176 



THE GARDENER'S ASSISTANT. 



between the plants, and for earthing up, &c. 

 Some of these are draw-hoes, others thrust, and 

 a form combining both modes of operation has 

 been invented. 



Draw-hoes should have the blade attached to 

 the socket by a solid neck, more or less curved, 

 as in fig. 184. The blade should be made of 

 steel, welded on an iron neck. The length of 

 the plate for the largest need not exceed 9 inches; 

 hoes for Onions, &c, are required as small as 



Fig. 188.— "Planet Jr " Single-wheel Hoe 



2 inches. Draw -hoes vary in nearly every 

 county, or even in certain districts. A very 

 useful crane-necked hoe is in use in the mid- 

 land counties, with movable steel plates 5 to 

 7 inches long. These plates can be used sepa- 

 rately in the same handle and head ; the act of 

 hoeing tightens the blade in the head. Hoes 

 of a triangular form are used for drawing drills, 

 and sometimes for this purpose the implement 

 is made like a hollow trowel, the convex side 

 being towards the handle. An improvement 

 in these consists in the convex side having an 

 edge turned horizontally forward so as to cut 

 without the soil filling up the groove as the 

 implement is drawn along. 



The Dutch or thrust hoes (fig. 185) are useful 

 for cutting down weeds, and for very shallow 

 work on an even surface; but they are not so 

 good as the draw-hoe when the ground is stiff 

 and lumpy. The Dutch hoe can be used to a 

 considerable extent without going out of the 



alleys, so that the ground is not trodden as it 

 is in using the draw-hoe. For light work, and 

 in flower-gardens, these hoes are most useful. 

 They should be kept very sharp, and then seed 

 weeds can be clean cut over. 



The Turf -spade (fig. 186) may be much more 

 advantageously used for cutting turf than the 

 common spade. The best has a crescent-shaped 

 blade and a bent handle, and is much superior 

 to the heart-shaped blade, and lighter. Before 

 using this tool, however, the turf must be cut 

 into strips by a Verge-cutter (fig. 187). Wheel 

 verge-cutters are also used for this purpose. 



Turf -scraper. — In lawns where ants abound, 

 and where their hills or where worm-casts re- 

 quire to be taken off, a long light scraper of 

 wood or iron, such as that used for roads, may 

 be usefully employed. The daisy-rake is also 

 handy for this purpose. 



The "Planet Jr." (fig. 188).— Amongst 

 combination tools, the "Planet Jr." is cer- 

 tainly one of the most ingenious and 

 useful. It is an American invention, 

 where wheel-hoes, seed-drills, &c, 

 are much more used than they 

 are in this country. This 

 machine can be readily 

 adapted for performing 

 almost every variety 

 of gardening opera- 

 tions (as regards 

 the soil) that can 

 be required, and 

 by its intelligent 

 use an immense 

 amount of labour is saved. The "Planet Jr." 

 Horse Hoe with its combinations can be used for 

 the following purposes: — As a five-tine drill 

 grubber; as a three-tine drill grubber; as an 

 expanding drill harrow ; as a scarifier for hoeing 

 and cleaning away weeds from side of Turnip 

 drills, &c, before thinning; for hoeing and grub- 

 bing and ridging-up Turnip, Potato, Bean, Cab- 

 bage, and Carrot drills; for cutting-up Thistles, 

 pairing stubbles for catch crops, for hoeing be- 

 tween Strawberry rows, and for flat cultivation 

 generally. 



Dibbers. — These are generally made of the 

 upper part of old spade handles. Being made 

 of hard wood, they are sometimes used without 

 being shod; but where these implements are 

 extensively used, the whole of the cylindrical 

 part should be sheathed in steel (see fig. 189). 

 This maintains a more polished surface than 

 iron, and therefore perforates with less friction, 

 and is not so easily clogged with soil. 



