Rakes for Leaves, Lawns, and Soil
Thanks for taking the time to read my article on the best garden rakes. There are actually two different types of garden rakes available on the UK market, and we will review both types here.
- The lawn and leaf rake - as the name would suggest this is the most popular choice as it is safe to use on lawns and is very good at gathering up leaves and other garden waste and debris
- The garden/soil rake - this is used for leveling soil, flower bed weeding, working on thicker grass, and general for more heavy duty types of work
There are many brands or rake available on the UK market, and they do come in slightly different shapes and sizes. Below we hope to guide you through the choices available.
That way you can decide which is the best type for your own specific needs.
In this article though, we are going to focus on the best rake for gardens, and which types of rakes are the best to use. In our opinion the best garden rake is the Spear & Jackson Carbon Steel Flexo Lawn Rake
Two Types of Rake Illustrated in Images
Typical Leaf Rake
Has a fan head with flexible but sturdy tangs
Ideal for raking leaves on lawns
Typical Soil Rake
Has a straight head with rigid tangs
Ideal for leveling soil
Which Garden Rake Do You Need?
The vast majority of buyers will want a rake that can gather up leaves on a lawn. That is the wider fan type and it is much safer to use on your lawns. The fan design also allows you to gather the leaves much quicker. The flexible spokes or tangs will also not damage your lawn.
If you want to do a lot of work on a vegetable garden or on flower beds, then a soil rake will be a batter option. This type of rake is used to help break up and level out the soil.
It is worth noting that this rake can also gather up leaves etc, but you do need to use with care, to prevent the rigid spokes from digging into your lawns.
Top 10 Buyer Rated Garden Rakes
- Spear & Jackson 2155NS Select Carbon Steel Flexo Lawn Rake (92%)
- Bulldog BPR Plastic Leaf Rake (92%)
- Spear & Jackson Neverbend Professional Heavy Duty Flexo Lawn Rake (90%)
- Wilkinson Sword Carbon Steel Garden Rake (90%)
- Spear & Jackson - Traditional Soil Rake (88%)
- Rovtop 63 Inch Garden Leaf Rake (88%)
- Draper 34875 700 mm Extra-Large Head Plastic Leaf Rake (88%)
- ORIENTOOLS Garden Leaf Rake (86%)
- Old Tjikko Soil Rake,Garden Rake Heavy Duty,Rake (80%)
- Green Blade Carbon Steel Garden Rake with PVC Grip (80%)
No 1 - Spear & Jackson Select Carbon Steel Flexo Lawn Rake
- 74% of all online buyers gave this a full 5 star review
- As you can see this is our number one choice as it has overall the best online buyer reviews
- It has a fabricated carbon steel head and socket which have been heat treated for strength
- To make it even better the head has been epoxy coated for improved resistance to rust, scratches, humidity and alkalines in the soil
- It has a lightweight tough tubular steel shaft
- This rake has 16 spring steel tines
Check Amazon UK for Availability - Price when reviewed £26.95 - 92% customer satisfaction based on 1,200+ buyers
No 2 - Bulldog BPR Plastic Leaf Rake
- 74% of all online buyers gave this a full 5 star review
- This rake has a large plastic head (300 x 482 mm)
- It has a cranked tooth design
- It has a 48 Inch ash handle
- Measures 165 x 59 x 5 cm and weighs 445 grams
- This is a very good general purpose garden rake that has been built to last
Check Amazon UK for Availability - Price when reviewed £20.98 - 90% customer satisfaction based on 700+ buyers
No 3 - Spear & Jackson Neverbend Professional Heavy Duty Flexo Lawn Rake
- 75% of all online buyers gave this a full 5 star review
- A very good choice as it has heat treated tines which are designed to withstand the toughest use
- There are 20 tines that wrap around the rivets at the back of the plate to reduce the likelihood of them becoming detached during use
- It also has a 48-inch ash wooden shaft
- This rake is made to last and an ideal choice for someone who wants a rake that will last them for years
- The price will put some people off but it is a high quality choice if you have the budget
Check Amazon UK for Availability - Price when reviewed £45.00 - 92% customer satisfaction based on 400+ buyers
No 4 - Spear & Jackson Traditional Soil Rake
- 75% of all online buyers gave this a full 5 star review
- This is a classic traditional soil rake
- It has a mirror polished stainless steel head which ensures that this rake is resistant to rust, and also that the soil will stick less to it than a normal rake
- It has a strong hard wood shaft that has been weather proofed so it will also last a great deal longer.
Check Amazon UK for Availability - Price when reviewed £24.85 - 92% customer satisfaction based on 900+ buyers
No 5 - Wilkinson Sword Carbon Steel Garden Rake
- 61% of all online buyers gave this a full 5 star review
- This rake forms part of the range of Wolf garten range of tools
- This soil rake has a carbon steel head
- The head has been coated with a black epoxy finish that stops rust and as such makes your rake last much longer
- It also has a high quality wooden ash handle
- Please be aware that this type of rake is not suitable for lawns or grass and id designed to be used for soil or for gravel
Check Amazon UK for Availability - Price when reviewed £18.68 - 92% customer satisfaction based on 50+ buyers
No 6 - Draper 34875 Plastic Leaf Rake
- 76% of all online buyers gave this a full 5 star review
- This leaf rake does sell pretty well online
- It has an extra large 30-tooth head which does help rake the grass and leaves quite quickly
- The actual head is made from a strong flexible plastic
- The handles is made of wood and has been varnished for added protection
- It is comfortable to hold and use
Check Amazon UK for Availability - Price when reviewed £23.90 - 90% customer satisfaction based on 600+ buyers
No 7 - ORIENTOOLS Garden Leaf Rake
- 68% of all online buyers gave this a full 5 star review
- This rake has an adjustable handle where you can set the length between 110 to 168 cm by twisting the handle
- This is a wide leaf rake that is very light and maneuverable around your garden
- It has 26 tines are solid and close enough that leaves don’t get stuck.
- When not in use, the handle can be shortened and you can hang it up to save space.
Check Amazon UK for Availability - Price when reviewed £26.99 - 88% customer satisfaction based on 800+ buyers
No 8 - Old Tjikko Soil Rake - Best for Kids
- 61% of all online buyers gave this a full 5 star review
- This rake has a heat treated carbon steel head which does add strength to the metal head
- It has also been coated with epoxy and that helps a lot to prevent rusting
- It does have a soft feel handle so comfortable enough to use
- It measures 130 cm with the handle length taking up 120 cm of that
- The rake head is 33.5 cm
- It has been designed for the young gardener
Check Amazon UK for Availability - Price when reviewed £27.08 - 84% customer satisfaction based on 700+ buyers
No 9 - Green Blade Carbon Steel Garden Rake - Cheapest Garden Rake
- 60% of all online buyers gave this a full 5 star review
- This rake has a steel shaft with a rubber grip handle
- It has a carbon steel head with 12 polished teeth
- A decent choice for breaking up and leveling soil
- It is light and easy to handle
- It is 1.5 metres long
- Comes at a pretty affordable price
- We don't think that this one is suitable for heavy work so please be aware of that.
Check Amazon UK for Availability - Price when reviewed £11.30 - 88% customer satisfaction based on 2,500+ buyers
Buying Guide
We always like to include a buyer's guide which we believe is helpful for all beginner gardeners, or anyone new to being a home owner. You should expect to pay around £15-20 in the United Kingdom for a good quality rake. If taken care of, that will last you 10-15 years.
What Kind is best for Grass?
It's just important to remember not to mix up a soil rake with rake designed to be used on grass. You need a rake with a wide head and spaced out tines for raking up grass. The number one choice on our list, which is the Spear & Jackson Select Carbon Steel Flexo lawn rake, is the best choice.
We like this one because it is affordable, from a very good gardening brand and is is extremely well designed and built to last for many years.
What Kind is best for dead Grass? (Dethatching or Scarifying)
When we mow our lawns some grass that has been cut will get back into the lawn. Some grass also naturally dies off in the lawn. Over the years the build up of this prevents the healthy growth of the grass on your lawn. This will at some point need to be removed.
The removal of this is normally referred to as "dethatching." You may also hear it referred to as scarifying.
This type of rake is designed to remove thatch, moss and dead grass cuttings
It does this by gathering up anything that is dead and also opens up the surface of the soil to allow it to breathe. The best way to use this is to mow your lawn, and then use this type of a rake to remove moss, dead grass etc. After that you may need to sow new seeds to help fill out the lawn with new growth.
Rakes like this have a specially designed oscillating head which allows the rake to glide over your lawn without damaging healthy grass.
What Kind is best for Leaves?
As you can see from the above information the wider fan heads are the better choice for raking up leaves and other garden debris. They have a nice wide head, and the tines are flexible enough to capture the leaves or debris without digging into the grass or lawn.
They are also ideal for getting under shrubs and trees. The first one on our list, the Spear & Jackson 2155NS is the highest buyer rated and does an excellent job.
Our advice is not to get distracted with adjustable handles as they will be seldom if ever used, and it is just another thing to go wrong. You want a rake that is well made, has been properly treated and from a well known brand.
What Kind is best for Pine Needles?
Pine needles are tricky to lift and they do shred quite a bit all year around. They are usually this sharp leaves and this is what makes than rather difficult to lift.
.A normal lawn rake will eventually lift them but that will requite time and patience. There are rakes designed to achieve this faster but they are more expensive.
It really depends how many needles you have to lift, but for someone with a lot of pine trees, the rake shown to the right will be your best friend.
Which is best for Mulch or Gravel? - A Bow Rake
For working with mulch the best type of rake to use is known as a "bow rake."
This rake type has been designed to help spread mulch quickly as they have short but strong sturdy tines.
These are also used for working with gravel, sand etc as they just handle heavier materials really well. They have a very strong design and are built to last for many years.
Best for Soil Leveling
For leveling soil and tougher tasks you need a strong well made and durable rake that will not fall apart.
The Wilkinson Sword Carbon Steel Garden Rake is the highest buyer rated soil fork and again does an excellent job.
Our advice is not to get distracted with adjustable handles as they will be seldom if ever used, and it is just another thing to go wrong. You want a rake that is well made, has been properly treated and from a well known brand.
What is the best Hay Rake?
As the name would suggest there are rakes designed for working with hay. These can also be used for working with mulch if you don't fancy splashing out on a more expensive bow rake.
The majority of hay rakes are made from wood and usually of beech like the one shown to the right.
Hi
The descriptions of leaf rakes don't all give the width of the tines, head. The handle length they keep banging on about, but I am not interested in that, I am looking for one that has approx 87 cam width, my friend bought one onlline somewhere but I can't find one that wide. 34 inches approx. I went onto their link, but ther doesn't seem to be a contact supplier for further information anywhere either. I am in UK by the way.
Thanks Enda,
Hello Felicity, I have used the Gardena Combisystem rake and the head width on that was 77 cms. I have never seen one with an 87 cm width. Your friend must have found that on a specialist website. I will make a few enquiries and see if I can find anything.