Spade forks, also called grave forks or piercing forks, were specially designed for loosening and digging the soil. At a Digging fork it is, so to speak, an intermediate between a pitchfork and a spade, They are used, for example, when harvesting potatoes, so that the ripe tubers when out of the earthdo not damage them. Furthermore, the spade forks are useful tools for digging foundations, bed enclosures, digging rootstocks, root-friendly digging and to loosen the soil.

Criteria to consider when choosing a Digging fork must be considered

Who his new Digging fork should use for many years regularly, should not blindly decide on the cheapest or the first best product. So the new one digging forkFor a long time to fulfill its function, several criteria must be considered when selecting the product.

An important selection criterion is the ergonomics of the garden tool. A good Digging fork must be good in the hand, the style of the gardening tool may still not be too short. If a model with a telescope style, such as the model Fiskars Digging fork Telescopic, multicolored, information should be obtained in advance, to what maximum height the style is extendable. A curly, extra long handle offers the advantage that the user does not have to stoop when digging in the ground, so the back is spared and premature fatigue is prevented. Particularly practical is a fork, which is also equipped with a kick guard, such as the product Gardena 3781-24 Terraline Spade Fork, D-handle, which relieves the joints and continues to provide protection against easily slip off or slip.

Another important selection criterion is the quality of the processing. The stem, which is equipped with the spade fork, should withstand a pressure of at least 60 kilograms without breaking. High-quality spade forks withstand a load of up to 120 kilograms. Particular attention should be paid to the fact that the connection between the spade blade and the stem, a typical weak point, such as the product Gardena 3781-24 Terraline Spade Fork, D-handle, solid processed. The material (wood or metal) from which the stem of the spade fork is made, must have sufficient hardness, so that the garden assistant can withstand even greater demands. Particularly recommended are wooden stems, which were made from the particularly flexible wood of the ash. Metal should have a hardness between 36 to 46 Rockwell. A too low bending ability is always the result of too low a hardness.

Spade forks made of stainless steel or of the combination of materials stainless steel and plastic look particularly classy. This combination of materials has proven to be virtually indestructible countless times in the past. Such a spade fork is completely maintenance-free and even frost can not damage it. Anyone who wants to purchase such a high-quality digging fork, for example the product Green Tower Spade Fork Stainless Steel 141290, must, however, be willing to pay about twice as much for his garden tool as for a conventional model made of metal or wood, for example the model Fiskars Classic Spatengabe 1,003,692th

Differences between a spade and a spade fork

A spade fork when digging up roots has the advantage that the pointed tines, which are equipped with the digger fork, penetrate much easier into the ground than the blade of a spade. Since the tines can be easily pushed between the roots, parts of a root are not accidentally chopped off and the rhizome can be replanted at another location in the garden. Slightly moving movements are quite sufficient to loosen up the earth. In addition, a conventional spade should be at hand to remove the loosened soil. Also, the earthworms living useful earthworms are not accidentally dismembered when working with a spade fork in two or more parts.

Tips for handling and maintaining a spade fork

A spade fork must not be leveraged during use in the ground under any circumstances, thereby breaking even the best quality forks. After each use, the gardening equipment must be cleaned of moisture, dirt and other contaminants and then stored in a dry room. The material from which the new garden forkis not subject to moisture without reason. Under no circumstances should a digging fork stand out in the open in rainy weather, as the wooden handle quickly loses its stability and becomes brittle in this case.