What Is a Harrow Used for in Garden Tilling?

Types of Harrows

• The four types of harrows are disk, chain, tine and chain disk. Each has a different function for preparing your garden. Work animals pulled vintage harrows around the field. Then companies produced two-wheel models that the gardener or farmer pushed, starting in the 1930s. Today you can buy attachments for an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) or tractor to pull the harrow.

Disk Harrow

• When a farmer plows a field, the plow aerates and loosens the soil by pulling up clumps from lower layers and depositing them on the surface. These clumps make it difficult for young plants to establish roots in the soil. Disk harrows have a rotary blade that breaks up the large clumps in the soil, helping you to quickly create a new garden bed or prepare a field for planting. The harrow behind the disk levels the soil for an even surface.

Chain Harrow

• Use a chain harrow to level uneven areas of your garden bed. It comes in contact with all of the garden soil and thus moves dirt from the higher areas down into the gullies. Additionally, you can use a chain harrow to cover seeds you have just sown.

Tine Harrow

• Adjust tine harrows, also called spring tine harrows, to prepare the garden plot for whatever depth you prefer. They cut through hard-baked ground, such as clay, using vibration to loosen the soil. The tine harrow levels the soil for sowing at the same time.

Disk Chain Harrow

• The disk on any harrow digs into the ground at an angle to break up tough sod, such as what would be in a pasture you are converting to row planting or into several gardens. A disk chain harrow contains a group of disks welded to a steel chain. This harrow pulls out stubble so the farmer can either dry out the field for sowing or mulch the stubble for organic matter for the new garden.