[AlaninCarlisle]

Mines a drain spade I bought years ago. It has a long steel shaft and a narrow blade about 18" long and 6" wide tapering to 3" at the bottom. Perfect for digging out prior to moving any fruit bushes, lethal for digging out quite large sycamore saplings, ideal for getting those prize parsnips out of the ground in one piece and making post-holes when fencing. Probably quite good for drainage channels too. All courtesy of Wickes's sale many years ago

[Growster...]

Forgive me for the waffle before, but I still rate my Growstada...

http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=85597.msg951930#msg951930

[wapello]

  Me,  with out me everything  else  is  useless,,,,

[snowdrops]

  Me,  with out me everything  else  is  useless,,,,

Snap, that's what I was going to reply when I saw the thread title😄, great minds think alike(& fools seldom differ, I know). Other than that I find my swoe,invaluable on the allotment but my small fork,think hand fork,but on a long handle for the borders at home

[Growster...]

  Me,  with out me everything  else  is  useless,,,,

Snap, that's what I was going to reply when I saw the thread title😄, great minds think alike(& fools seldom differ, I know). Other than that I find my swoe,invaluable on the allotment but my small fork,think hand fork,but on a long handle for the borders at home

Snowy, we keep seeing these hand forks on long handles, and wonder if they're up to the job! (My Swoe is always a favourite, and is used nearly everywhere)!

You rate them do you?

[jaydig]

  Me,  with out me everything  else  is  useless,,,,

Snap, that's what I was going to reply when I saw the thread title😄, great minds think alike(& fools seldom differ, I know). Other than that I find my swoe,invaluable on the allotment but my small fork,think hand fork,but on a long handle for the borders at home

I've just bought a hand fork attachment for my long handle Wolf system, and it is brilliant!  I don't know why I didn't get one ages ago.  Now I'm older the knees don't bend, and it's too painful to kneel.  If I sit on the ground to weed I can't get up again easily, and this little fork means I can go round small plants and seedlings without decapitating them with a hoe. 

[snowdrops]

  Me,  with out me everything  else  is  useless,,,,

Snap, that's what I was going to reply when I saw the thread title😄, great minds think alike(& fools seldom differ, I know). Other than that I find my swoe,invaluable on the allotment but my small fork,think hand fork,but on a long handle for the borders at home

Snowy, we keep seeing these hand forks on long handles, and wonder if they're up to the job! (My Swoe is always a favourite, and is used nearly everywhere)!

You rate them do you?

Yes very much so at home, it also doubles as a stabbed to pick things up, or I stick it in the ground if I am kneeling then use it to power myself upright if I'm feeling somewhat jaded

[Growster...]

Hopefully I'm not stating the obvious, Jay and Snowy, but have you tried one of these?

They take out so much of the huff and puff, and also, you can actually sit inside it, and lean back for a near-ground experience!

We have one each - life's too short to share a garden kneeler!

[snowdrops]

Yes I've had a go with one as my daughter inherited 1 in her garden shed when she bought her house( shed full of beautiful old ash handled tools- jealous, moi) but I find I kept slipping off it & the handles got in my way,mind you getting out brambles roots( that she inherited with the house, all 10ft high of them 180ft x20ft) was probably not a fair trial of it.

[jaydig]

I had looked at these, but I'm not sure if it would be more trouble to have to keep getting up and down to move it along.  What I really need is a system on the plot with tracks along each side of the 4' wide beds that can take a wheeled platform that I can lie on face down and just reach down and do the weeding that way.  I could have a pulley rope attached at both ends of the rows in order to propel myself along.  There would be room on the platform for refreshing drinks, snacks and all the tools I might need, together with a canopy for sunny days, and a waterproof cover for wet ones.  Digging I can cope with, it's the constant bending down to weed that's a problem.

[Growster...]

I had looked at these, but I'm not sure if it would be more trouble to have to keep getting up and down to move it along.  What I really need is a system on the plot with tracks along each side of the 4' wide beds that can take a wheeled platform that I can lie on face down and just reach down and do the weeding that way.  I could have a pulley rope attached at both ends of the rows in order to propel myself along.  There would be room on the platform for refreshing drinks, snacks and all the tools I might need, together with a canopy for sunny days, and a waterproof cover for wet ones.  Digging I can cope with, it's the constant bending down to weed that's a problem.

Yes I've had a go with one as my daughter inherited 1 in her garden shed when she bought her house( shed full of beautiful old ash handled tools- jealous, moi) but I find I kept slipping off it & the handles got in my way,mind you getting out brambles roots( that she inherited with the house, all 10ft high of them 180ft x20ft) was probably not a fair trial of it.

Love it!

Why not a set of old pram wheels? Chuck the bodywork, and nail a plank or three across the axles, together with a trailer for the tinctures, ice bucket, nibbles etc, and you're away!

Stoopers of Cortford still have the ones we bought for less than a tenner, and I promise you, they really do make weeding so much easier!

Or there's this one...

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Garden-Stool-Wheels-Gardening-Seat/dp/B002TI9FXE


Edited to add quote marks around the quote from snowdrops

[m1ckz]

its gota be the mantis tiller

[snowdrops]

I had looked at these, but I'm not sure if it would be more trouble to have to keep getting up and down to move it along.  What I really need is a system on the plot with tracks along each side of the 4' wide beds that can take a wheeled platform that I can lie on face down and just reach down and do the weeding that way.  I could have a pulley rope attached at both ends of the rows in order to propel myself along.  There would be room on the platform for refreshing drinks, snacks and all the tools I might need, together with a canopy for sunny days, and a waterproof cover for wet ones.  Digging I can cope with, it's the constant bending down to weed that's a problem.

Yes I've had a go with one as my daughter inherited 1 in her garden shed when she bought her house( shed full of beautiful old ash handled tools- jealous, moi) but I find I kept slipping off it & the handles got in my way,mind you getting out brambles roots( that she inherited with the house, all 10ft high of them 180ft x20ft) was probably not a fair trial of it.

Love it!

Why not a set of old pram wheels? Chuck the bodywork, and nail a plank or three across the axles, together with a trailer for the tinctures, ice bucket, nibbles etc, and you're away!

Stoopers of Cortford still have the ones we bought for less than a tenner, and I promise you, they really do make weeding so much easier!

Or there's this one...

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Garden-Stool-Wheels-Gardening-Seat/dp/B002TI9FXE


Edited to add quote marks around the quote from snowdrops

How about 1 of these
https://www.nrshealthcare.co.uk/household-aids/gardening-tools/garden-stool-on-wheels?fee=19&fep=1972&gclid=Cj0KEQjwmpW6BRCf5sXp59_U_ssBEiQAGCV9Gg3UfJ1r_u0Lf3CHoVqk_Z-KiVsdGRyGqAPvqnXzhaMaAkID8P8HAQ

[snowdrops]

https://www.nrshealthcare.co.uk/household-aids/gardening-tools/garden-stool-on-wheels?fee=19&fep=1972&gclid=Cj0KEQjwmpW6BRCf5sXp59_U_ssBEiQAGCV9Gg3UfJ1r_u0Lf3CHoVqk_Z-KiVsdGRyGqAPvqnXzhaMaAkID8P8HAQ

[Growster...]

Wow!

What a bit of kit!

I'll tell Mrs Growster, it's just what we need for the kitchen..;0)

Oops, you mean the garden really don't you..;0)