Have the Ultimate Gardening Experience Using the Best Hand Shovels

Hand shovels or trowels are garden tools used with one hand. The tool is ideal for digging in containers, making small holes to plant new plants, digging weeds out, or transplanting. The shovel blade is long, and the handle is short. Find even more information about these garden tools below. 

What Is a Hand Shovel?

The hand shovel is used for digging, scooping, and moving loose materials, including soil, sand, and tarmac. Shovels come in various sizes and shapes. It may seem easy to choose the right shovel because the tool is familiar and everyone uses it, but it isn’t. For many of us, no matter how different the appearance of a shovel is, it’s still a shovel. The point is that you should not ignore differences, such as the angle and shape of the blade.

Using a shovel, you can dig a hole and remove the earth. You can customize it for different purposes and environments. They can be used for various tasks, such as shoveling snow, digging tunnels in confined spaces, or laying pipes and cables, while others are designed for multi-tasking. Selecting a shovel can be difficult because there are so many choices. You will find a wide variety of spades and shovels in any DIY store or garden center. It is very convenient to have multiple shovels of different designs to handle any job. The most important thing is to choose a quality shovel. However, if you can only afford one shovel, it will need to be extremely versatile. Trust us, tons of hand shovels fit this profile.

Hand Shovels vs. Long Shovels

The purpose of a shovel is to dig up the soil and incorporate compost into the soil of a flower bed. There are several types of long-handled shovels, which feature long handles of up to 48 inches (122 cm). In most shovels, the tip of the handle is usually not metal. You can identify long-handled shovels most easily when lined against a wall with short-handled shovels. 

How to choose between long and short-handled shovels? When should long-handled shovels be used? These and many other questions are part of the hundreds of questions that most gardeners like you have when selecting the right tool for a gardening task. In the garden, you can use long-handled shovels for a variety of tasks. Almost every expert agrees that long-handled shovels are superior to other tools. You can sit upright more often and bend less over with them.

There is no harm in having both long shovels and a hand shovel. That is if you can afford it. You can use the long shovels for deep digging and heavy duties, while you can use the hand shovel for mild planting and gardening. 

How To Get the Best Hand Shovel?

You should consider several factors before buying a hand shovel. Among the many things to consider are the material used, the type of construction, grip quality, and durability. Finding the best hand shovel for your garden becomes easier when you know all the important factors to look out for.

Types of Blades

In the hand shovel market, one can find a variety of blade types, including Dixter, ladle, traditional, and transplanting blades. Buying these blades means knowing they are designed for different gardening tasks.

• Gardening tools with traditional blades tend to be large, curved, and designed to handle a variety of chores.
• Seeds and weeds can be easily removed from the garden using the transplanting blade’s pointed tip.
• For moving small plants to new pots, a Dixter blade is ideal. It is round-ended and has a long, straight handle.
• The ladles are made with rounded edges and used to dig and scoop soil.

Shovel Design

An effective shovel is designed to last a long time. Having a one-piece trowel will make it last for a long time. However, a shovel with a separate blade and handle joined with screws is more likely to break and bend under pressure. 

Material

A garden tool’s material is an important consideration for buying one. Blades for hand shovels need to be crafted from either aluminum or carbon steel. However, some manufacturers use stainless steel for construction and add an extra layer of rust-proofing to enhance the reliability of their instruments. Rust-resistant blades are critical because a non-rust-resistant blade will get damaged easily under constant exposure to moisture.

Grip

No one wants wrist aches and bruises from gardening work. You should buy a hand shovel with a good grip, so you don’t get fatigued and your wrists hurt. The grip of most trowels has an ergonomic gel design that is comfortable and makes it easier to handle heavy tasks. The grip should also be soft on the palm to avoid blisters.

Weight

Hand shovels that weigh more than 500 grams are extremely difficult to use. Prior to purchasing the trowel, confirm its weight. This can lead to buying a shovel with no real purpose. A heavy shovel may dampen your morale.

Cost

No one likes to go out of budget when purchasing an item like a hand shovel. It’s always possible to find much more affordable tools to complement the expensive ones. To avoid overspending on a shovel, cross reference prices from different stores.

Final Thoughts on Hand Shovels

Start a new garden with a good hand shovel. You won’t find a better tool. These shovels are also very durable and do not have to be maintained often. We hope that the hand shovels we reviewed helped you as you search for the perfect gardening tool.