starter set of basic gardening tools - rec's?

[bochead]

We move house this month and are desperate to recreate the mini-allotment we had back in London in our first EVER garden of our own. I have hand tools but no spade, fork etc, etc. Does anyone know the best place to get a set worthy of regular use that won't cost the earth?

Also any rec's for a good composting system that doesn't take up too much space as we have four bantam chicks that will be going outside into the new garden asap & so will want to compost their bedding waste from the the start.

You might just as we'll go to a B&Q warehouse and see what they have. At least there you can pick the tools up and see if they are comfortable in your hands, how heavy they are, etc. Plus they will have a range of qualities and prices. Other than that, garden centres and online.

If you are on a budget try Wilkos.

bochead when you are looking for tools there is no need to get matching everything. You might find that one company' trowel suits you and another company's rake and another company's spade iyswim.
When looking for a rake, metal rakes are better than plastic ones because they will not only rake up leaves but are also good for scarifying grass whereas plastic rakes are useless for scarifying.
I agree with wowfudge look to see what feels comfortable for your grip and height. I am short and some spades simply are too long for me. Also look carefully at the join between the handle and the end bit as this is the area which goes first and if insecure to start with, your long garden fork may not even last a season! Some people find wooden handles preferable but bear in mind that after a decade or so wood might rot.
My essentials are : long spade, long fork, rake, lawn edger hemispherical thingy, hand trowel, hand fork, long handled shears, secateurs. I believe that if you grow vegetables a hoe is useful, but as I don't, I don't have a hoe and have never missed it.

Add lawn rake to the list. A hoe is good for breaking up surface soil and stopping weeds getting established.

Invest in good tools, rubbish tools are a pain to work with. Www.implementations.co.uk copper tools worth their weight in gold, their spade is the thing I'd grab if my shed was burning down, but are expensive.Check gardening which? For advice on the best other tools.

LGQT the handles are only guaranteed for 2 years. How long have you had your spade for?

OP you do not need to spend £100 on a spade for it to be decent, long-lasting quality.

When I got my allotment I bought wilko spades and forks in case the shed got raided, the lottie is pure clay and they have been the 'go-to' tools that I use when working with young offenders as they have never broken.

I'd rather have a worn spade from a boot fair though, the tools we use at home are my OH's ex wife's dads who must have died 20 years ago.

Go for one the feels right, is the right height, shape and angle. And weight of course, they all vary so much.

Look at Miranda Brooks' mini series on vogue.com - she's got an episode on gardening tools.

For me by far my favourite tool is a long handled fork. I've been buying some new tools this year as I have taken on an allotment and have moved most of my existing ones up there. I've had my old one for about 20 years and still going strong, but sadly no longer made. Just bought this one to keep in the garden long handled fork, it's about 5' long and I am 5'5". The leverage you get with them is amazing compared to normal short handled forks. But they do need to be strong. My old one is absolutely rock solid after 20 years, it was a present from my Dad when I bought my first house.

I've only started using a hoe since I got my allotment, the beds in my garden are fairly small and I hand weed them. Same with a rake, we've always had one but up until now all it has been used for is raking leaves off the lawn in autumn.

I agree with going to a big garden centre or B&Q and trying things out

I rarely use a spade or a fork; my three fave tools are:
Mattock for digging out or breaking soil
Swoe for getting weeds out or making shallow trenches
Long handled bulb planter - for planting stuff, from potatoes and leeks to things grown in small pots as you can take a plug out, pop the root ball in, and then put the soil around the top.

Plus a soil rake for getting the soil to a fine tilth.

Ooh yes I forgot, I was looking for a mattock and ended up buying one of these canterbury fork which has been amazing for breaking up turf to create new beds, breaking up hard ground for digging over, fluffing up dug ground for planting etc etc etc. And amazingly good value.

When I first set up my garden, I started with a simple 5-piece stainless steel tool set that’s still holding up great after years of use. A good spade, fork, and hand trowel make all the difference — it’s worth spending a bit more for durability. For composting, I use a compact bin made from repurposed wood and kitchen scraps; it doesn’t take much space and works surprisingly well.

@mindtrek - did you realise this thread is from 11 years ago?