Common Vegetable Garden Tools

By gardener | Feb 5, 2008

The tools considered essential for maintaining a small or moderate-sized garden are a spade or four-pronged digging fork, trowel, rake, hoe, measuring stick, string, stakes, and irrigation equipment. With these tools at hand you can readily handle most garden tasks.
In purchasing tools consider the size of the garden, the job to be done, and the amount of money you wish to spend. In the long run, it pays to purchase tools of good quality, as they will give better service and stay sharp longer. If properly cared for, they can last a lifetime.

Spade

Spade with a sharp edge – used for turning soil and incorporating organic matter.
Four-pronged fork – good for mixing a compost pile.
Round-pointed shovel – good for mixing a compost pile.

Rake

Bow rake – good for smoothing out soil, removing stones, and breaking up clods.
Straight rake – designed so that its back can be used to smooth the seedbed and to compact soil over freshly shown seed for improved germination.

Hoe – comes in all shapes, sizes, and models used for preparing the seedbed, and for cultivating the soil to mix in fertilizer and control weeds.
A Common or Square-bladed filed hoe is good for most garden jobs.
A pointed or Warren hoe is good for opening a furrow by string and for cultivating between plants.
A scuffle hoe, made in several patterns with a flat bottom that cuts weeds off under the soil surface and breaks up the layer on top of the soil as it is pushed back and forth between the rows.

Long-Handled Cultivator- Used to Breaks up large clods and refines the seedbed.
Trowel- Used to transplant vegetable plants.

Hand Cultivator- Used for breaking up soil clods for light replanting.

Irrigation Equipment- such as watering can, garden and soaker hoses and sprinklers.

Hand Duster — Used to apply pesticides in powder form.

Compressed-Air Sprayer — Most popular piece of equipment for applying pesticides because it gives good coverage, especially to the underside of plant leafs.

String and Steaks — For row alignment.

Measuring Stick — For determining the distance between plants and rows.
Wheelbarrow or Garden Cart — Makes moving soil, stones, tools, and harvested vegetables much easier.

Wheel Cultivator — For removing weeds and preparing the soil.

Spreaders — For lime and fertilizer application:

A drop spreader covers less area than a broadcast spreader with each pass over the site, but the area covered is easier to detect.

A broadcast spreader applies materials uniformly, although the margins of the area covered may be difficult to see.

Hand Seeder – Majority of hand seeders are adapted to a wide variety of seed sizes.

Tiller — Makes soil preparation easy for serious gardeners who will use it enough to make the purchase worthwhile.

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