A hand trowel is a small farm tool that could be carbon steel, aluminum, or cast stainless steel. The tool is made of a metal blade and a wooden or plastic handle. The blade is like a kite or a boat-like shape.
The tool has a flat or concave metal blade which is pointed or round at the posterior end. It has a long narrow tang that terminates with a ferrule which aids the connection of the blade to the handle.
The ferrule is fastened to the handle with the aid of a small screw. The handle can be wooden, plastic, or ceramic. Whether wooden, plastic, or ceramic the handle is well designed for effective handling. The tool is about 30 cm long and it is light weighted.
Different types of hand trowels are used on the farmstead, and they exist in various designs and patterns. Whatever pattern the hand trowel is manufactured, the similar characteristic between them is that they have pointed or round tips and they have small round handles.
The tool is used mainly for construction purposes in the farmstead and for transplanting seedlings on the farm. The hand trowel comes with a flat smooth baton or plank mostly that of a construction trowel. The tools are majorly used along the head pan, bucket, flat bow, or basin.
How to Use the Hand Trowel
The use of the hand trowel is very simple, but it requires little skills for proper handling. Unlike spades and shovels, which can be used by anybody, the hand trowel requires minimal technical know-how for effective handling. The trowel is used majorly in the farmstead for construction purposes or in the garden for loosening soil or transplanting seedlings.
- For Construction Purposes: the boat-like shape tool is held on the right hand, while the flat baton or plank is held on the left-hand side. Then use the trowel to scoop or pack the mortar or concrete mixture of sand, gravel, or cement from the head pan or bow and pour on the foundation or the space between and within the concrete block or bricks. Use the flat baton or plank to guide the concrete mixture or mortar from pouring out. After a thorough filling of the space between and within the concrete, the trowel is used to press the concrete to ensure a thorough filling while the flat baton on the left-hand side is used to smooth the poured concrete between the two blocks.
- For Transplanting Seedlings: to transplant seedlings, the hand trowel is held on the right-hand side while the plant is guided with the left-hand side. Use the hand trowel to loosen the soil around the seedling, carefully place the tool to lift the plant from the soil, and place it on the head pan or bow.
Whatever ways the hand trowel is used, it is held on the right hand while the lift hand is used for guiding and providing assistance.
Parts of the Hand Trowel
The part of the hand trowel is
- Handle: the handle is made of wood, plastic, or metal, it is well-designed for effective handling.
- The blade: the blade could be flat or concave. It is pointed or round. The blade is used for parking mortar or concrete, mixing, and spreading organic manure.
- The Tank: the tang is long and narrow where the handle is fixed
- The ferrule: the ferrule is a small circular or round metal blade that provides attraction to the handle.
Uses of the Hand Trowel
Some of the uses of this farm tool as highlighted by the West Africa Examination Council are:
- Transplanting Seedlings: The trowel is used for transplanting seedlings from pots, trays, or seed beds to the permanent field for the cultivation of crops such as tomatoes, pepper, mangoes, rice, and citrus, can be effectively transplanted from the nursery to the seedbed and to the main field for sowing.
- Spreading Manure: It is an excellent tool for the application of organic manure on the farm. Organic manure such as poultry dung, cattle dung, and compost can be applied to crops with the aid of the trowel.
- Spreading Fertilizer: the tool is used for spreading fertilizer on the farm. Caked fertilizer can breaking into tiny pieces and applied to field crops with the aid of boat-like tools.
- Digging of Hole: a trowel is an excellent tool for digging holes during the sowing of crops. The tool can be used to dig holes for planting seedlings, transplanted from the nursery or seed bed to the main field.
- Applying Mixed Concrete (Mortar): during the construction of buildings or structures on the farm, the trowel is very suitable for packing and applying mortar between and within blocks.
- Mixing of Soil: the trowel is very appropriate for mixing soil. When planting on pots or trays the tool can be effectively used to mix sandy soil with organic manure or loony soil so as to improve the quality of the soil.
- Mixing of Concrete: during construction of a building in the farmstead. The trowel is an excellent tool for mixing mortar or concrete. Whenever the mortar or concrete has been cake up the towel is used to break the cake concrete into smooth and viscous material.
- Mixing Feed and Other Additives: during feed formulation, the trowel is used to mix feed with other additives so as to achieve the required composition.
- Breaking or Cutting of Brick or Block: this kite-like shape hand tool is an excellent tool for breaking bricks or concrete blocks during the construction of farm structures. During block or brick lining, the tool is used to fill the space between, and within the block or bricks.
- Smoothing Surfaces: the tool is used to smooth soil or floor surfaces. During seedbed preparation or concrete flooring of the farmstead, the trowel is used for leveling the floor of the farmstead and the seed sed respectively.
- Light Weeding: when planning or sowing crops, the tool is used for minor or light weeding of grass near the plant or the point where the crop is to be planted.
- Plastering of Farm Structure and Building: when it comes to applying adhesive material or concrete to the wall of the farm structure and building the hand trowel is the most appropriate tool to be used. The trowel is very suitable for applying mortar or concrete mixture to the wall of the farm structure or building on the farm. It is an excellent tool for plastering farm buildings.