Whilst Garden Tools digging the soil, obstacles can be removed, air spaces created and organic matter incorporated. Shovels are hopeless tools for digging.
They have square mouths that make them ideal for shovelling and moving the soil and small spades can be used to create a spade edge against a lawn border.
When buying a garden fork, avoid those that are made from weak metals as they will bend easily and be ineffective.
Forks made of a stronger metal such as steel are ideal and will make the task a lot easier.
Forks are often preferable to spades for digging over the garden because they don't cut up the worms.
With their four pointed tines, they penetrate stony or compacted ground more easily than a spade, but they bring less soil to the surface.
The back of the fork can also be used to break up clods. Forks are more efficient than spades when digging heavy soils, as clay doesn’t stick to the tines as it does to a solid blade.
Spades and forks are similar in construction, and the same considerations regarding materials, joints, handle lengths and grips apply when choosing them.
A spade slices into the soil, then is lifted to turn the earth. Spades have numerous other uses from planting trees and shrubs to cutting turf.
Heavy spades such as those made from forged steel are excellent because they allow you to dig deep in the clay layers of the soil.
You can also use the back of the spade to break up clumps of Garden Shredder soil.