How To Choos The Best Spade

[bluegeranium]

Hi there

I am a 60 year old female who is looking for a general spade that is reasonably lightweight.
I mainly use it for digging up plants and digging planting holes so was wondering if a pointed one would be better?

Also I have seen this one and thought it may be good as I am quite short.

http://www.fiskars.co.uk/Gardening-Yard-Care/Products/Soil-Beds/Spades/131300-Fiskars-Telescopic-Garden-Spade-Pointed

Any help or advice would be gratefully received.

[Chipchopper]

Personally, I'd plump for a stainless steel border spade

[woofgang]

The answer is to go out to the shops and try them. A heavier spade can feel lighter than a lighter one because the balance is better. Over years of spade use, i haven't found any difference between a pointed one and a flat edged one; also in my experience, you will need a fork as well as a spade.

[ferlew]

I recommend this one, and the matching border fork.
http://www.robertdyas.co.uk/wilkinson-sword-stainless-steel-border-spade

[SlackAlice]

I'm with woofgang on this one.

I needed a spade and went round trying them all, from the ridiculously overpriced to the cheapest. I finally settled for a set of stainless steel border fork and spade from Asda. Still got them 10 years on and still going strong.

Not sure about the pointed end, cannot see much benefit in it.

[carrust]

The best spade is an old spade as gardeners say. I'd take a look around charity shops, car boots etc to see if you could pick one up. I've got my fathers old spade & it's as sharp as a razor due to years of use. It takes very little effort to get it into the soil.

[heathfield]

Spades and shovels - each has a different purpose. The pointed ones, (known as roundnosed), are for digging holes in harder ground, like exposing a leaking water pipe. The pointed end pierces the compacted soil more easily than does a flatnosed spade. The flatnosed blade you'd use in the garden, where soil is generally looser and easier to penetrate. It's also a better shape for trenching, as when preparing the gound for planting leeks, for example. Shovels are used for moving loose materials such as coal, sand, or gravel, and have turned-up edges to stop the stuff from spilling off the sides. Not the best shape for digging. For the garden, I'd go for a flatnosed blade. They come in various blade sizes, the smaller ones often being referred to as 'ladies spades'. Often the cheaper ones are better value. I've found that those made by Yeoman are of good quality, and not too expensive.

[bluegeranium]

Thanks for all the info I think I will go to the garden centre and have a try now I know what to look for!

[Clanad]

Rather late to the question, but I would suggest (based on the use to which you mainly will put it) this one. Although readily available here in the Colonies, I suspect you'd be able to find one in the UK as well:

http://www.globalindustrial.com/p/outdoor-grounds-maintenance/garden-tools/shovels-spades/drain-post-spades-47202?infoParam.campaignId=T9A&gclid=CLP954WIprwCFUJo7AodwRIAfg

Apologies for the Url.

Nice thing about the tile spade (we call it a sharp shooter here in the western U.S.) is the socket (the part that holds the wooden handle to the shovel head) is quite deep and very sturdy and one can put a lot of leverage on it. We use it in gardening almost exclusively. It digs a very nice 5 to 6 inch wide hole to receive bulbs as well as digs up individual root crops without unecessarily disturbing theier neighboring plants...