I had some nasty weeds in my garden this summer. I didn’t have time early in the season to tackle them before they got big, which is the number one rule of weeding. But life happens and weeds wait for no gardener, so I decided to try out a new weeding tool to help me rid my garden of all the unwanted plants covering my veggie plot.
Dandelions were the main culprit, so I researched the best weeding tools for these common problem plants. After looking at dozens of options and poring over tons of online reviews, I decided on the Fiskars Ergo Weeder Tool.
This inexpensive option from the reliable Fiskars brand looked like it would hit all the marks for my weeding needs. Here’s how it did against my garden full of aggressive interlopers and one key tip to make this tool even better.
Why I Chose This Weeding Tool
My go-to tool for getting rid of unwanted weeds is a trowel. I always have one on hand and it usually works just fine as long as I dig the weeds out at the base to get the whole root system.
Since my trusty trowel usually works great, I typically hate to buy specialty tools like hand weeders. I’m cheap, extra tools mean extra clutter, and I try to practice sustainable gardening practices that reduce unnecessary waste.
But the weeds in my garden were out of control and my trowel just didn’t cut it. When I tried to dig out the full-grown dandelions in my garden, it bent the handle of my stainless steel trowel. I needed something tougher. Enter the Fiskars Ergo Weeder Tool.
This tool was recommended again and again online from not only gardening experts, but home gardeners as well. Its fans said it was the perfect tool for pesky dandelions (just what I needed), but that it worked well on other perennial weeds, too. I had a mix of dandelions, burdock, sow thistle, bull thistle, and hay covering my garden bed so I needed something that could go up against them all.
Fiskars is also one of my preferred brands because their gardening tools are affordable, yet good quality. This tool was also available in my local hardware store the same day, so it checked all the boxes.
Can’t find it in stores? Get the Fiskars Ergo Weeder Tool on Amazon.
How This Weeding Tool Did
I had a huge task ahead of me, ridding my entire garden of full-sized weeds that I left unchecked until summer. I had made the number one worst weeding mistake by leaving them to grow, but I felt well-equipped with my new tool.
I started by going after the dandelions. The Fiskars Ergo Weeder did a good job pulling out most of the roots, especially considering the size of the weeds. But honestly, I was a tad disappointed it didn’t do better because all the reviews online said it pulled out the whole root system with no problem. Though I doubt those reviewers let their dandelions get as big as mine because the weeding tool did a much better job on the handful of smaller common garden weeds.
This tool definitely did best with the dandelions. When I tried to use it on the other prickly weeds like the thistles and burdock, it couldn’t quite hold its own. Their root systems were too wide and extensive for the narrow tines on this tool to grasp.
I actually found that pulling out the sow thistles by hand worked best, especially on the bigger plants. Just grab the stems at the base and pull straight up to remove the sow thistle and much of its root system. This method worked even better after a rain, which is generally the best time to pull weeds.
The main benefit of the Fiskars Ergo Weeder Tool was its strength. It was somewhat difficult to get the tines perfectly placed around the base of the weed in order to pull out the roots without breaking them off. But when you did get it in the right position around a weed with tough roots, this weeding tool didn’t falter.
Unlike my trowel that, despite its ruggedness for planting, couldn’t hold up to tough weeding, the Fiskars tool didn’t budge. Its strong rust-resistant cast aluminum head never bent even a little bit. If you have tough weeds that are breaking or bending your other tools, try the Fiskars Ergo Weeder Tool.
What I Recommend Instead
After about an hour of weeding in the hot summer sun and a huge blister on the palm of my hand—I should have worn gloves, like these ones from Amazon—I gave up. The weeds won this year, but I have a better strategy for next growing season.
Firstly, you should always weed when plants are small. That’s the cardinal rule of weeding and I knew I was in for trouble when I broke it. Next year, I plan to weed early and often so I don’t get into the same situation I did this year.
I also plan on covering my garden this fall with black plastic sheeting, which is available at Home Depot, to kill off the weeds for next year. I’ve used this method several times, including when I turned an overgrown hayfield into a vegetable garden, and it is by far the best method I’ve found to kill weeds in fall to prevent them next year.
I’m a huge proponent of this technique and other no-till gardening methods, like using newspaper and cardboard to remove grass and create a new garden bed. No-till techniques are ideal for weed control because as they smother the weeds, they also simultaneously improve soil. The weeds you hate turn into fertilizer and amendment for your garden soil and help desirable plants flourish.
Though I believe the best way to fight weeds is prevention and a no-till approach, the Fiskars Ergo Weeder is a good tool to have in your gardening arsenal. It’s strong, durable, and does a good job on the smaller weeds. I will certainly use it on the dandelions that emerge in my yard and garden next spring, but I definitely won’t wait and let them get big again.
