Gardening Tools

A few gardening tools are necessary for better gardening. They are needed for digging, leveling the ground, and breaking up soil clods, planting of seedlings, watering and pruning.

For digging large holes or large beds and lawns, you need a phawda. Light digging is best done with a hoe or khurpi. The soil can be dug upto 15 cm with one stroke. It can also be used like a hammer for breaking large clods of soil, or for leveling the ground. A garden fork is used for forking up the soil. This introduces air into the soil.

Watering can be done with a sprinkler, hose or a watering can. Watering cans are made of galvanized iron or plastic and come in different sizes. A small water can is better suited to home gardens being less cumbersome than a large one. A shower attachment fitted to the nozzle. of the watering can is best for watering seeds or seedlings, which tend to disperse while watering. A garden hose is used for lawns and flowerbeds. If it is used for pots, it tends to scatter the topsoil unless you have a showerhead or a shower gun fitted at the end of the hose. The trigger of the gun controls the kind of spray you want. The hose should be put away during the day to prevent it from getting cracked with ultraviolet radiation from the sun. Painting the hose black prevents sun damage. Lawn sprinklers can also be used for small gardens or uneven lawns. There are different designs of water sprinklers, the cleverest being the pop-up sprinklers. Another interesting and useful sprinkler is the one with two or four arms which rotate (from water pressure) throwing up a pleasing swirl of water.

Pruning requires a secateur and these are available in many different shapes and sizes. They should be selected according to their use, whether it is for small shrubs, for tree branches or for hedges. The one shown in the picture is a good, all purpose secateur.