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reporting on my new hoe
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Posted by louisianagal z7bMS (My Page) on Mon, Feb 1, 10 at 0:12
So my hula hoe arrived, I've never used a hoe before. I couldn't see how it would work back and forth, it is so dull. Well it didn't work so well. So I had DH put a sharp edge on it with his file or grinder. I decided not to put an edge on both sides becoz I was going very close to stems and stalks of shrubs and perennials and didn't want to nick them. Even with the edge, it wasn't as easy as the ads and videos show. It seemed to work better in a sideways (sweeping) type motion rather than a strictly in front of you position and pulling towards you. The ground was very wet, even that didn't help. Granted, some of my weeds had rooted pretty good, mainly the little clumps of winter grass. And I found myself leaning down and chopping alot, which was not the idea of the long-handled hoe. There is just no substitute for getting down on my trusty little stepstool chair, and hand pulling, if you ask me. However I will continue to try and perfect my hoeing skills, and perhaps once I get control of the weeds, I can keep up with it. I really don't want to buy too many tools, but now that I've used this hoe, I can see that a circle hoe could work, and also a swan-neck one. The hoeing did not help my shoulder, with an old rotator cuff injury that's flared up recently......wait, let me get some Aleve.
What say you about hoeing (or weeding)?
Laurie
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Follow-Up Postings:
RE: reporting on my new hoe
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I agree about hula hoes, that they are best for paths. I LOVE them for that, and that is what we use them for. You may need a very narrow hoe or something like this: http://www.leevalley.com/garden/page.aspx?c=2&p=10425&cat=2,44823&ap=1
That can be used narrow and wide.
I don't use hoes in the garden. I don't have a huge amount of weeds because I use cardboard and mulch. We have huge amounts of weeds in the church garden because they are not kept up like they should be, even though we do use cardboard and mulch - it's not thick enough. I mean I pile it on THICK for mulch, inches deep. Works very nicely and weeds just pop out for the most part, if they get in there.
Any real weeds I get are mostly dandilion and things with longer roots. I really need one of these: http://www.leevalley.com/garden/page.aspx?c=2&p=44725&cat=2,2300,44822&ap=1 |
RE: reporting on my new hoe
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| luisianagal - I'd never seen a hula hoe so I had a quick Google. It is not a tool which I have ever come across over here. But what did surprise me was that I watched a video about different types of hoe in the US and they didn't mention the one nearly everybody here uses; the Dutch hoe. I suspect that when you use the hula hoe the technique is similar. It is most efficient when the weather and ground are dry. It is designed for slicing as near as horizontal as possible, not digging or chopping. That way weeds which you cut off dry out and die on the surface. In wet weather they can re-root. Also hoeing, in my experience, is best for slicing off seedling weeds before they have a chance to grow much, rather than dealing with well rooted specimens. HTH. |
RE: reporting on my new hoe
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| Laurie, I think it must depend a lot on the soil. I have one, though I didn't know it was called a Hula Hoe, and I love to use it when my sandy soil is damp and soft, and the weeds are only a few inches tall. It's a lot faster for me than a regular hoe and it rips out the weeds like a below-ground scythe. On the other hand, when the soil is dry and harder I have to put so much down-force on it, it's just too much work to use. ThinMan |
RE: reporting on my new hoe
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I have 2 of them and love them,everyone i've recommended them to love them as well.I findthem very easy to use.The landscapers that live across the street from me have several of them on their trucks.
Kathi |
RE: reporting on my new hoe
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| I think that perhaps a hoe isn't what you need but rather a rototiller. In any situation, hoes require a lot of shoulder stresses and so if this is a problem - perhaps you need a different tool altogether. |
RE: reporting on my new hoe
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| I agree with ianna that maybe you are using the wrong tool but I don't agree that a hoe hurts your shoulders. Under the right conditions a push hoe should be easy to use. It's just a question of walking slowly backwards scuffling seedlings off. (Backwards so you don't leave footprints on your soil.) Basically it's not much more effort than using a broom to sweep a floor. If it's hard on the shoulders I think you're possibly using the wrong tool for the job. Maybe you need a border fork. |
RE: reporting on my new hoe
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| Laurie, I took this definition of hoes for your information. This perhaps explains why the hula hoe didn't perform the function you had hoped for. I've also included information on other hoes. "There are many types of blade of quite different appearance and purpose. Some can perform multiple functions. Others are intended for a specific use (e.g. the collinear hoe has a narrow, razor-sharp blade which is used to slice weeds by skimming it just above the surface of the soil with a sweeping motion; it is unsuitable for tasks like soil moving and chopping). The typical farming and gardening hoe with a heavy, broad delta-shaped blade and a flat edge is the Dego hoe. The Dutch hoe (scuffle, action, oscillating, swivel, or Hula-Ho) is a design that is pushed or pulled through the soil to cut weeds just under the surface. Its tool-head is a loop of flat, sharpened strap metal. It is not as efficient as a chopping hoe for pulling or pushing soil." so, perhaps if your shoulder pain continues, hoes are not the tool for you. and since you described a soil structure that was tough, it seemed the a hula hoe was definitely unsuitable for that soil. In other words, a regular hoe was what you needed but this wouldn't work in respect to your shoulder problems. A simpler solution to deal with weeds in between plants? Cover them up with thick newspapers and mulch to kill them off. |
RE: reporting on my new hoe
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| I don't care for my hula hoe either. It is definitely a tool for well tilled soil and baby weeds. |
RE: reporting on my new hoe
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Thanks for all input re hoes. I am going to dr. today re the shoulder. Definitely getting worse and I'm not even doing any real gardening yet. Problem is that everything I do seems to involve the right shoulder - laundry, cooking, hair, dressing, bath, reaching in cupboard, don't see how it's gonna heal???
I do use the newspaper and mulch methods, it just seems the little winter weeds root on top of all that. Will try the hoe again when weather warms up a tad. |
RE: reporting on my new hoe
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- Posted by luke_oh zone 5 NE Ohio (My Page) on
Wed, Feb 10, 10 at 18:55
| I didn't know that it was a Hula Hoe, but I have one too. It does exceptionally well in loose soil. I keep both side sharpened and can either push or pull. That way you don't have to lift it up. |
RE: reporting on my new hoe
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| sorry to hear of your continuing troubles. Hope your shoulder didn't get damaged further. You may require some physio therapy to rebuild your muscles. |
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