do you dig it?

How best to use all those different spades, shovels and other shifters without breaking your back

- CHARLIE ALBONE

A spade digs holes, a shovel shifts stuff – that’s the general rule. Except some shovels dig and some spades shift. But which ones? To help you out with your yard work, here’s a handy guide to the range of digging tools out there and their optimal use in the garden.

Test out tools before you buy. Go through the motions of what you will use them for to check if they’re the right height and weight, and the grip works for you.

Short- or long-handle garden spade