All it takes is a few simple garden tools to have an amazing, weed free, and highly productive garden. In fact, as we see it, 6 just about does the trick just perfectly!
This past week, we received a wonderful email from a Wisconsin gardener explaining how he had decided to switch this year to a Raised Row Garden. He had read our Raised Row Garden book in early Spring, and decided to give it a try. See : Raised Row Gardening Book
He wrote, “I am simply astounded with the results. I used to spend hours rototilling every few weeks, and countless hours weeding. I cannot believe how easy it is to maintain, and how well my plants are doing!”
As much as we loved hearing how thrilled he was with the results, there was one comment we loved the most. Near the end of his letter, he wrote : “The one thing that really blows my mind is that I now have a garden shed full of tools I simply don’t need or use anymore. I am amazed at how little I need to maintain this garden.”
The fact is, with a Raised Row Garden, you don’t need a lot of tools to create a lot of produce. No rototiller, no tractor with plow, and no specialized digging tools. In reality, you really only need about 6 simple garden tools to create the garden of your dreams.
The 6 Simple Garden Tools Needed To Create And Maintain An Amazing Garden
#1 Post Hole Digger
In a Raised Row Garden, the post hole digger is the planting tool of choice. It creates a perfect 4″ wide hole that is 6 to 8″ deep. And it does so in seconds, and with little effort.
Simply plunge the soil out, and then fill in with the transplant, compost, soil and a little worm castings for fertilizer.
The hole allows plenty of room for transplants to grow and expand. And using the post hole digger is easy on the back. It allows you to dig holes standing straight up, and fast too! See : How We Plant With A Post Hole Digger
We can usually plant all of our 100+ tomato, pepper and other transplants in about 30 minutes. Product Link : Post Hole Digger
#2 Garden Rake / Tine Rake
A good metal tine garden rake is perfect for planting the coveted cover crop for a Raised Row Garden. Each fall, we pull back the straw mulch in our growing rows and scratch the surface of the soil with a garden rake.
Once we spread our Annual Rye cover crop seed, we rake lightly again to set the seed, and our fall gardening chores are complete! Cover crops replace 90% of the work in a traditional garden, and a good metal rake makes easy work of the planting process.
#3 Hand Held Pruners
For pruning and harvesting, one great pair of sharp, ratcheting pruners is a must.
A good pair of pruners make life easy in the garden. They are perfect for pruning back and up under tomatoes and peppers. They are also wonderful for cutting off and harvesting cucumbers, zucchini, watermelon and more. It is much better for your plants to cut these crops instead of pulling them from the vines.
Ratcheting pruners make life easy. The have tremendous power vs. traditional pruners. Great for saving strength in both old and young gardening hands! Product Link : Ratchet Pruners
#4 Pitchfork
If you have a Raised Row Garden, you need a compost bin. If you have a compost bin, you need a good pitchfork! Pitchforks are a must for turning compost piles easily. They also come in handy for harvesting root crops like garlic, potatoes, sweet potatoes and more.
We use ours as well for placing wood chips in our walking rows, or straw in the growing rows. A pitchfork is simply a great way to move materials quickly. Product Link : Easy Handle Pitchfork
#5 Lawn Mower, String-Trimmer, or Shears
One way or another, you will need a device to cut back your cover crops in the spring. We have used our bagging lawn mower for years with great success. But you could also a string-trimmer, or even a pair of shears.
One of the best aspects of the Raised Row Garden is you simply never have to till or turn over your soil. You simply sow a cover crop in the fall, and then mow off in the spring and plant through it. It not only builds the soil, but it cuts down on weeds as well. Product Link : Old Fashioned Reel Mower
#6 Hand Edger / Lawn Edger
So what place does a hand or lawn edger have in a garden? It turns out they are perfect for creating planting rows for seedlings. We use ours to quickly slice a perfectly straight row for planting green beans, peas, corn and other seeds. We can create our planting rows in our 20′ long rows in under a minute.
If you really want to cut down on labor, there are some great electric lawn edger models out there for under a $100 that work incredibly fast. Product Link : Hand Held Edger
There you have it – our list of 6 simple garden tools that can create and maintain a Raised Row Garden! Of course there are many other tools that can perform some of the above tasks, but believe it or not, you could easily get by with just those 6.
Happy Gardening! – Jim and Mary. To receive our 3 Home, Garden, Recipe and Simple Life articles each week, sign up below for our free email list. You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or Instagram. This article may contain affiliate links.