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Clear weeds quickly with this clever tool that 'saves your back' — it's on sale
Fall is prime time to evict unwanted plants once and for all, experts say — do it without all the bending and stooping.
Along with cooler temperatures, fall brings a lot of yard work. The towering trees in my yard that provide shade in the summer months dump thousands of leaves throughout October and November, but they're only part of my lawn-care woes. Now is also prime time to get rid of all of the pesky weeds that have taken over all year long. Thankfully, it doesn't have to be backbreaking work — not when there's a tool like Grampa's Weeder, which will give you the high ground over weeds and keep you from bending over all afternoon.
Simply place the tool over a weed, push it into the ground and lean on the long handle to unearth the pesky plant, roots and all, in one fell swoop.
Why is it a good deal? 💰
As someone who has dealt with back problems caused by everything from mountain biking to yard work, $40 is a small price to pay if it saves you from being sidelined with a back injury. Plus, you'll be less fatigued with a tool like this, so you can get the job done faster.
Why do I need this? 🤔
So your garden or your lawn is being overtaken by weeds, but squatting and bending is tough on your back. The way we see it, you have three options: 1. Let the weeds win (in my opinion, not really an option); 2. Shell out hundreds for a pro lawn care; or 3. Grab this smart tool that gets the job done without crouching. Grampa's Weeder, named for its old-school design, is a big hit among shoppers, and no wonder: Engineered to work from a standing position, it pulls weeds without straining joints.
And make no mistake: Fall is a great time to get rid of pesky weeds. "Weeding in the fall has several benefits," says Tammy Sons, founder and CEO of TN Nursery. "Plants are sending all their energy to the root systems to prepare for winter, which makes removing the entire plant easier and helps prevent regrowth. Weeds are also easier to identify in the fall as all the foliage of desirable plants is dying off."
Want a picture-perfect lawn next year? Just because winter is setting in doesn't mean it's time to sit back and relax once all of those weeds are pulled. "You can also look at a high potassium (the last number on the fertilizer bag) fertilizer to help feed your lawn through the winter months," explains TJ Breil, better known as the.lawn.dad on Instagram. "Potassium is a great [all-around] nutrient for plants to help them stay healthy during periods of dormancy and kick start the lawn season next year."
What reviewers say 💬
Over 41,000 back pain-free reviewers have given this tool a five-star review, and over 6,000 of the weeders have sold in the past month.
Pros 👍
Here's what one backyard warrior had to say: "As a 5'3" woman in my late 70s, bending over to pull weeds is not fun. This tool allows me to insert sturdy prongs around the center of the deeply rooted established weeds, step on the metal platform, pull back, and use the leverage to easily pull the weed out by the roots. Then I lift it up and pluck it out of the mechanism, shake off the soil and toss the weed onto the accumulating pile, all the while standing up comfortably. It makes pulling weeds almost fun."
Another reviewer pointed out how this helps them to limit toxic chemicals when gardening. "I don't write a lot of reviews, but this tool really deserved a review. I no longer use poison to kill weeds, so picking them has been the thing to do. This tool makes my job so easy. Not only does it save my back, but I can far more quickly pull weeds from their roots with a single pull. I highly recommend it. ... Very easy to use; saves your back and time."
Others rave about the satisfaction of dislodging deep roots with very little effort. A five-star reviewer dubbed the weeder "absolutely perfect." They continued: "You can't go wrong with this tool. It was made in 1913 and still does what it was built to do. Easy and effective. It comes as a full piece, with no attachments or anything that can break. Open the box and straight to the yard. I successfully pulled up around 20+ weeds in no time and my back was happy to not have to bend to do it!"
Cons 👎
Some users found that while Grampa's Weeder works well at pulling weeds out of the ground, getting the weeds out of the tool was another task. According to one four-star reviewer, "the only complaint I have is that, maybe 20% of the time, the weed I just pulled will wind up stuck in the tines, and no amount of shaking or banging will get it to come off and fall in my weeding bucket, so I still find myself leaning over to dig a weed out of the tool."
A final reviewer cautioned that during dry times of the year, it's harder to dislodge weeds. "This is good and works good if the ground is slightly moist. If the ground is dry, the roots of the thistles break off."
The device's steel four-claw design works on all types of soil, but it'll really go to town after a big rain or a good watering.
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The reviews quoted above reflect the most recent versions at the time of publication.