It's interesting, the "draw hoe" I recall versions of that being referred to as a "hula hoe" when I was a kid. These day when I ak about it, I get looked at like a martian. Here is a reference to it [https://minnetonkaorchards.com/hula-hoe/]
I know the author is not a fan of Dutch hoes, but I really like them.
They have the advantage that you can put your full weight on them, pushing through the bastard roots of the bastard roots. The pull stroke is there to clear the detritus out of the way.
I haven not had much luck with oscillating/double action hoes. I suspect thats because the soils I've been using have a shit ton of stones and the weeds have longarsed tap roots.
Interesting article. Among the Dutch Hoes I did not find the most common hoe used in the Netherlands, the 'Schoffel Betuws Model', which is somewhat like the heart hoe, but than with a straight blade.
I recently started weeding at the farming cooperative that I became a member of at the start of July [1]. There is a short instruction movie where you hear one of the farmers give some instruction on how to use the hoe [2]. She explains, in Dutch, that you have to make light movements, just below the surface of the soil.
I enjoy helping out on the farming cooperative. It are simple tasks, that still require some concentration, and with an immediate result. It often brings me into a meditating like state. I meditated a bit in the past, but felt that it often wore off shortly after stopping, but with this that seems less the case, probably because I have achieved something useful. I guess, this is one of the reasons why many people like gardening. I do not have a large garden and working at the farming cooperative often means you have to repeat the same kind of work for much longer than you could have done in my own garden.
There's a set of hoes now manufactured by Wolf Garten, that are light and sturdy, offering all the types that homesteader needs, including this beast which once you discover you are not going back:
I recommend the wooden handle, have had mine for the past 17 years. Not affiliated in any way, just a huge fan based on experience with these tools in small scale organic farming and homesteading.
Also been using Wolf tools for 20 years - I really love the way that you can have multiple tool heads shared between 2-3 handles: significantly saves space in my garden shed. The handles are propped up in one corner and the heads are all on individual nails high on a wall, such that I can store other stuff beneath them. If the heads were permanently attached to their handles, I'd have lost a whole wall to the tools.
The interchange mechanism is very robust - I've only had one fail in all that time, and the handle is still actually usable (the little red press button came off but the underlying locking mechanism is still functional).
They also sell short handles that mean that you can use the tool heads while crouched down close to the ground, something that is virtually impossible with a conventional long handle.
I wish I hadn’t been this old when I discovered why the normal draw hoe available everywhere doesn’t work well. A lot of my life spent slamming that thing into the ground. Need to find myself one of those digging hoes now.
If you can get an old or broken disk from a farmer and have the ability ( or find someone who does) to cut and weld it, man can you make a good hoe. It will outlast several generations of your family. I found the best Hoe to be kind of like a field Hoe but the size of a small pizza slice, about 6 inches at the cutting edge and about 5 inches to the shaft insert.
In general the metal part of the hoe will only wear out in the constant use/multi generational use. Most of time the problem is the interface between the head and the handle that causes the most issues.
It's a materials trade off. You could make a metal handled hoe, but it would be heavy for the users, and it would transfer the impact vibrations up to the user making it uncomfortable to use.
Instead things like wood and fiberglass are used that are lighter, but it does come with the weaker interface.
In a book I recently read “The House by the Cerulean Sea” it was through a shared love of obscure garden hoes that bridged a mundane community with ostracized magical youth. Lovely book.
Such a perfect HN submission. I'm pretty uninterested in gardening and yet love the implications and insight of seeing this kind of specialized knowledge, both the article and commentary.
Strange that someone would downvote this. Do you think HN should only have articles about computer-related topics?
I doubt I would have even encountered this article, much less ever thought about the kinds of garden issues that lead to different kinds of hoe design, without HN. It’s always fun to see the depth of culture behind a hat might seem to be a trivial topic on the surface.
For digging, in the hardest dirt I use a mattock/adze style tool (adze on one end, pick on the other). In more reasonable dirt a "grub hoe", and finally a flat shovel in the softest of stuff.
For moving dirt, a big scooping shovel (think snow scooping); the "american standard" hoe is for shaping dirt on the ground (a rake for dirt).
27 comments
[ 3.9 ms ] story [ 76.0 ms ] threadThis is an excellent shape for a garden tool. I can highly recommend!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homi_(tool)
There’s also this kind
They have the advantage that you can put your full weight on them, pushing through the bastard roots of the bastard roots. The pull stroke is there to clear the detritus out of the way.
I haven not had much luck with oscillating/double action hoes. I suspect thats because the soils I've been using have a shit ton of stones and the weeds have longarsed tap roots.
https://youtu.be/woHNgHkbWzA
Great for weeding. You will never go back to anything else. I promise.
You will also save some $ or £ or €.
hoe, hoe, hoe!
I recently started weeding at the farming cooperative that I became a member of at the start of July [1]. There is a short instruction movie where you hear one of the farmers give some instruction on how to use the hoe [2]. She explains, in Dutch, that you have to make light movements, just below the surface of the soil.
I enjoy helping out on the farming cooperative. It are simple tasks, that still require some concentration, and with an immediate result. It often brings me into a meditating like state. I meditated a bit in the past, but felt that it often wore off shortly after stopping, but with this that seems less the case, probably because I have achieved something useful. I guess, this is one of the reasons why many people like gardening. I do not have a large garden and working at the farming cooperative often means you have to repeat the same kind of work for much longer than you could have done in my own garden.
[1] https://www.iwriteiam.nl/D2306.html#18
[2] https://www.flickr.com/photos/197736829@N05/52960240223/in/a...
https://wolfgarten.us/collections/interlocken/products/wolf-...
I recommend the wooden handle, have had mine for the past 17 years. Not affiliated in any way, just a huge fan based on experience with these tools in small scale organic farming and homesteading.
The interchange mechanism is very robust - I've only had one fail in all that time, and the handle is still actually usable (the little red press button came off but the underlying locking mechanism is still functional).
They also sell short handles that mean that you can use the tool heads while crouched down close to the ground, something that is virtually impossible with a conventional long handle.
Words of wisdom, right there.
Instead things like wood and fiberglass are used that are lighter, but it does come with the weaker interface.
I doubt I would have even encountered this article, much less ever thought about the kinds of garden issues that lead to different kinds of hoe design, without HN. It’s always fun to see the depth of culture behind a hat might seem to be a trivial topic on the surface.
For digging, in the hardest dirt I use a mattock/adze style tool (adze on one end, pick on the other). In more reasonable dirt a "grub hoe", and finally a flat shovel in the softest of stuff.
For moving dirt, a big scooping shovel (think snow scooping); the "american standard" hoe is for shaping dirt on the ground (a rake for dirt).