Judith , that is the best logic if you ask me ! Such a shame for the shovel to not get broken in ;)

Yes, alameda! Best to really test that warranty with lots of roses.

Lilyfinch really should get some commission here.

I think the pink one is a great Valentines Day gift—to one‘s self. :-)

I got 3 body bags today [Jadis/Fragrant Memory, Peachy Knockout and Cl. Yellow Blaze] to go along with my Jackson Perkins order that just arrived - I dont see any need in buying a shovel and letting it just sit there because I have already potted up the recent rose arrivals! Wouldnt that be a waste of good money???

Has anybody used these shovels/spades where tree roots are a problem? I've got the same problem as Sultry - a yard full of roots! I've got a couple old roses coming from Palatine ('Chloris' and 'Maiden's Blush') going near some cedar trees, so a good shovel will definitely be a worthy investment!

It's all true! I read the raves and bought the shovel (lavender.) It arrived yesterday and today I used it to dig up a stubborn bush. Expected it to be a huge job but the shovel cut it right out. Thanks for the rec.

Colleen

Ac , I have tree roots and it sliced right through them . Anything over 1/2 inch I cut with my pruners , but all the runner roots it cuts through. I have seen a shovel called the root slayer I think ? That may also be good ! I don’t have it though . You can return it if you aren’t happy with it ! :)

Colleen that’s wonderful!! It surprises me how easy some things come up . I almost paid someone to dig up this woody shrub here bc it looked tough to do. My husband had it out in 5 min ! I didn’t try bc I was super pregnant but if you saw the shrub you would have thought the shovel wouldn’t work !

I got mine yesterday. I haven't had a chance to use it, because it turned cold and we have roofers here replacing the roof from the storm January 11th. It wasn't a tornado, but it looked like a hurricane! It blew a lot of shingles off the roof and half the wood fence went down. I am glad that we didn't have trees go down, a lot of people did, and that the big flag pole, that was bending in half, did not break and hit my car.

Tigereye, I'm glad you're ok after that! And that you don't have to replace a car in addition to a roof, yikes! Thanks Lily and Steelrose - I know what I'm spending my overtime pay on tonight!

Thanks Lily! Just ordered a green one!

Tigeeye, Trees can be dangerous in the storms. Hopefully you don’t have any trees near your house or parking area.

To prevent a flair up of sciatica I assumed I was going to have my yardmen dig the holes for my new rose bushes. This new shovel allowed me to to do it myself. Yay!! Thank you thank you for that post Lilyfinch

I really like D-handle shovels. I might try this - the narrower spear head means one could get in to tight places. My DH prefers the long handled style of shovel because it has more leverage, which it does, law of physics.

Austin , this makes me so happy that it helped you !! I Almost didn’t post bc I feel like I push it every year but I’m so happy to help another garden friend. But do take care not to get hurt ! Sounds so painful. I had sciatic issues when pregnant . It was so debilitating !

Rosefolly they do offer both kinds on amazon in case you didn’t catch it . I’ve had both and loved them both ! :)

CBD has been a godsend haven’t had issues since I started taking it... but, no point in pushing it... I am a young 75, I live in Dallas after all, where the docs don’t let you get old or look old.. it seemed Dallas switched big hair for smooth face (botox, etc.etc.) and hair extensions. :-)

Austin..I think everywhere has lol.

I got a blue one too. Thanks!

I could not do without this Japanese hand tool. Not as great as that shovel but you can make short work of weeding with it.

This is also great the rake expands from a narrow to a wide coverage by moving up and down the pole and locking. Had both tools for years got at Smith and Hawkins before they closed.

Austin, that looks like a Garvinea daisy next to the rake. I grow them too, they are pretty amazing. I bought 120 little plugs on EBay for a very reasonable price, they grow big and fast , at one point my garden was overflowing with Garvineas. Everyone who visited me had a Garvinea forced upon them as they left.

Garvinea daisy and Hot Lips sage in my mom’s house in CA, they bloom 365 days a year there. Both came out of my suitcase!

Ben we seem to grow so many of the same plants, you just do so with better technique and knowledge. I have always bought my Garvinea at Jacksons or Nic Hardy for $8+ ea Obviously I have bought more sparingly. I plan to move my bearded back into my rose beds after seening your pictures. I think overcrowing was more an issue than the water since mine were remontant. They were planted high and away from soakers Hoses. I moved all to an area where auto sprinkler did not hit but this has proved too little water. I do love them my biggest garden treat after moving from Houston.

Received my beautiful yellow shovel today. I would have tried it right away if the ground weren’t solid frozen, or maybe that should be the ultimate test for a great shovel :)

2 more months for us poor impatient Zone 5ers, maybe 3....

Claire

Thanks to you guys, I ordered one and got it yesterday.

My oh my, the way it just *cleaves* through the hard and clay soils is...wow. I've already cleaned through several overgrown areas and will do more gardening tomorrow.

Mine got here today but I got busy. I'll take it for a test run tomorrow. When I ordered it from QVC it was also on sale, plus there was a coupon. Score!

Yay joe !!!! Honestly I’m so thrilled people like it , you’d think I invented it ! Lol

good luck cooper !! Sounds like you got an extra good deal !

Thank you so much for sharing, Lily! I‘ve been using mine this weekend, and it’s a huge help. Noticed I could dig a lot more than with my old shovel. I’m learning with my FM, its much about the tool‘s efficacy and this one makes it much easier on my body! :-)

I love my shovel

It is pink and I got it a while back when Lilyfinch first mentioned it

How many years has it been?

It has been my go to shovel and has held up beautifully.

Thanks for the recommendation Jen

I have been thinking of this "magical" shovel for weeks now. I am trying to resist the urge to buy it, thanks to all the heavy snow outside. Patiently waiting for it to go on sale in Canada's amazon.

I bought this shovel (Amazon, purple) on a whim, after my wrist tendonitis was acting up and reading Lilyfinch's recommendation. I then had serious buyer's remorse given the price, but then resolved to hold my tongue until I tried it on my caliche, the stuff that started my wrist tendonitis. Well, I tried it today, and I must say that it worked very well. Much easier to deep dig a garden bed than I expected. Usually I use a pick axe to dig deeper than the sand fill that sits on top of the caliche. I can't say that it cured my tendonitis, but I was able to dig the whole depth of the shovel, without the pick axe. Fantastic! To be honest, it doesn't move a lot of soil, being more narrow than a regular shovel, but that's a trade-off. I do wish that I had got the one from A.M. Leonard instead, just because I like their products. It might not be any different, but it is a little longer, and I find that the one from Amazon is a little too short for my preference (and I'm short). Thanks, Lilyfinch!

I love am Leonard! I got my original garden cart from them years ago.

Noseometer, it appears to be made by the same company, so you could return the shovel for any reason to amazon ( did you know kohl’s takes amazon returns now ?! ) and get the longer one?

I did catch myself stooping when I was using it recently. I have terrible posture as it is !

I'm still considering it. It does seem a little small but small might be really nice for digging holes among other plants. My current Kobalt shovel cuts through dirt fine, really. My soil is easy to dig in most spots. I like my current shovel for being wide enough to move a rootball. I would look at this narrower shovel as a specialty shovel for tight spots or perhaps for roots since it sounds like it cuts through them well.

I have had the long handled one since they first came out at a garden and patio show in Atlanta. Everyone was carrying this yellow handled shovel thru the show. It is great in Georgia clay. I have been digging out Japanese privet and ugly agnes all week , courtesy of my neighbors.

I saw this thread when first posted and ordered the shovel. Used it for the first time today to plant my 3 barefoot Austin’s and all I can say is WOW. It’s the best shovel I’ve ever used. Thanks for the suggestion

Yay !! ☺️

It’s amazing what a great tool can do !

I once had an amazing wheel barrel from sams club . I could haul any thing in it , easy peasy. The best! It was touted as “lifetime “. And it would have been , had my neighbors not plowed it over ( on my property no less !) and it got caught in their bush hogger. It looked like a piece of junk once they got it out but really it was my favorite wheel barrel ever . Lol

I can't find anything in the text to identify which shovel y'all are discussing. ???

This is the one I bought.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0716HHRYV/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It comes in a long handle.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0716HHRYV/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

This is the one they bought from QVC. I don't shop there.

https://www.qvc.com/Spear-Head-Gardening-Spade-&-Shovel-with-Reinforced-Cushion-Handle.product.M65692.html

They both are the same shovel.

noseometer gave a link to the long-handled model from AM Leonard a few posts up. The original link is in the first post and Lilyfinch gave another model later down post.. You may have to load the earlier posts as I did.

I just ordered this shovel, the blue one per your recommendation lily.

It is now for sale 39 bucks free shipping 😃.

Thank

At which site?

Qvc http://qvcservices.qvcemail.com/a/hBehBHAB8G5vHB90yQ3NutbNB.B8G5vHob/itemnum?ITEMNUMBER=M65692&GUID1=78961B4C-B038-4E39-8EDE-641F5A4F031C&GUID2=5F7F1777-A4CA-4879-83D7-855B7E316675

I just used my pink “Lady Shovel”, yesterday. I just love it. I’m due for a hip replacement, and I’m in quite a bit of pain. Although I wasn’t able to step on it with my left leg (the side with the bone on bone hip), I was able to cut through the roots of a huge clump of Shasta Daisies that was too big. I was able to do it by using my right foot, and it worked quite well. The Daisy clump is smaller now, and a few plants found a home. Thanks again, Jen. I couldn’t do without mine! Lisa

You've probably realized that the reason that the blade of the shovel is so small is that the same force (your weight) applied to a smaller area (the tip of the spear headed spade vs. a regular digging shovel) results in a lot more force to that area. I used this shovel yesterday on an unworked area of the garden, and was only able to get it an inch into the compacted rocky soil, even though I was jumping up and down on it like a pogo stick and the ground was moist. Still, much less pain on my wrists than hacking at it a quarter of an inch at a time or less with my regular shovel using my arms, or using the pick axe. After a number of passes (the ground becomes even harder and rockier deeper down, and living on the side of a mountain men’s that I don’t have to dig very far before I reach solid granite) I was able to loosen deeply enough to use a regular shovel to dig in compost. I don't know if a rose will do well in this hard ground, but I'm going to try.

Addendum: couldn't get through the compacted areas with the shovel, had to resort to the pick axe. Oh well.

Well, I have now given this shovel quite a workout. It does not move huge amounts of earth, but man oh man is it easy to dig with. It cuts right through my very thick Bermuda grass in clay soil like no tomorrow. Slices right through roots. Works great as a transplanter in tight areas. I love this shovel. I can't thank Lilyfinch enough for the recommendation.

I bought two mini shovels too. They are great for weeding, dig out less dirt.

Lillyfinch I give you a virtual hug at least once a week for recommending that shovel... i have bought more and larger plants this year because I could install them myself. Previously I had to ask my yardman. I am picky and his English is poor so nothing was ever exactly as I wanted. NOW, I can do it myself even at 76!! Hugs

76 is the new 56! Go austinkisses! :-)

I have to agree...mine has been in heavy use and is still going strong and I'm so thankful for the recommendation daily!

Okay, Lilyfinch, I'm jumping on the bandwagon. It comes in PURPLE! Carol

Price went up. I just bought another 40” one for $52 from Target online yesterday, other places are selling $62+. If anyone is looking for a 40” shovel, Target has the cheapest price. For a long while QVC sold out 40“ ones. I couldn’t find my old 40” shovel at NY home for several days. I really missed it, so I ordered another one. I keep a set of 30”mini and 40” shovels at each home, and use them often. Today DH just found my old shovel behind his tools. Now I got a backup for just in case.