Get a HANDLE on It

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This line is clearly marketed toward women, who often find long-handled gardening tools easier to work with than standard tools. But long-handled tools will benefit many gardeners. "We developed these tools with two markets in mind; the young and the elderly, and/or handicapped who have difficulty reaching the earth with a standard tool," says Peter Sonderegger, president of Garden Tools of Maine. Arm's Length, their long-handled line, is especially useful to anyone who gardens from a sitting position. Each tool comes with a two-foot ash handle and leather hang cord. There are five standard, forged heads available: three-tined cultivator, trowel, wire rake, dandelion weeder and fork. All heads can be ordered with the long handle.

Hoes, the tool most commonly used by home gardeners and farmers alike, constitute the largest category of long-handled garden tools. Although standard hoe blades range two to five inches in width, hoes come in a bewildering array of blade sizes and shapes for general- and special-purpose use.

The newest hoe on the scene is the Rogue hand hoe from Prohoe, available through Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds. Basically a one-handed version of their model 70G, the blade is forged from recycled disk hoe blades sharpened on three sides. This hoe does not need to be filed before first use and can usually make it through the season of heavy use without resharpening. The Rogue sports a 12-inch ferruled hardwood handle and its blade is bent slightly inward, which reduces fatigue. Prohoe, by the way, enjoys a high reputation among farmers - the company deserves better recognition by home gardeners and small market growers.

When it comes to elegance, nothing holds a candle to traditional Japanese garden tools, and the hoes are no exception. A typical Japanese blade is slightly cup-shaped and tapers outward from the handle. Hida Tool Co. has perhaps the broadest line of traditional Japanese tools. Among those intended for one-handed use are eight designs the company classifies as hoes. Two of these, however, are actually fork-like cultivators, and two combine hoe blades with other tools.

Each hoe comes with a 15-inch oak handle and includes a metal wedge. We particularly like the three-inch-wide window hoe, designed to keep soil from building up behind the blade. Hida also offers a heavy-duty, three-tined forged cultivator mounted on a 12-inch oak handle, as well as a selection of weeders and scrapers. The V-shaped scraper is particularly useful. Its sharpened, trowel-like blade is mounted at right angles to the 16-inch handle, which makes it ideal for weeding in tight corners and between stones. It also serves as an off-set trowel, perfect for planting bulbs and similar tasks.

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