a cultivating tool comprises a housing , an electric motor mounted within the housing , a pair of soil working members which project from the housing , an elongate shaft connected at one end to the housing , and a handle at the other end of the shaft . the soil working members are of generally lamellar construction and arranged to be reciprocated relative to one another transverse to the direction from which they project from the housing and in adjacent parallel planes . the tool handle incorporates a switch with a lock off mechanism . in normal use of the tool the soil working members penetrate into soil to be cultivated and disturb the soil .