10 best garden forks to spruce up your soil

Every gardener is different so you’ll want to be sure that you grab a garden fork that suits your needs. Material, size, weight and height are all the various things that you want to keep an eye out for. 
Material: This can be the make or break of a long-lasting garden fork that works over the years. Look for options with stainless steel and hardwood for high-quality results. Make sure to store your tools in your garden shed, or at least cover your tools in the winter and rainy seasons to lengthen their life span. 
Size and weight: If you’re an experienced gardener, you may not feel the heaviness of a bigger fork. On the other hand, if you struggle with heavy tools or just want something that’s not so substantial, go for a lightweight option.
Height: Garden forks also come in a range of full-lengths and it’s a good idea to keep an eye on the height of your fork so you’re not getting something that’s too large or small for you.

While you can use either for general gardening tasks, there are subtle differences in design between digging and border forks. Modern Gardens contributor Geoff Hodge explains what they are.
"Traditional digging forks have a wide head of long tines and fairly long shaft. Most suppliers produce both digging and border forks with a choice of carbon steel or stainless steel tines."
"Border forks have a narrower head than a digging fork and shorter tines and shaft. They’re better suited for use in tight spaces, or for those who need a shorter fork. Because they’re smaller, they’re lighter too."

Autumn means digging to most gardeners, a time to prepare the garden for spring. Traditional advice tells us to get the digging done by the New Year. But why do we dig, and why now? Modern Gardens Magazine writer Geoff Stebbings says that autumn is when most people dig, and it is the best time to work heavy clay soils.
"Heavy clay soils are left rough over winter, so frost can break down the lumps into finer particles. If you add organic matter, it leaves plenty of time for it to mix with the soil before you rake it down in spring. The soil is also drier in autumn, so you will do less damage to heavy soils than in the depths of winter. It is not soil structure but nutrients that are the issue with the light, sandy soils. If you dig in autumn, there is more danger of nutrients leaching, so it is best to leave these till spring to dig."
"Instead, mulch so winter rains don’t damage the soil structure and dig these in spring. Even better, sow green manures in autumn, which stabilises soil structure and dig these in spring. They will add organic matter and help retain nutrients, especially nitrogen, which is leached from all soils in winter."
"Digging over the plot clears away annual weeds, and allows us to remove perennial weed roots and to mix in organic matter, thus improving the depth of the fertile topsoil. Worms will drag some organic material down into the soil but digging is quicker and will take the material down deeper. Plants will only grow and produce roots in the topsoil, the fertile upper zone."

"Soil structure is how the particles in the soil are arranged and the spaces between them, which can be filled with air or water. Clay soils have small particles, and these can easily be squashed as you walk on them, making raised beds a good solution. Digging, at least in the early years, is advisable to incorporate organic matter, which helps the soil develop a crumb structure and keep air spaces, improving drainage. Digging in sand or grit also ‘opens up’ the soil on a more permanent basis. Organic matter also sticks together the large particles in sandy soils and helps retain moisture."

"Bulky organic matter is beneficial to all soils, improving both drainage and moisture-holding capacity. It ‘opens up’ heavy soils, encourages a crumb structure and enriches sandy, poor soils. As it decomposes, it also retains plant nutrients. Most organic matter also contains plant nutrients, but some are not as rich in plant nutrients as often thought, so they are best used in large amounts as soil conditioners and not sprinkled on as fertilisers."
"Garden compost, if well made, is useful and beneficial and contains nutrients. It has a big advantage in that it is just where you want it and free. Well-rotted manure is another good option if you can get it in bulk. To avoid is wood shavings or sawdust unless you can leave them to decompose for several years. Any woody material, including un-composted bark or shredded branches, has problems because it can take years to decompose. Additionally, it can rob nitrogen from the soil if it is dug in raw. It can be used if composted with grass cuttings or other soft material for several years."
"Leaves are falling off trees and shrubs now and these make great leafmould. Rake them up or mow them off the lawn and pack into hessian bags or put on the compost heap for a great mulch in a year’s time, or fine leafmould for digging in the next year. You may be able to get other materials locally such as mushroom compost."