Weeding is typically the bane of my existence from April to October. No matter what I do—and trust me, I’ve tried it all—they keep shooting up. I wouldn’t mind it so much if I wasn’t left feeling like I might need a Life Alert button after I was done. And by the time my back finally recovers, it feels like those pesky weeds have reappeared, seemingly laughing at me.

When I first came across Grampa’s Stand-Up Weed Puller, I thought it looked gimmicky. A long, handheld kind of claw machine that’ll help me clean up my yard? Sure, it might help my back, but not if it’s a piece of junk. I’ll stick to my kneepad and trowel, thanks.

But when Popular Mechanics editor Sarah Connor listed this among the best gardening tools on Amazon, my interest was piqued. I decided to check it out, and my back has been thanking me ever since.

A thoughtful, sturdy design

The first thing that jumped out to me when I picked up the tool is how solid it feels. The bamboo handle is smooth and has a heft to it that I wasn’t expecting. Combined with the head, it’s just under 4 feet tall, which should be more than long enough for most people to grip comfortably while they use it.

The head is made of steel and features two forked prongs that press together when pressure is applied upward on a curved foot pedal. You simply center the head over the weed you want to pull and then push down so the claw is mostly under the soil. (You can use the foot pedal for leverage here if necessary.)

Next, lean the handle in the direction of the foot pedal. This creates the upward pressure that pushes the prongs, now underground and tangled in the weed’s roots, together. You’ve now got the weed and its roots grasped by the claw. Pull it up, and toss it aside. Your yard now has one fewer weed, just like that.

When it works and when it struggles

I purchased this tool the summer after my son was born. It was a particularly rough weed season for me, as my taking care of an infant gave the weeds more time to claim territory than I ever let them before.

With Grampa’s Weed Puller in tow, clearing these weeds took a lot less time than I expected, but it wasn’t the most effective weed remover across my entire property. Weeds that are in my mulched garden, especially ones with thicker roots, like dandelions, came up perfectly about 90 percent of the time. The tool also works well in all types of soil when it’s softer–either naturally or because it’s wet.

The tool was not as helpful in a small side garden bed where the soil is tough and more clay-like, and it’s challenging to get a good grip of weed roots when you’re working up against a hard surface like a driveway. Also, if you have a lot of really small weeds, this simply might not be the most effective way to get rid of them. If the roots are too small, they can more easily escape the grasp of the claw.

Final Thoughts

When you use the weed puller enough, you learn which weeds it’s right for (in addition to dandelions, crabgrass is another great candidate) and which ones you might want to manage another way. That knowledge makes the weeding process faster, too, and spending less time bent over with the trowel is a bonus as you’ll avoid some back soreness.

I think this weed puller is a really nice tool to have on hand. It’s long but it doesn’t take up much space in the garage. I have no doubts about its durability, and while its utility isn’t universal, it’s still a worthy weapon against your garden’s most unwelcome residents.