Most of the tools needed to dig a pond are your every day garden hand tools even a wheelbarrow. Each of the garden hand tools have a specific job to do.
The most popular garden hand tool is the round point or spade shovel . Used to dig up the ground, to either break it up and turn over for gardening or digging down and removing the soil. There are many manufactures but the major difference is the area where your foot goes. There is a step that either is bent away from you or towards you. The type pointing towards you is good for turning up the soil, as that gives the shovel a little ledge that will stop at ground level, but very annoying if digging deeper than the blade height. The type pointing away from you is better suited to dig deeper with out that interference. There is also a rolled step that works well, but a little harder on the foot.
When digging in the ground or in a pile of material, the spade is your tool, but if moving loose gravel, sand, bark or coal from the bed of a pick up or off a flat surface, the flat shovel is the one to use. A good worker in the garden hand tools selection, is the Pickaxe or Mattock.The pickaxe has two ends, one being a pick the other a flat blade or axe. When digging, and the round point shovel can’t cut it due to a rock or hard soil, clay the pickax will be able to help.
The pick end is just that, a small diameter that can be throughst deeper in the 
ground, then by rocking the pick back and forth, then pick up the handle to break out the hard stuff. Then repeat threw the hard area. The axe side can be used to cut threw roots, and to pry out rocks stuck in the ground. In the line of garden hand tools this is a tough one that will be worth the investment.
Next for garden hand tools is the Rake. Having teeth, also called tines made of steel and mounted on a long handle. The rake can be pushed or pulled to do it’s work, even lightly tapped on the ground to bust up clumps of dirt. The main job is to move the material around, to fill low spots and rake down the high spots when leveling around the pond. Using garden hand tools, safety should be followed. Caution never leave the rake laying down with the tines up. Injury can occur if stepped on, either by a puncture wound to the foot, or the handle coming up rapidly to greet your face.
All garden hand tools have an option of the type material the handle is made from. Wood and fiberglass are the most popular. Fiberglass is what I choose to use, seems to be stronger and lighter than wood. Unbreakable handles are also an option but cost a little more.
A Wheelbarrow falls into useful garden hand tools. When building a pond and 
having excess dirt, this will be faster than walking across the yard with a shovel full. What to do with the excess dirt? Fill in low spots in the yard, make a raised flower bed. Wheelbarrow’s come in a few styles, shapes, and sizes. Most common is the single wheel, not very stable but manageable. There is a two wheel style that provides much more stability and even powered wheelbarrows.
When planning your water garden, pond, or vegetable garden select the garden hand tools that fit your needs best. There are many more types, sizes and shapes of garden hand tools, but these will get you threw your pond or water garden building project. For any other gardening or garden hand tools, be sure to check out the WhatPond store and Gardener’s deals.
