller gardens may not have the need for some of the larger power tools and the hand gardening tools will do the job. Even flower beds can be properly tended with many of the hand gardening tools on the market to break up clay or to cut through old roots to make way for new plants.
Small Plots Still Need Appropriate Attention
For the small plot gardener, have a power tiller can be a waste of time and money and the use of hand gardening tools can get the job done with less effort. While using a shovel to turn soil that has never been planted may require some power equipment, planting the same area year-after-year can be quickly loosened and ready to plant with the use of a good, old fashioned round-tipped shovel.
A hand cultivator can break up the clumps of dirt and help fold in the old leaves placed on top of the dirt in the fall. Turning it with a shovel and then using the other hand gardening tools to work it into the proper mix can provide fertilized soil for the new plants to grow. Yes, it will be physical work, but running gas-power tiller through a small space can be equally demanding when making a series of tight turns in a restricted space.
Living in an apartment and using containers in which to grow flowers and vegetables, hand gardening tools are a must. They can be used to keep the soil fresh and ready to plant as well as help keep the weed count down.
