Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
you can easily turn soil or lift out rocks without the tines bending.
The compost fork has four fine, curved tines that can easily penet-
rate and hold on to the organic matter. You want this fork to be
lighter because you will be doing more lifting and throwing of materi-
als with it.
When choosing a fork, make sure the size and weight are a good
fit for you. Always choose the best quality you can afford.
Rake
The rake is used for preparing and cleaning your garden bed and for
collecting organic matter like garden debris and leaves. You want a
garden rake that has a long handle attached to a bar with small
tines. This type of rake is used for leveling and cleaning any larger
pebbles and debris from your planting bed. A fine clean bed is neces-
sary when planting seeds like carrots, radishes, turnips, rutabagas,
and salad greens.
The garden rake can be used for raking up leaves, grass clippings,
and other garden debris, but a leaf rake is much easier to work with
for these jobs. The leaf rake or landscape rake has longer teeth that
are arranged in a fan style. The tines or teeth are usually made of
steel, plastic, or bamboo. This allows you to easily rake up a larger
amount of debris.
Smoothie Garden Solution
You've seen the slapstick comedy bit where someone steps on a
rake and it swings upward and hits the person in the face. This can
look funny in a movie, but it can cause serious injury to a person if
it happens in your garden. Be aware of where you leave your rake
and never leave it with the tines facing upward!
