By Jessie Milligan
McClatchy Newspapers
Prat 2 -- MOVING THINGS
Pushing wheelbarrows and garden carts beats lugging by hand, but many garden chores require transporting smaller loads.
Enter the 10-tine pitchfork. Most pitchforks have three to five tines, making them useful for digging or for moving hay. The urban gardener, often lacking hay that needs moving, may prefer a 10-tine fork for moving mulch — once it is out of the bag — and for turning compost and carrying it to beds.
“It’s made for moving fine materials,” says Bob Ressl of Arlington, a mechanical engineer by training. He loves tools and owns about 15, not including the pink plastic Barbie ones that belong to his granddaughter.
Where to find a 10-tine compost/mulch fork: We found one at Lee Valley Tools, www.leevalley.com, for $62.
Another way to move small loads — flowers, vegetables, weeds — is with a traditional English basket called a trug, which is shallow and rectangular. Nowadays, trugs come in plastic and in various shapes.
“My brightly colored plastic Tubtrugs go with me everywhere when I am gardening. I can put weeds in them, mix up fertilizer solutions and transport plants,” says one gardener.
Where to get a plastic trug: We found white ones at the Container Store for $15 and colorful ones at Gardener’s Supply, www.gardeners.com, for $13 to $17.