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So many bad reviews on the radius products, looks like I won't be buying
I love my radius tools. Have had them for years. But I still want to try a broad fork because I'm on old pasture land that is more compacted with areas of clay. I have broken one of my forks . But again, love my radius pro forks . The handles and weight are just right.
And for those that don't want to purchase the fork from Amazon, but directly from the company https://radiusgarden.com/collections/pro-stainless-steel-tools/products/pro-stainless-border-fork
What a great video. I've been considering a broadfork for our garden and I think is an excellent alternative.
Ergonomic, diverse farming tools, sold
Optionality!!! You millennials make up such cool words!!
Thanks for this, I've always used a digging fork for a variety of things (just because my Dad used one in the garden when I was a kid) and been surprised how few other people seem to appreciate its versatility.
Must be cold there
While I heartily agree — not every tool works everywhere and there are many tools and ways to do the same task — I don’t agree on a spade fork in place of a broad-fork. One of my favorite garden tools is my spade fork along with my grandmothers 50 yr old hoe fork. But a broad-fork has a very definite purpose — it’s not to dig like a shovel — it is what was used for centuries across the world and still is in place of a tiller. Like the spade fork, it is good for loosening the ground and works fine in heavy clay, rocky soil, or even easy, well cultivated soil that has had considerable cover cropping and is rich and loose though that’s a bit overkill. It’s job is to use in heavy, deep, rocky soil to save your back. It works off leverage using your body weight. You don’t wrestle it in the ground — you rest it on the ground and then step it in — no jumping and carrying on is needed. Just step it down from side to side. And then once in the ground, then place you hands close to the top of the handles, and gently rock it back with your weight. Don’t try to bring it back in one swoop — let the tool, and your weight do the job. If the ground is super hard, do it after a good rain. It might take once or twice to get it well lifted but your back won’t be ruined bending and lifting. I’m not far from 70, have gardened for 50 years, learned from grandparents who gardened for 70+ years — if you use a spade fork to turn over all your ground — your back won’t make it to 70. Broad-forks helped those who couldn’t afford tractors, horse teams and cultivators and then later rotary tillers. Also in spaces too small for larger equipment. Even today, horse teams are still used for logging where they don’t want to tear up a wooded area but need to cull and get the logs out. A single horse could work a small area but not as small as some sites — like our yards today, where space is quite limited, a broad-fork can really help. Now the issue is to get a good one, in the US, you will spend a minimum of $175 and usually up to $250. They come in different tine sizes and weights. The heavier and longer the fines — the deeper it’s going to “till”. And you don’t want to get the longest tines – a quality 16” long tine broad-fork is like 25 lbs and it’s a beast — most people only need something like a Meadow Creature 12” tines. Most annual vegetables only need 12”, tomatoes will go deeper but they will do that on their own. I have had them totally fill up a 32 gallon trashcan so yes they develop large root systems if given the opportunity. But most vegetables lettuces, squash, melons, carrots, etc won’t go much over 12” if they have room to spread. And if they need deeper territory, they will find their way. This isn’t really a tool for contained (boxed) raised beds. I don’t believe in raised beds any shallower than 12” and think 18-24” for a lot of reasons I will skip but you know them. Too many people make 6” raised beds, sit them on top of the ground and can’t figure why their plants don’t look good or they are constantly having to water. You need to work that dirt under the raised bed so the roots can travel to cooler, moister ground. Under the box, is another place the broad-fork works well. If you have hilled up raised beds say 8-12+ deep ie no box — this will work well each year to loosen the soil where it has compacted down. And you can use your spade fork to dig the aisle way out and back on the hilled up beds. Native soil is where the broad-fork shows it’s benefits in saving your back.
He mentioned a tree planting spake — used one for a number of years to help plant a pine tree plantation – they are great if you use it right. If you use it like a shovel — that’s incorrect in terms of planting bareroot seedlings or berries etc. His brief clip of using one it looked like they used it like a shovel. There are long narrow spades (trenching, rabbiting, etc) that night work better in those situations. How they are meant to work — You sit it on the ground, step on it, (you want a wide tread one and a decent length handle but not as long as a shovel, long enough so the handle hits a little above waist height or that’s what works for me). But once it goes straight down in the ground, you rock it forward, then you or a helper slips the tree in the slit and you rock the tool back to close the slit around the tree. You never remove the tool until the slit is closed. And we are talking bare root bundles here. If you need more space, you can rock back and forth a couple of times. However, the point is to not have too big an opening that an air pocket is left when you close it. A true professional tree seedling planting tool is made to accommodate commercial seedling root lengths.
Look I get it, all of this stuff is 5x the price it was just a few years ago – even plants are in my opinion a rip off. Today they sell us what 20 years ago were liners and cuttings only sold to finishing nurseries to grow on for a few months up to 2+ years before selling. Today they are trying to convince us this is better — it’s not. These plants are too young and fragile to be set out – but they are charging us like they are big 3 gallon plants. And we want to be smart in how we spend money — buy local if you can — Amazon can be up to twice as expensive because they work the shipping into the price. Plus we pay for free shipping membership at $13/ on the — it’s nuts. Don’t let convenience rob you of your financial security and growth. When we do spend money, we need for it to work, last decades, and be able to do more than one thing. A broad-fork is a bit of a specialty tool but it’s cheaper, less smellier, and no noise over a gas tiller. You can use it anytime day or night and disturb no one, you don’t have to get gas and or oil for it, no tuneup kits because the gas has gone bad, no draining, no batteries. Is it going to be like a big tiller no — but that is a once a year tool unless you have a commercial garden or have a big place to get settled. And you can use it for vegetable or ornamental beds, hedges, to do a row or an acre. Even loosening up a small area to then shovel out to plant a tree or shrub works well. You can use it to loosen up the ground for lawn sowing or even aeration. It’s quicker than a spade fork and your back will thank you – once you get the hang of it and aren’t fighting it doing its job.
Each to their own but if you buy a broad-fork there is one disadvantage, everyone wants to borrow it. Make sure you have one that has a lifetime warranty like Meadow Creature. Like tools, look for those that have been around for decades like BullDog (Clarington Forge) been around since 1700s in England but now a factory here too. Look for folks that have lifetime warranties — if someone won’t stand behind their tools for at least 5 years — look elsewhere. Look and try to buy a range for the job you need to do — home gardening, farming, commercial.
That garden pro looks like its sold out everywhere :/
Yeah ok. Its a nice fork. What brand is it. Where can we get it????
My clay soil would destroy that digging fork in less than a couple hours.
Great video! This convinced my husband to go with this tool instead of a broadfork our rock filled clay soil yard.
Well darn. The link for the fork goes to Amazon and says currently unavailable.
damn it, i bought a garden fork for my hard rocky soil and now i regret it. Very hard to get my weight on it and step on the fork. The broadfork did great though. It broke through compaction. Id say garden fork are for sandy perfect soils, or garden beds. Whereas a broadfork is for soils that need loosening
Unless you're selling meadow creatures on your website…right Curtis?
To those on the east coast establishing beds in red clay: go ahead and get the broadfork
NEVER HEARD OF A BROADFORK SO DIDN'T KNOW WHAT THE FK YOU WERE ON ABOUT, A PIC OF ONE WOULD HAVE BEEN COOL.
how about one that is shorter to work raised beds
The gravy never stops! Thank you Curtis
The Radius fork has stainless steel tines. Is it possible the old fork is aluminum? There are a lot of aluminum garden tools available now, intended for light-duty work only.
Super helpful.. I have super rocky soil and have been wanting a pitch fork of some variety for loosening up my beds mostly and I’m discovering all the many different kinds of forks, it’s almost over whelming lol it vid was super helpful with helping me decide! Thanks!
Thank you! Like others, I am dealing with rocky soil, and was just getting ready to purchase a broadfork. Your info makes perfect sense. Off to your link…
Still don’t use a broad fork?
You must not bye on Amazon when you what to selling at your local people.
The fact that you try to sell us a F**ING Garden Fork for $67? I find you completely full of SH*t. I have a Fiskars for $30 and it doesn't have a round handle but who really cares? You're FOS.
The only thing you are fast and nimble at is BS with all of your shills posting up here. LOL
Tine geometry is easily remedied with a file or grinder like a shovel edge. Just a reminder for Posterity's sake…whoever she is.