There are several garden hand tools that are helpful companions in the garden, but keep these particular garden tools in mind whenever you're getting started on a project.
Trowel
This small tool is used for surface cultivation–planting, removing weeds, loosening the soil surface and marking out seed drills–as well as for measuring small amounts of soil, compost or fertilizer. The rounded, tapering blade, sometimes with cranked neck, is fitted with a 4- to 6-inch (10- to 15-cm) wooden or plastic handle. Make sure that the head is forged from a single piece of steel and fitted to the handle with a separate ring or ferrule.
Hand fork
Of similar construction and size to a trowel, this has three or four flattened tines and is used for weeding in confined spaces, lifting young plants and lightly cultivating small areas such as pots, window boxes and growing bags.
Bulb planter
Used to bore holes in soil or a lawn when planting bulbs, this can save time when transplanting small outgrown plants, which often neatly fit the 3-inch (8 cm) wide holes or even planting potatoes. It is a tapering steel cylinder attached to a short or long handle at one end, with cutting teeth at the other.
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Although it’s small, a trowel can be used for planting, loosening soil and removing weeds.
