You walk into a home improvement store to buy a shovel. No problem. Thing is, as you walk down the shovel aisle, you’re faced with rack after rack of different shovels; different shapes, different handles, different construction. For many people, this is where the headache begins.
Although many tools can be used for different purposes, some are better or worse at doing them. A simple spade shovel is great for general digging - moving soil form point A to point B. Try using a square edged shovel for the same job in San Diego soil and you’ll go nowhere.
Thing is, each of these tools were created with a specific task in mind. So it’s important to use the right tool for the right job.
Tom breaks down three groups of tools (cutting, digging and hand tools) and shows us which one he uses and which one he never uses. Trowels, for example, and nowhere to be seen in Tom’s toolbox. Instead, he uses a hand pick and what he calls a ‘slammer’; pick on one side and cultivator on the other.
When asked what tools Tom would pick if he was on a desert island, he would choose the ‘slammer,’ his folding saw and a narrow-spade (or “sharpshooter”) shovel.
Which tools would you take? Email us at downtoearth@ctn.org.
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