Burgon & Ball GTB/SPSRHS RHS Stainless Perennial Spade

Product Information

E. P. Barrus has a trade mark licence agreement with Wilkinson Sword Ltd (a wholly owned subsidiary of Energizer Holdings Inc) to sell and market the Wilkinson Sword range of garden tools in the UK and Eire. Most spades have a traditional D-grip or T-grip handle to help hold and manage the spade. Both styles perform well, so the choice is mainly personal preference. If the handle is fiberglass, metal, or plastic, look for cushioned, rubberized coatings that offer a no-slip grip for optimal control and reduced impact on the hand and wrist. Proudly owned and cherished by garden lovers, appreciated by those who seek quality and craftsmanship, revered by the most discerning gardeners all over the world, it’s little wonder then that Sneeboer have become synonymous with the best quality tools for gardeners.

It may be hard to clean between the various joints and grips, and the handle grip may be too large for smaller hands.

The best books I’ve read in the past year include Wild Flowers by Sarah Raven. I have about 20 books about wildflowers, but I’m not a botanist and most of them are either intimidating or incomprehensible. Sarah’s book is fabulous. I’m writing my own book about wildflowers at the moment so I re-read it. Then there’s Four Fields by Tim Dee, where he takes four fields in different countries and writes beautifully about them. The other is The Peregrine by JA Baker, a masterpiece of natural history writing. I would recommend that to anybody who loves the English language, let alone birds of prey. This well-balanced hybrid garden spade sports convenient no-slip grip sections on the reinforced fiberglass shaft. Air-cut holes lighten the ergonomic handle, which has two separate no-slip grip areas to accommodate different working techniques and minimize strain on hands and wrists. The large handle, however, may not be comfortable for smaller hands even when wearing garden gloves, and with various joints and grip sections this spade may be challenging to clean. Sneeboer tools are of the highest quality garden tools which have been made by skilled master craftsmen for over a hundred years.

Most important when choosing a garden spade, it must be well-made,” Hughes says. “I rely on my spade to do a lot of the tough work around my garden, so it must be well-made, preferably with a white oak handle and a forged, heavy metal blade.” With proper maintenance, the best garden spades can last a lifetime, so a quality tool such as the Leonard Full-Strap Diamond-Point Spade may be well worth the investment.A footplate or step is an appealing feature at the top of the blade. Here users can step with their foot to use body weight to push the blade down into the ground. “Spades with a foot pad on the top of the blade make it easier to dig in hard, compacted soil,” Hughes says. These good-looking and exceptionally hardworking tools have been designed to make light work of digging and cultivating, and are manufactured to last for years. Burgon & Ball garden spades and forks are endorsed by the Royal Horticultural Society, one of the world’s foremost horticultural organisations and the UK's leading gardening charity. We are confident of the quality of our tools: each RHS-endorsed tool comes with a lifetime guarantee against manufacturing defects. I’m hopeful that the filming for a new series on European gardens which was shelved by the pandemic will still happen. I’ve got a couple of books being published this autumn – one about the wildlife in my garden and at the farm, the other about American gardens – and another one next year, as well as a memoir to write. I’m signed up to do two more years of Gardeners’ World after this one, plus I’ve got projects on the farm. So there’s a lot to do. Applying age-old traditions in hand forging whilst also using state-of-the-art techniques, Sneeboer make quality stainless steel tools which are built to last. Sustainable tools which also prove to be cost effective considering garden tools frequently need to take a bit of a beating. With proper maintenance and use, a garden spade can last a lifetime, especially ones constructed from solid, reliable materials. “Never put a spade away dirty,” Hughes says. “Use a wire brush—a grill brush is great—to remove any loose soil from the blade before storing the spade. Store your spade and all garden tools in a clean, dry place.”