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7 Essential Gardening Tools

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Written by Dave Truman

Thursday, 17 April 2008

by DaveTruman

Most of us have seen our parents gardening when we were young. There may have been lots of tools that you may have even played with. You will need some tools of your own if you want to garden as a grownup now.

There are many different garden tools at hand at your local gardening spot. The tools will be in different price ranges and the trick is to not buy a lot of expensive things that you may never use.

Your first item should be a spading fork. It looks similar to a pitch fork, but with a shorter handle and wider tines. The spading fork will help you loosen the hard soil and work the ground so you can add plants.

You will need to prepare the ground with a hoe after you've dug it. A hoe will allow you to cultivate the soil so nutrients and water will be able to find its way to the plants. You may also need a round ended shovel if you plan to plant larger items such as trees or shrubs.

Your best friend in the garden is water. Your watering can should be equipped with a long nozzle which controls the rate of water flow to allow you a gentle plant watering. It will also enable you to be a little further away while watering the plants. When your seedlings are young, a watering can that has a detachable head is also very useful.

Leveling your garden prior to planting can be done with a bow rake. This gets its name from having a metal frame shaped like a bow. It has short tines attached to one side of the rake. The bow rake allows for easier removal of rocks or large clods of earth. You can smooth the soil with the flat side to make the garden ready for your plants.

Good but inexpensive garden shears can remove dead branches and stems from your plants. You can prune and shape your trees and shrubs with this gardening tool. Before you buy a pair of garden shears or clippers as they are also called, make sure that the shears will fit your hand comfortably.

These are just the basic gardening items to start you off. As your interest in gardening grows, you will also expand your knowledge of what other tools are available and what would be appropriate for you.

About the Author:

Looking for more ideas for your vegetable garden layout? Visit the Vegetable Gardeners website for lots more helpful tips & ideas for growing a wonderful garden. Plus get three free reports about getting your garden started off right at http://www.vegetablegardeners.com

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