The best garden trowels of 2024, tried and tested (2024)

If you only buy one trowel, choose a traditional shield-shaped model and look after it so it lasts many years. But if you do a lot of bulb planting, potting on or seedling transplanting, other more specialist models are worth including in your repertoire

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Alex Mitchell

Published Date:

16 September 2024

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The best garden trowels of 2024, tried and tested (1)

Every gardener has at least one trowel. Keen gardeners probably have several, some stored safely in the shed, others abandoned in the garden borders rusting quietly. They are the go-to tool for most of us, ideal for planting garden-ready plants, potting on seedlings and transplanting.

Personally, I don’t think you can ever have too many trowels, especially since they come in different forms designed for specific tasks. If you only buy one trowel, choose a traditional shield-shaped model and look after it so it lasts many years. But if you do a lot of bulb planting, potting on or seedling transplanting, other more specialist models are worth including in your repertoire.

Trowels are either made of stainless steel, carbon or boron steel and usually come with a wooden handle. Which to go for? Many people prefer the mirrored shiny surface of stainless steel, which is also rust-resistant and easy to keep clean. Stainless steel trowels are relatively light and tough enough for all but the heaviest garden soils. They usually come with a lighter price tag too.

For tougher digging, forged carbon or boron trowels may be a better choice since they are pretty much unbreakable. Often hand-forged, they usually cost a little more but are built to last and well worth the investment if you’re a keen gardener. Not only is the material super strong, but the edges can be sharply bevelled (and kept that way for years with a sharpening stone) so they’re better for breaking new or heavy ground. Lighter plastic and stainless steel trowels are better suited for digging well-worked soils or potting compost.

Comfort is key. A well-moulded handle of wood or plastic can really make digging easier, as can the angle of the shaft (or ‘tang’) linking the handle to the blade. Ideally you want a curved ‘drop shaft’ so the blade is lower than the handle since this stops your knuckles scraping on the soil when levering upwards. Most trowels include a hanging hole at the end of the handle with a leather strap so you can hang them up. I find these often snag on my hand and become annoying, but I suppose they are handy for keeping your tools tidy and clean.

It’s worth thinking about how you will look after a trowel before you choose one. All trowels should be put away wiped clean of soil to stop them rusting and keep the edges sharp. A handful of leaves or grass is just as effective as a cloth which will quickly become too dirty to be useful anyway. Stainless steel trowels are a little more forgiving to neglect since they are naturally rust-resistant. Carbon or boron steel needs to be kept dry and oiled occasionally to prevent rusting. As for the wooden handles, try to keep these dry and oiled now and then too. Otherwise, the wood degrades and the steel ring joining the handle to the scoop tends to come loose.

Some trowels come with useful extra features such as depth gauges marked on the blade (especially useful for bulb planting) or a serrated edge which is excellent for ripping open compost bags.

Finally, is visibility important to you? Natural wooden handles are beautiful but if you’re not the most organised gardener, they do blend in rather and prove difficult to spot – only to be found months later. If you’re the type to leave your tools scattered about the garden a brightly coloured handle could save the day!

We tested ten garden trowels to see how they handled a range of different gardening tasks – from breaking new ground to planting bulbs and garden-ready plants, potting on seedlings, and cultivating.

Kent and Stowe Capability Trowel

The best garden trowels of 2024, tried and tested (2)

Best all-round garden trowel

We like: the generous size and handy extra features

This quality but affordably priced trowel ticks all the boxes and then adds a few extras. It’s on the larger side as trowels go, with a generously long ash handle and broad stainless steel blade. This feels substantial and can manage all digging tasks really well, prising up stones, cutting through roots and penetrating really compacted soil with its sharply pointed tip. One side of the blade is serrated for opening compost bags (always handy) and cutting through roots, while the other is sharpened. A depth gauge marked in both inches and centimetres is marked on the blade. It also includes a metal cap on the end of the handle so you can hammer in stakes which works pretty well despite its size. All in all, a very useful tool and comes with a 20-year guarantee too.

Felco Garden Trowel

The best garden trowels of 2024, tried and tested (3)

Best premium garden trowel

We like: the strength

We associate Felco with secateurs, but the Dutch brand also has a range of excellent quality hand tools such as this boron steel garden trowel. The pointed blade has a sharpened edge all round and feels very strong. I found it very sharp and powerful even on ground that hadn’t been dug over for some time. The moulded ash handle also gives a very ergonomic grip with a cranked shaft for a comfortable digging action. I particularly like the Felco-red wooden handle (stained with a linen-based oil) which stands out in the border and looks classy against the dark steel. Handmade in Holland and comes with a lifetime guarantee too. One to look after and keep for years.

RRP£31

Available from Farrar and Tanner

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Burgon and Ball Groundbreaker Trowel

The best garden trowels of 2024, tried and tested (4)

Best for cultivating and weeding

We like: the strong, sharp tip

This high quality but well-priced stainless steel trowel has a deep, sharp point for penetrating the surface of the soil and wide curved sides to shift plenty of earth. It gets through surface roots and compacted earth effectively. I also found it worked very well at cultivating and turning over the surface of the soil to prepare it for planting and sowing. It’s nice to handle too with a well-moulded FSC ash wooden handle and cranked shaft so your knuckles are well clear of the soil surface. The cranked shaft is joined to an FSC ash wooden handle with hanging hole and leather strap. Endorsed by the RHS and comes with a lifetime guarantee.

RRP£13.99

Available from Burgon & Ball

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Niwaki Moku Small

The best garden trowels of 2024, tried and tested (5)

Best for containers and tight spaces

We like: the really comfortable chunky handle

Handcrafted by a father and son team in Sanjo, Japan, this is a very attractive small trowel with a sharp carbon steel blade and smooth ash handle. The blade has a hammered finish and powder coating giving it a blackened, hand-crafted appearance. I really like its sharpness and dexterity – great for planting seedlings, container digging or getting in between plants in the border or a raised bed. It is fairly narrow and the tip is very sharp so digs straight down, but it is not recommended for heavy or unbroken soils. A cranked shaft protects your knuckles and the relatively thick handle is really comfortable. There is a larger version too.

Signature Dutch Style Planting Trowel

The best garden trowels of 2024, tried and tested (6)

Best for planting bulbs

We like: the clever planting action

Fancy making a mini Keukenhoff in your garden? This looks totally different to the other trowels tested because it is designed for a particular purpose, to plant bulbs en masse for amazing displays as seen in the Netherlands (though it would also be good for closely planted seedlings) Hand-forged in the Netherlands using Swedish steel, this is a stylish, high-quality tool. Rather than scooped, the large rounded carbon steel blade is totally flat. The blade, which comes to a slight point, is made of super tough high-carbon steel and sharpened on all edges. It’s designed to work with a levering action rather than a digging one, hence the long ash handle (the whole tool is 43cm long). You plunge the tip down into the ground then pull it forwards to make a V-shaped planting hole. Drop the bulb or plant rootball in then move on to the next one. The creation of the next V-shaped hole closes the previous one.

RRP£29

Available from Dan Cooper

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Kent and Stowe Garden Life Trowel

The best garden trowels of 2024, tried and tested (7)

Best for potting on

We like: the niftiness, the price

This affordably priced, nimble little trowel is ideal if you need to manoeuvre in small spaces. Light and compact, it’s ideal for containers or raised beds and borders where plants are quite tightly packed in. It’s also just the right size for potting on seedlings without spilling too much compost. Traditional in style, it has a moderately sharp, round-tipped stainless steel scoop, a cranked shaft and a FSC certified ash wood handle which is rounded at the end for a comfortable grip. The handle, which has a hole with a leather thong for hanging it up, is quite short so definitely best for those with smaller hands. Comes with a 15-year guarantee.

RRP£8.99

Available from Amazon

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DeWit Forged Iron Trowel

The best garden trowels of 2024, tried and tested (8)

Strongest garden trowel

We like: the way it can be bashed with a mallet to break up really hard, compacted ground

A tool our Iron Age ancestors would recognise! Hand-forged in the Netherlands and made from one piece of boron steel bevelled for sharpness and hammered to a point, this is a really excellent trowel for experienced gardeners who will appreciate its strength and longevity. Since there is no wooden handle, it’s best used with gloves, but the metal handle is nicely moulded so feels comfortable when digging. And it can dig anything your wrist can handle. I also really liked the industrial look of it with its burnished surface, giving it the look of old Edwardian tools. In my stony, unbroken soil it was invaluable since I could bash the end of the handle with a mallet and use it as a chisel to break up hard areas. To maintain it, this trowel should be kept dry and oiled occasionally. Comes with a lifetime guarantee and will no doubt outlive its owner!

RRP£33.99

Available from Crocus

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Burgon and Ball Planting Trowel

The best garden trowels of 2024, tried and tested (9)

Best for planting

We like: the very comfortable digging action

This RHS-endorsed trowel is designed for making planting holes for small plants so has a wide, shallow-scooped blade shaped like a heart. The stainless steel blade is in line with the handle rather than angled upwards so you dig with a scooping rather than levering action. Perfect for small plants and plug seedings. It has a sharp point so is good for garden soils as well as potting compost. It’s really comfortable to hold with a chunky FSC certified ash handle and the mirrored blade surface is super easy to wipe clean. Comes with a lifetime guarantee.

RRP£12.99

Available from Burgon & Ball

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Sarah Raven Seedling Trowel

The best garden trowels of 2024, tried and tested (10)

Best for seedlings and plug plants

We like: the deeply etched gauge

When you’re planting seedlings, plug plants or small bulbs you don’t need a larger trowel, and this is when this narrow one comes into its own. The deeply curved stainless steel blade is 36cm long but only 3cm wide, perfect for making a small deep hole without disturbing the soil around. The ash wood handle is nice and chunky and has a hanging hole with leather strap. I particularly liked the deep depth gauge marked on the blade (in inches) which won’t get too easily obscured by soil – ideal for judging the planting depth of little bulbs such as crocus, snowdrops and muscari. It would also be useful for making a narrow trench for sowing seeds. Come with a five-year guarantee.

RRP£15.16

Available from Sarah Raven

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Wilkinson Sword Ultralight Stainless Steel Garden Trowel

The best garden trowels of 2024, tried and tested (11)

Best light garden trowel

We like: the weight

For those wanting a really lightweight trowel, this plastic and stainless steel model from Wilkinson Sword is a good choice, weighing only 300 grams. The black plastic handle extends partway up the sharp stainless steel blade for strength though this is best suited to light soils and potting compost rather than prising rocks out of a heavy clay. The blade is sharp and fairly thin which, along with the plastic handle, gives it its lightness. I liked the moulded ridges for your thumb for comfortable digging. Best used for light soils and potting on where it functions as a very good compost scoop.

RRP£11.94

Available from Amazon

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The best garden trowels of 2024, tried and tested (2024)

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