Hoe: how to choose?

What is a binette?

Hoe is an essential gardening tool. It consists of a short or long handle and a steel head: a sharpened blade 8 to 20 cm wide, set at an acute angle to the handle. Its very sharp edges are particularly effective for working soil at surface level. It comes in different handle lengths and materials and, depending on model, the sharpened head takes a heart shape, a half-moon, a small round shovel, or a trident.

Short or long-handled hoe, many options for this basic gardener’s tool

To learn more, read Olivier’s advice: What is a hoe used for?

Which hoe should I choose?

There are different types of hoes. Several criteria should be considered before choosing your hoe, such as soil type and type of area to maintain.

• Size options : garden hoes are available in several sizes. They come with short or long handles. Some finish with a “T” for easier use and maximum comfort. A short-handled model is particularly suitable for raised plantings such as vegetable beds or flower boxes. To clear a conventional bed or ranks in a vegetable plot of weeds growing between plants, opt for a long-handled model to protect your back.
• Material choices : the hoes we offer are made from beech wood or natural ash, sometimes eucalyptus. Light, easy to handle and sturdy, they will serve gardeners for many years. They have strong stainless-steel heads, resistant to impact, twisting and corrosion.
• Traditional hoes : Short- or long-handled, they are particularly effective for surface soil work and for maintaining flower beds or vegetable plots. They feature a rectangular steel blade, sometimes with small teeth to make the gardener’s task easier.
  

  Long-handled hoes: rose hoe, Japanese hoe and Nanterre hoe

Specialised hoes

• Double-headed and double-sided hoes : one side shaped like a rake and the other like a hoe, or a head sharpened on both sides. Ideal for working forwards and backwards.
• Heart-shaped head : ideal for reaching difficult-access spots to weed in planters. Also useful as an edging tool for lawn or as a scraper to clean grooves between paving slabs.
• Round-headed : specially designed to weed, scrape and rake in sandy, light soil. Allows hoeing in any direction.
• Trident or “spork-shaped” head : with a 3-tined spork-shaped head, ideal for removing weeds in harder soil.
• Half-moon head : used for precise work in tight spots and particularly effective on curves.
• Rose hoes : narrow, sharpened head allows work in restricted spaces, particularly between plants and at base of bushes.
• Flower hoes : small hoes designed for maintenance of tubs and window boxes, raised beds and small terrace or border edges.
• Nanterre-style hoes : distinguished by a blade riveted at the socket, perfect for hoeing, weeding and also for digging furrows for sowing.
  
  

  Half-moon hoe and double-sided hoe

→ discover, our range of hoes