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Buying a garden fork is no complicated deal if you think smartly, as in any case of buying or purchasing. That’s what we are going to discuss in this guide.
If you haven’t yet, check out our recommendations for best garden fork for clay soil.
A garden fork, spade or any technical device that if fails in the middle of operation can make you really frustrated and even demotivated for some days.
Many people miss the trick of having a better time in the garden by buying cheap or low standard tools to save some pennies while others may spend many but choose a product without considering the features and cross-checking with your needs.
Following are the things to take into consideration before buying a garden fork;
Prongs and Head
This is the functional part of the fork, so come first and foremost in the account of your considerations. Usually, you may come across three types of qualities in prongs or head part i.e stainless steel, aluminium alloy and Iron.
You need to always look for steel made prongs as they are durable and rustproof. On the other hand, aluminum alloy can’t withstand force against the hardened soil and surfaces while iron has less life span and gets rust and adhesion quickly.
Design of Prongs
The nature of your work can determine this. For example, a garden fork with flat-faced prongs is ideal for turning over compost or soil for aeration. While, for harvesting root crops, you will need a fork with sharp and pointed tines.
Be it ventilated or separated prongs; the pointed tines must always be sharp if you want to dig trenches and cultivate in clay soil.
Sharp but resistant against bending, twisting but at the same time not as brittle to lose the shape.
A garden fork with four tines serves the purpose best in case of long handle forks, while three tines are more than enough for short and handy forks.
D-handle, O-handle or T-handle?
This depends on your choice and comfort level. Gardeners in the US prefer Round handed forks while those in Britain prefer D-handle.
However, T-shape handles may break quickly and are less durable as a design. For some gardeners, even a straight-shafted fork works which mean handle design doesn’t affect the quality of forking but only your comfort level.
Shaft of the Fork
Length: On average, a fork with a shaft of 22 to 30 inches serves the purpose well for the average height person. In case if you are too tall or too short, do consider the size that suits you best.
For low key weeding and cultivating soil, short and handy forks with three tines are ideal for offering easy use and less strain.
Material: Lightweight fiberglass will flex in most of the cases. Steel has high durability but keeps in mind that it will have extra weight as well.
Hardwood is breakable, but what is the thing which doesn’t break these days. However, Hardwood is lightweight and offers a good grip.
Conclusion
If you have an average height, with no Low back pain complaint and your nature of work is routine forking for turning soil and cultivating, then we would recommend you the best of the lot that is Fiskars Ergo D-handle Steel Garden Fork, which has all the features that will suit you.
In case of particular need and query, cross-check the features of our best garden fork recommendations with your requirement and choose the best one.