Recent developments in gardening tools for removing weeds have included a tool which is intended to provide a simple and effective apparatus for removing weeds from the ground. This device is exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 4,243,206 issued Jan. 6, 1981. The tool illustrated in this patent has an arrangement in which a plurality of tines or pins are forced into the soil by foot pressure. Once the pins are in the soil adjacent to the weed, the operator continues to step on the lever causing the pins to rotate in an upward direction and push the weed up from the soil. This arrangement has a number of undesirable characteristics which, in many instances, render the tool impractical for the purposes for which it has been intended. This prior art device requires foot pressure to be applied to the tool adjacent to the weed. This in turn means the operator must often stand on flowers or other vegetation to get at the weed to be removed. In addition, this prior art weed puller has a tendency to remove a large clump of sod with the weed. As a result, large divots are left in the soil with the removal of weeds. This creates an additional problem for lawns. In addition, small weeds slip easily between the tines or fingers that are supposed to engage them for removal. Moisture and soil conditions will also affect the operation of this tool. Finally, these prior art devices are complex, expensive, and still require the operator to bend over and pick up and dispose of the weed by hand and repair the potholes.