Electric garden tiller: "Good Ol Rusty"

Without my Good Ol Rusty it would be impossible for me to build the garden that I have and to continue expanding it. The grass in Florida is extremely difficult to get rid of, once it is in the yard. I have possibly the worst kind of it, the Bermuda grass: the kind that sends the roots deep and wide and is very resistant to the gardener's efforts of eliminating it.

If you own a gas-powered tiller, you are in a good shape. I did not want to spend hundreds of dollars for the tiller, so after some research I settled on an electric one, who's name is Good Ol Rusty. He's been with me for about two years and done a lot of hard work in my garden:

When he was young, he looked like this:

Mantis 7250-15-02 3-Speed Electric Tiller/Cultivator with Border Edger and Kickstand

Here's some good things about him: He is quiet. Yes, he does the job without much grunting. He is familiar: tilling with him is like vacuuming, done in the same motion. He is easy to start, no need to pull any strings.

The negatives are, he is shallow; he is only tilling for about nine inches deep, and he jumps when he encounters a rock or a large root. Whether you decide to get someone like him to help you with your beds, or rent something like him, that would be a good decision because trying to dig beds by hand is a grueling and punishing task that might make you reconsider that whole gardening adventure.