Bulldog Treaded Tree Planting Spear tested

Bulldog Treaded Tree Planting Spear tested: At Barnsdale Gardens, the legendary ‘Tools On Test’ team takes their job very seriously. With 38 unique gardens, located in Rutland, to keep looking fabulous, they know one thing for sure: pruning, digging, weeding, it’s basically a garden Olympics out there. And the wrong tool? That’s like turning up to a marathon in flip-flops.

So how do they separate the garden greats from the garden grumbles?

It’s all about the trial by trowel. Cutting power? Put to the test. Rust resistance? No flaky behaviour allowed. If a tool can survive the team’s workout, it’s earned its stripes!

And now, stepping into the spotlight: Jon Brocklebank, Head Gardener at Barnsdale Gardens, recently put the Bulldog Treaded Tree Planting Spear through its paces. Did it dig deep and deliver? Or was it all bark and no bite?

Jon shares his verdict below…

Bulldog Treaded Tree Planting Spear review

This is called a tree planter spade or spear. The name is slightly confusing because you might expect a large spade for digging large holes, whereas it’s quite the opposite: this is a relatively short spade – 94cm long overall – with a narrow, tapered blade designed for planting whips, small shrubs, or bulbs.

The spade looks very strong and of a good quality; it has a good, hefty weight without feeling heavy, ideal for breaking through heavy ground and roots.

It has a short ash shaft between the handle and metal blade shaft, which is riveted into the metal “D” shaped grip with an ash handle. The blade itself measures 12cm wide at the top and tapers down to 7cm at the curved cutting edge. One feature I really like is the longer-than-usual metal shaft (28cm); the blade and shaft are solid forged, making them extremely strong. It also has treads to stop slippage in wet and muddy conditions- this also helps to protect the user’s footwear when applying pressure. All metal parts are coated in a hard-wearing textured paint.

The spade is not suited for moving large amounts of soil, but for smaller holes or planting trenches, it’s perfect. I think with time the paint will wear off the blade, but in my vie,w this is a good thing as the Barnsdale soil does seem to stick quite well to the textured paint.

Conclusion: What a great tool! It’s very strong and coped well with the heavy ground at Barnsdale.

To buy for RRP £19.47, go to the Bulldog site here: Bulldog Tools

You can read all of the team’s Tools On Test here: https://shop.barnsdalegardens.co.uk/blogs/tools-on-test

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