HAVING THE RIGHT TOOLS WILL HELP YOU IN GARDEN

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, January 15, 1992                   TAG: 9201150015
SECTION: CURRENT                    PAGE: NRV-12   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: Joe Hunnings
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium
HAVING THE RIGHT TOOLS WILL HELP YOU IN GARDEN
Garden catalogs and stores are full of gardening tools. Many of them are specialized, some are useful, others are nice but not necessary, and some are just plain gimmicks.
The gardening equipment you need depends on the size of your garden, your age and strength, and whether you want to get the job done in a hurry or prefer to take your time.
The minimum equipment needed by most gardeners includes a shovel or spade, a hoe, a rake and a trowel.
A wide selection of styles is available for each tool. The choice really is one of personal preference and price range.
You can get the best value in a particular price range by knowing the uses for each tool and the possible choices to look for when shopping and comparing.
Shovels and spades both come with long handles or short D-shaped handles. The choice depends on personal preference.
Long handles offer greater leverage and may be less tiring to use, while short handles are often thicker and stronger.
A spading fork is ideal for breaking and turning heavy soils and for loosening subsoil layers. Turning coarse compost, spreading mulch and digging root crops are other jobs for which a digging or spading fork is suited.
The lighter-weight hay fork is useful for spreading mulch and moving leaves but will not handle heavy work.
A hoe is needed to prepare the seed bed, remove weeds and break encrusted soil.
Probably the most commonly used hoe is the square-bladed one, which lends itself well to most garden tasks. The pointed hoe with a heart-shaped blade is lightweight and useful for opening seed furrows and cultivating between plants.
The hula or action hoe is a type of scuffle hoe that is very lightweight and maneuverable. Pushing and pulling it just under the soil surface eliminates newly emerging weeds and breaks up any crust on the soil surface.
This type of hoe is most easily used on soil that is not compacted, because the blade is relatively thin and lacks the clod-breaking capabilities of heavier hoes. It also is less effective where weeds have gotten a good start.
Other types of scuffle hoes are more sturdy and are used with a pushing motion, rather than pushing and pulling.
A sturdy rake is useful in clearing the garden of rocks and debris. It also is helpful in spreading mulch and smoothing seedbeds.
As the number of tines - or prongs - increases, so does the rake's weight. Get a rake that is right for your size and strength and the intended tasks. Avoid one that is so heavy it will tire you quickly.
The length of the handle is important. A handle that is too short will make your work harder by causing excess bending and back strain.
When standing upright, the tip of a rake's handle should reach your ear.
A trowel will be in constant use, especially in the spring, for those many digging jobs that need not be done with full-sized tools.
The trowel is perfect for transplanting seedlings and bulbs or digging shallow-rooted weeds.
Another useful small digging tool is appropriately named a "digger" (or a weeder, cultivator or asparagus knife). This tool is available at most hardware or discount stores for a few dollars.
It is indispensable for digging weeds with long taproots, such as dandelions or Queen Anne's lace, or for prying out johnson grass.

Joe Hunnings is the Virginia Cooperative Extension Service agent for agriculture, based in Christiansburg. If you have questions, you can call the Montgomery County extension office at 382-5790.

NOTE: "tools" corrected for "rools" in headline.

by Archana Subramaniam by CNB