How to Hoe

Hoe, hoe, hoe and your garden will be neater and have fewer pests. If the hoe isn't your best gardening friend, either it's the wrong kind or nobody told you how to use it correctly.

Difficulty:

Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Hoes
• Motor Oil
• Sand
• Buckets
• Metal Files

1. Buy a good hoe, one with a single-piece head and rivets that attach the head to a handle made of ash or hickory. This tool will last a lifetime and won't work you to death.

2. Try draw hoes or onion hoes for chopping and weeding. You'll like their heft and head angles. Their blades (about 6 inches wide and 3 inches deep) are perfect for working the top 3 inches of most garden soils.

3. Stand up straight and grip the hoe like you would a broom. If you cannot easily chop the ground about 1 foot in front of you, try a hoe with another handle length or head angle.

4. Stand comfortably with your feet apart and reverse the position of your hands so that your thumbs both point down the handle. Be sure you can scratch the soil surface for 2 feet without straining - or you may need to try another model.

5. Chop the ground to plant and cultivate or to scratch away weeds. Work with your tool instead of against it. Move along the row or through the bed as your reach allows - try not to plant yourself and stretch unnecessarily.

6. Take a file into the garden and sharpen the cutting edges of your hoe frequently to make the work go easier. Lay the hoe head against your leg or a rock and lightly file away from you and the handle.

7. Store your hoe (and other hand tools) in a bucket of sand with just a bit of motor oil mixed in. If you do, you won't have to sharpen the blade as often.

Tips & Warnings

• Invest a few more dollars in a quality tool and you won't be sorry.

• Every region has its special hoes, so shop locally to learn what works best with your soils.

• Add an ergonomic grip to tool handles if your wrists get tired easily.