Today’s Garden Ideas

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When it comes to all of the different gardening tools we use throughout the year, almost none can be as important as the rake. Without a rake, you would have a challenging job of getting the leaves and debris off your lawn throughout the year. Not cleaning up this debris would kill everything underneath it, and make any other gardening task pointless. When it comes time to buy a new rake, you may think it’s a simple matter of grabbing one out of the bin right by the front of the hardware store door. However, putting some thought into one of the most important gardening tools you’ll ever use can save you a lot of hassle in the long run.

Before you look at buying a rake, consider what you need out of it. Of course you need it to gather items for you but do you have back condition that makes bending down to pick up the pile difficult? If so, you could look for a rake that has a specially designed handle that pulls the leaves up to you, instead of you bending down to them. These types of rakes are bound to be more expensive than other plain metal rakes but the cost of pain they will save you will be well worth it. These types of rakes are also generally more durable due to the heavy plastic construction of them.

One of the best rake buying tips you can ever get is not to buy one that has the head simply screwed onto the handle. These types of rakes break extremely easily with very little force so you could break your new rake before you’ve even had a chance to finish raking for the first time! These rakes may be one-third of the cost of the heavier, stronger rakes but consider that you will buy five of them versus one of the other and you’ll see that it’s a wise investment.

You should also make sure that at its widest the rake is at least twenty-four inches wide. Smaller rakes may seem more lightweight but it will take twice as long to complete the job and so, will cause you more aches and strains in the long run. Also make sure that you wear gardening or rubber gloves while you rake. No matter what material the handle is made from, the friction from the constant movement can cause the inside of your palms to blister and wearing gloves will prevent this.

Lastly, congratulate yourself! Spending a few more minutes of hard work raking your yard means fewer emissions disbursed into the environment from a leaf-blowing machine. This makes raking a big deal when we’re all looking for ways to reduce!