Signs of Spring ??

The end of March is here, but where is the Spring???  Latest weather forecasts seem to be telling us to wait another month - let's hope they are wrong!

A more predictable arrival is the annual increase in postal charges.  This time, Royal Mail have really gone to town and completely re-vamped the scale of charges for parcels.

It used to be fairly simple: We knew how much your order weighed, so the postage was easily calculated.  If it was a little more valuable, we could pay a little extra to safeguard compensation in case it went astray or got damaged in the post.  And, although we would love to be able to just fork out any extra costs to send you your tools, unfortunately our little business would soon fold if we didn't pass on those costs to you!

Now, the Post Office have introduced size-related charges as well as weight-related ones  . . .  thank you SO much  . . .  just what we didn't need!  Anyway, we think we have just about got our heads around these new rates - we hope.

What does seem to be shrouded in mystery is the scale of charges for additional compensation relating to more valuable items.  The published information says "Additional compensation can be purchased . . . at the time of posting . . ."  but can we find a list of those charges ANYWHERE on the Royal Mail website?  NO!

So, our current prices in our Price List and on our website are as accurate as we can calculate at the moment, but they may change quite soon, probably slightly upwards - if at all.   NO CHANGE NEEDED AFTER ALL - OUR FIGURES TURNED OUT TO BE 'SPOT ON'.

Unfortunately, you will see that we have had to make substantial price increases for many of our tools.  Although the postal charges have pushed prices up a little, the plummeting value of the British Pound has really put the boot in.  Thank you, Mr. Osborne!

All the Glaser tools come from Switzerland and so are priced in Swiss Francs.  Since we last set our retail prices in January, the prices we have had to pay for fresh stock have climbed, so we have had to fix our prices according to the latest exchange rates.

The same goes for the Ho-Mis from Korea (South Korea, in case you were in any doubt!)  We buy from there in US Dollars, and the good old £ Sterling has suffered against that too!

As always, we are quick to put our prices DOWN  again when the exchange rates stabilise in our favour, and our next price review will be at the end of June.

Spring Take-Off!

Whatever the weather is doing right now, our emails tell us that gardeners and growers are getting ready for the start of a new growing season - we have never been so busy!

This time of year is always exciting, but the excitement seems to have taken off with orders for BroadForks and Soil Blockers.

BroadForks.  We really want to apologise to customers who have wanted to buy a BroadFork and have found them marked as 'Temporarily Sold Out' on our website.  Perhaps we should have realised that lots of people would want to take steps to reduce the sub-soil compaction caused by 2012's deluges, but we were totally taken by surprise in February and early March, when we received orders for as many BroadForks in 4 weeks as we have normally sold in a year!

Malcolm the Blacksmith, who makes these for us, is already busy with lots of other work - that's what happens when you get a reputation for quality workmanship - but says that he hopes to have a new batch of BroadForks ready for us by mid to late April.  He won't have to increase his prices this time, as apparently steel prices have stabilised a little, but we may get caught by the usual increase in postal charges in early April.

So, as a little incentive for you to let us know if you plan to buy a BroadFork, we will freeze the price for you if you simply email us by March 31st to let us know.  We will then keep you posted of expected delivery dates and send you a PayPal invoice when they are ready.  Until then, I'm afraid we can't make any promises about delivery dates.

If you help us plan production in this way, our little 'thank you' is to make sure you get your BroadFork at today's price, plus we shall be able to ask Malcolm to make more if demand goes on growing.  So, if even more people want to start 'BroadForking', they shouldn't be disappointed either.

If you would prefer to just keep an eye on our website to see when we have more stock, of course that is fine with us, too!

Soil Blockers.  Ladbrooke Soil Blockers have gone increasingly global over the last few years.  We like to think that we have played at least some role in that, as Soil Blocker customers email us from all over the world, and for a couple of years we seemed to be the only supplier to Australia.  Fortunately the former Australian dealer, Allsun Farm / Gundaroo Tiller is selling them there again.  But, with expansion, sometimes the problems expand, too . . .

Unfortunately, Ladbrookes recently had to scrap a large 'run' of Mini 4 blockers, at a time when they were already very busy with orders.  Again, all credit to them for insisting on top quality!  Unfortunately, this meant that our stock of Mini 4s and Micro 20s was exhausted, and the Mini 5s were running low as well.  BUT . . .

STOP PRESS!  Even as I was writing this, we have just received an email from Ladbrookes to say that a delivery will be with us very soon.  They have really pulled out all the stops on this one, working long hours to try to catch up, and we are really grateful.  Oh, the benefits of dealing with a family firm!

We should be able to fulfill all outstanding 'back orders' for Soil Blockers in the next few days.

Thanks for your patience and understanding.

SeedSpoons are Here!

One of the challenges faced by many gardeners is the difficulty of handling very fine seeds, trying to sow them evenly without putting too many in one place.  Certainly we have had the same difficulty when sowing fine seeds in Micro 20 Soil Blocks, where the whole idea is to just have one seedling per block.  We have been recently introduced to SeedSpoons, which look like they could be a very effective answer to the problem.

Of course, it's not quite the best time of year to be trying out seed sowing techniques, but Dave has done a 'dry run' with the tiny seeds of Wild Rocket, and found that the smallest of the 'spoons' worked just right.  Come the Spring, we shall definitely be giving these SeedSpoons a much more complete 'road test', but the signs are very good so far.

If you would like to try them too, there is more information on our website , where they are available at £2.50 a set (including UK postage).  They could make a useful small gift for a gardener!

Aluminium Rake on Offer - NOW SOLD!!

We have ONE Glaser Aluminium Rake (No. 100) on Special Offer.  This rake is very light but robust and measures 740 mm (29") width, with 20 teeth.  No handle is supplied, but a 28 mm ash broom handle would be ideal.

Normal UK price for this rake is £58.10, but this one is on offer at just £50.00, including UK postage.

If you want more information or would like to buy this rake, please email us, as you cannot buy it from our website.  We can make easy arrangements for you to pay us by PayPal, credit/debit card, cheque or bank credit transfer.   Sorry, it's now sold!

N.B.  This is not a 'second' or damaged in any way.  We have recently bought some stock from a former supplier of Glaser Tools and are therefore able to make this special offer.

Seeders on Offer - all sold

We had 3 Glaser Seeders (No. 800) available, which can be attached to a Glaser Wheel Hoe or to a simple wooden handle.  All have now been sold.

The fixing bracket (right) is designed to attach to a crossbar, which then attaches to a Glaser Wheel Hoe.  However, it is a simple matter to assemble the bracket slightly differently so that it can be fitted direct to the Wheel Hoe, without using a crossbar.  The diagonal arms can be easily unbolted from the top bar, which is then inverted so that the nut and bolt can be used to attach it to the Wheel Hoe.

This picture (left) shows how one or more Seeder can be attached to a Wheel Hoe using a bracket and crossbar. (Slightly different bracket shown here, and the Seeder(s) painted green!)

Alternatively, a Seeder can be simply attached to the end of a wooden handle and drawn through the soil by hand.  You would need to pull it rather than push it, so a certain amount of walking backwards may be necessary!

For more information about the Seeder and how to operate it, see this PDF file on our website, which is based on a leaflet produced by Glaser GMBH in Switzerland.

The normal UK price for the Glaser 800 Seeder on its own is £167.60, and the brackets are £24.10 each.  (total £191.70).  We are offering these 2 Seeders at £150.00 each, including a free bracket.  If you buy both, then we will 'throw in' a 400 mm crossbar free as well (normally £24.50).  All prices include UK postage.  (Non-UK customers – please email us for postage costs.)

(Please Note!  The 400 mm crossbar can NOT be used with the Pico 700 Wheel Hoe, as it has 2 off-centre attachment bolts and the Pico 700 has only centre-line attachment points.)

You cannot buy these Seeders direct from our website, as we do not usually hold them in stock. (Normally only available to order.) If you want more information, or are interested to buy one or more of these Seeders, please email us . We can then make easy arrangements for you pay us (through PayPal, credit/debit card, cheque or bank credit transfer).

N.B. These Seeders are not 'seconds' or damaged in any way.  We bought some stock from a former supplier of Glaser Tools when he closed his business last year and are therefore able to make this special offer.

The Micro Spatula – A Nifty Lifter

We have used Dagger Trowels to move the larger Soil Blocks right from the day we started making them, but they are too big to handle the little Micro 20 Soil Blocks.

In the end, we found an old-fashioned kitchen knife which seemed to fit the bill.  If you can find one the same, you may find that it works for you too.

However, if you are still looking for an easy tool for handling these little blocks, we may have found the answer!

These Stainless Steel Spatulas are about 15 cm (6") long, with one 'spade' and one 'spoon' end.  The 'spade' end is 17 mm (⅔") wide, just the right width to fit under an individual Micro 20 soil block and lift it up, ready to be placed in the top of a prepared 50 mm block.  As you may be able to see, we have put a slight bend in the one I am holding, as that seems to help to slip the spatula under the soil block.  We supply them straight, so you can bend yours as much or as little as you like!

You will need to have made your 50 mm blocks using the Cube Inserts, which form holes in the top of the blocks of exactly the right shape and size.

You can find the Micro Spatula at the bottom of the Soil Blockers page of our main website priced at £2.60 each, including UK postage.  They are also on the Hand Tools page, with a little more information here.

Focus on the Dagger Trowel

We made our first Dagger Trowel after reading about them in Eliot Coleman's book The New Organic Grower.  At that time, we were just experimenting with our first Soil Blocker (a Mini 4), and this little tool looked like a good idea.

It was!  Not only for moving and planting out soil blocks, as Eliot had designed, but also for all sorts of other garden jobs, like planting potatoes, onion sets, shallots, garlic and all sort of bulbs.  As my Dagger Trowel gradually started to take up residence in the back pocket of my jeans, it was used for planting out, mixing potting soil, even as an emergency screwdriver!

An especially useful function is to clean sticky mud off other tools – spade, fork, rotavator, wheelhoe attachments, oscillating hoe, even boots – our Devon clay loam can sometimes stick like glue!

We started making Dagger Trowels for sale in late 2005 and they have proved quietly popular.  Since then we have been able to find lower-cost suppliers and they are currently our cheapest hand tool at £5.40 including UK postage.  The quality is still good, with wooden handles and carbon steel blades.

Even better, we now have two sizes, so you can easily move and plant out both 50 mm soil blocks (made with the Mini 4 or Multi 12 Soil Blockers) and 38 mm soil blocks (made with the Mini 5 or Multi 20 Soil Blockers).