The Best Garden Hoes
A good garden hoe cuts weeds at the root on the push stroke without disturbing the soil structure. A bad one pushes dirt around and leaves roots intact. The difference is entirely in the blade steel and the angle of the head relative to the handle. These are the hoes that work.
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How to Choose
The standard draw hoe (flat blade at roughly 90 degrees to the handle) is the most versatile: it hills, it chops, it furroughs. The collinear hoe (blade nearly parallel to the soil surface) is the specialist weeding tool that slices roots without disturbing soil. The stirrup hoe (oscillating blade) cuts on both push and pull strokes. For a first hoe: a standard draw hoe with a forged blade and a hardwood handle covers most tasks.
DeWit Standard Draw Hoe
DeWit forges their draw hoe from boron steel in the Netherlands to the same standard as their hand tools. The blade is 7 inches wide, beveled on both sides, and polished to reduce soil adhesion. The ash handle is 60 inches, which is the right length for working standing upright without stooping. This hoe goes back in the shed for fifty years.
The Dutch-forged hoe that does not bend, does not rust through, and does not need replacing.
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Rogue 70 Garden Hoe
Rogue makes hoes and cultivating tools in the Pacific Northwest from American tool steel. The Rogue 70 is a standard draw hoe with a 6.5-inch blade, a 54-inch American hickory handle, and a blade-to-handle angle designed after decades of observation of what actually works in commercial vegetable production. Heavier than the DeWit, more aggressive in hard soil.
The American-forged alternative. Heavier blade for harder soils, hickory handle, made domestically.
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Hula Hoe Stirrup Oscillating Hoe
The stirrup hoe -- also called the hula hoe or scuffle hoe -- has a D-shaped blade that pivots freely, cutting weeds on both the push and pull stroke. It is faster than a standard draw hoe for weeding established rows and uses different muscle groups, which reduces fatigue. The blade is replaceable. A useful second hoe for any established vegetable garden.
The efficiency tool for weeding established rows. Cuts on both strokes, uses both hands equally.
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