RHS Burgon & Ball Weed Knife - RHS Range

This Burgon & Ball dentate and sharpened weeding knife is a true Swiss army knife that every gardener should have in their pocket. Lightweight, easy to handle, and ergonomic, it has a long steel blade with a sharpened tip that easily penetrates the soil to uproot unwanted weeds and teeth to cut ties or open bags of compost.

The weeding knife is an environmentally friendly tool designed to eliminate unwanted weeds on small surfaces without using chemicals. It allows for hoeing the soil, that is, manually and mechanically removing weeds by superficially scraping the soil without turning it over. The narrow blade of this model easily manoeuvres everywhere. Its angle allows for more comfortable use. Its fork-shaped end with sharp edges allows for cutting vegetation, scraping and scratching, and above all, dislodging "weeds" with so-called taproots, such as dandelions, thistles, or even sow thistles. This hand tool consists of a profiled FSC-certified wood handle for a good grip, with a metal socket where the hardened carbon steel blade, resistant to shocks, torsion, and corrosion, is attached. The handle is compostable; the metal head is recyclable.

* FSC is an international eco-label guaranteeing that the wood comes from sustainably managed forests

Technical specifications:

• Total length of the tool: 20 cm (8in)

• Weight: 0.08 kg

• FSC-certified wood handle

• Hardened carbon steel blade

The English have the privilege of being the experts in gardening (but not cooking). Promesse de Fleurs has chosen the English company Burgon & Ball for the quality of its materials and its soon-to-be tricentennial steel manufacturing methods. The company has been working with steel in Sheffield since 1730, starting with a solid steel sheep shears patent. The production of garden shears and equipment quickly surpassed that of sheep shears. The Royal Horticultural Society officially approved the stainless steel tools from Burgon & Ball - probably the ultimate award in the gardening industry.

The steel used for Burgon & Ball tools is alloyed with carbon to give it strength and with chrome to prevent the formation of rust. It's an exact balance that needs to be found between chrome and carbon, which is different for each part of the tool. For example, the socket, which must be strong enough to withstand bending, is thicker steel with a medium balance between chrome and carbon. In contrast, the blade of this knife, which requires significant strength and hardness to withstand bending in the soil, is made with a higher carbon content than chrome.

The heat treatment allows for precisely the right hardness for each tool. Too hard and the metal can break or chip, not hard enough and it will bend or lose its sharpness. The thickness of the steel used also depends on the tool. The thickness of the steel affects the weight, so there's also a balance to be found, which Burgon & Ball, with its almost 300 years of experience, has validated to ensure that its tools are both practical and pleasant to use.