About
The Eureka moment came as I changed tools for the umpteenth time to break up a particularly vicious lump of clay. It was early 1992 and I was turning the soil in my small plot by Port Meadow, in Oxford. It was a tranquil, fertile haven, but a challenging one, and I was becoming increasingly frustrated at having to use two tools to cultivate the soil, when surely there must be an easier and more convenient solution.
Clod of clay abandoned, spade cast to one side, I snatched up the fork and strode towards the workshop, eyes searching and brain whirring, determined to find its perfect partner. There had to be something I could marry with the fork that would make it cut like a spade, and hold a spit, but still riddle and work the soil.
My eyes fell on the blade of an old Allen scythe. The head-rush, the hairs sticking up on the back of my neck, told me I had found the answer. The V-shaped blades have been developed and trusted over generations to tackle the toughest thickets. So why not point them downwards and put them to work on roots and compacted soil?
I instantly set to work. The welder flashed, angle-grinder sparked and eventually I held in my hand the first prototype Spork™. I have to say this crude hybrid really worked. The blade cut, without clogging, through some particularly persistent roots, and cleaved through some fairly impressive clumps of clay. But at the same time I could work down the soil to a fine tilth.
And it did more, forking up weeds, surface skimming and cutting turf. It avoided most of the drag, was lighter when digging heavy soil and I found it was effective in most soil types. There was obviously huge potential for this tool to save gardeners time and energy, and produce a magnificent result.
The prototype took some development, and many more furtive hours spent in the workshop, before I had a design that truly married the best features of both spade and fork. It was time to market and manufacture, and I found there was whirlwind of interest, from gardening magazines to innovation TV shows. This fuelled a flurry of orders, and soon I was shipping in Spork™s in quantities I had never dreamt I would achieve in such a short space of time.
But all did not go smoothly – securing patents proved a painstaking and expensive process. A calamitous consignment from the far-eastern manufacturer put the business in trouble. Production ceased and Spork™ entered the dark years.
It was in 2006 that a chance meeting introduced me to the De Wit family in Holland, who have been manufacturing fine tools from top quality materials for generations. They were as excited and passionate about the Spork™ as I have always been.
The De Wit manufacturing operation is simply staggering – once you’ve seen it, you will never again want to buy an ordinary tool. A family business since 1898, De Wit produces for a global market, yet every tool is hand-forged by master craftsmen. They use boron steel – an immensely strong and durable material that requires a high degree of skill to manufacture correctly. They are also sharpened by hand to a finely crafted tapered edge that will never blunt and never bend.
Over the years I had developed and improved the design, so it was time for a new, stronger, sharper, more durable Spork™ to be born. I knew it was also time for a range of tools to accompany it.
Once again I disappeared into my workshop, with phones off and a bit of grub for a couple of days. I relentlessly set about creating a family of multi-use tools that used this fascinating principle of the Spork™ design. Using an old barbecue and mini blower I began fashioning the prototypes. The workshop door swung open only to test the effectiveness of the tools.
Gradually the range took shape – a rake that will cut as well as gather; a mattock-action tool that takes the back-break out of working heavy and stony soils, and clears tough weeds at the same time; a hand tool that works small borders and tubs like a fork, but cuts and scoops like a trowel.
For me it’s been a fascinating and rewarding journey to bring the Spork™ range of tools to where it is now. Those who know me know also that, if presented an everyday challenge that’s crying out for a solution, I won’t rest until I’ve engineered and developed one.
That’s what the Spork™ is – not only an intriguing design, but a genuine solution for those looking to make light work of heavy gardening tasks. Now, with the quality and craftsmanship that goes into its manufacture, I can be sure that every Spork™ owner is getting a tool that will deliver a lifetime of dependable good results. And if you’ve a challenge facing you in your garden or allotment, as I had all those years ago in my corner of Port Meadow, here’s the help that will make it your haven.
