Best weed-removal tool?

A beginner gardener here...

When shopping for a weed-removal tool, I came to a realization that hula hoe is NOT available in my country!

I guess, I can order one from abroad, but the total absence of this product in our shops is puzzling. It probably also means other types of hoe are used instead.

Please help me better understand the pros and cons of different types of hoes for weed-removal. Alternatively, what do you recommend I use for raised beds with compost mulch on top?

This is what I was looking for...

Hula hoe
Action: Back and forth scrubbing motion
Purpose: weeding in medium or soft soil
What makes this hoe stand apart is that it has moving parts, which lets it scrape through the soil at a shallow angle (15 to 20 degrees) as you push and pull the hoe both forward and backward.


... and this is what's available:

Draw hoe #1
Action: Pull / Scrape
Purpose: weeding in hard or soft soil
The blade seems to be at a wrong angle (for pulling action), and the neck is so thick that I'm not sure it can be adjusted.


Draw hoe #2
Action: Pull / Scrape
Purpose: weeding in hard or soft soil
Same as above, but with a thinner neck (possibly adjustable).


Draw hoe #3
Action: Pull / Scrape
Purpose: weeding in hard or soft soil
Not sure if the image is large enough to see, but the neck attaches to the blade at a different place (from top, rather than from side/edge).


Draw hoe #4
Action: Pull / Scrape
Purpose: weeding in hard or soft soil
Two thinner necks connecting the blade on each side. Possibly the most adjustable version?


Sweeping Hoe
Action: Push-Pull
Purpose: weeding in loose or soft soil
This is probably (?) closest to a hula hoe in that it allows back-n-forth action just under the soil surface to cut or uproot small weeds. Unfortunately, the neck seems rather thick and not easy to adjust. Also, it has no moving parts, so the angle of approach is fixed.


Dutch hoe
Action: Push
Purpose: weeding in loose or soft soil
Just like the previous one, but allows only for the push action.



... and that's basically it! There are more variations (mostly in terms of width), but the types are the ones above.

What do you recommend for weeding in raised beds (with compost mulch)?

What is your favorite weed-removal tool?

Miroslav,

As is so often the case with tools, the best hoe depends on your actual usage.  

Are you clearing a new garden bed of established weeds?  Maybe try a grape hoe which works by a chopping action.

Are you clearing a garden bed of weeds that grew in between growing seasons?  I would try a scuffle hoe.

Are you weeding in a bed that has growing crops?  I would try a sweep hoe.

In any case, a hoe should be treated like a ground engaging knife and kept sharp.  A good, sharpened, forged hoe effortlessly glides right through weeds,  I am thinking about adding a fokin hoe to the list.

As I have learned more about gardening, the more I appreciate a good hoe.  I no longer use a cheap stamped steel hoe and instead use a good hoe with a forged blade.  Also, while I might do a little bit of hoeing to get started, I do little hoeing as the season progresses so as to not disturb the ground.

Also, just for my personal opinion, a scuffle hoe (EDIT:  I meant hula hoe) is my least favorite hoe as it is hard on the back and the ground.  I would use a sharp scuffle hoe instead.

Hope this helps,

Eric

Thank you, Eric! Good advice!

Eric Hanson wrote:the best hoe depends on your actual usage...  

...Are you weeding in a bed that has growing crops?  I would try a sweep hoe.

Yes, I need to weed in beds with growing crops.

By sweep hoe, you mean something like this?

Eric Hanson wrote:a scuffle hoe is my least favorite hoe as it is hard on the back and the ground.  I would use a sharp scuffle hoe instead.

Are you sure that's what you meant to say? :)

I never believed the hype of a scuffle/hula hoe; that is, until I borrowed my mom's for the weekend after the crabgrass took over while I was out of town for a week at a work conference. Now, it's my go-to tool to remove the things that are a little too vigorous for regular chop & drop. When the blade is sharp, and at the right angle, I can sweep it right below the soil surface and cut the base of the plant while still leaving the majority of the root system in the soil to decompose.

With all of that said, it does no good if the tool isn't available in your area. I haven't used any of the tools to listed as alternatives, but I would look for something that targets grass or weeds with a "running" habit; as those tend to be more difficult to control via the chop/drop method. To minimize soil-life disruption, I would seek out something with an angle that targets <1 inch below the soil surface without needing the user to stoop too much, as it typically results in back pain after a short while. Additionally, I tend to avoid serrated blades because, in my experience, they are more prone to shredding and yanking out the plants (with a good bit of soil included) once the initial sharpness on the blade wears off. I like the smooth blade edges because it is better at slicing through the base of the plant instead of yanking, and is much easier to run a sharpener over the blade for a minute or two before a heavy weeding session. Once I've swept through an area it's easy to gather the cut weeds to use as mulch and not have them continue growing, which often happens to me when they come out with the roots attached.

I'm sorry I can't give specific recommendations, but I hope you can find something ideal for your conditions.

Thank you, KC!

Kc Simmons wrote:[Scuffle/hula hoe is] my go-to tool to remove the things that are a little too vigorous for regular chop & drop. When the blade is sharp, and at the right angle, I can sweep it right below the soil surface and cut the base of the plant while still leaving the majority of the root system in the soil to decompose.

That's precisely why I was looking for it in our shops. I still don't understand why it's not available. Maybe I will discover it with some specialized provider.

Good point about serrated vs smooth blades, btw!

Miroslav,

Funny how you caught my train-of-thought typo.  Nope, I didn’t mean to say that I would avoid a scuffle hoe—I meant to say that I would avoid the hula hoe.  Just my opinion, and KC clearly thinks differently, but that’s ok.

Actually the fokin hoe you pictured for us looks like it would be great in between crops.  Even though I don’t hoe much, I think I would like the fokin hoe.

Eric

I use a hoe to prepare my raised beds, and I seldom use one afterward.  I normally weed by hand. I keep lots of compost in my raised beds, so breaking up the soil is seldom needed.

Eric Hanson wrote:I would avoid the hula hoe.

Eric, I am confused about the difference between a hula hoe and a scuffle hoe. Maybe they look different, but they both have both edges sharpened and can be pushed forward or drawn back. So, they perform the same type of action. Or?

Interesting!  I have never had much of a problem with surface weeds, likely because I like to bury my gardens in mountains of wood chips.  But the weeds that give me trouble are the sort that have to be dug - ragweed, creeping Charlie,  and many grasses. The underground roots or rhizomes seem to like nothing better than to be separated so they can sprout a new plant.  

Anne,

Oh, you are absolutely correct about the woodchips!  I was responding to this thread in the vein of tools, but I do very little weeding anymore thanks to about 12” of decomposed woodchips.  Now most of my hoes stay in the garage and really only come out to help spread fresh woodchips.

Eric

I'd like to hop on this post and ask whether the hula/scuffle hoe works well getting up around the base of plants, or if it's best for clearing large areas of weeds (as most of the videos I've seen using them are doing such a task). Does anyone here have a preference over the hula hoes for either of these purposes- clearing pathways or hoeing closely around established plants?

As for the latter purpose, is it really necessary to have a hoe for this if one is trying to do a minimal till sort of approach? Perhaps hand pulling and chop and drop techniques paired with wood chips or heavy mulching are substantial enough... I'm trying to figure out what hoe/s are truly useful rather than having several tools that I barely use.

On another note, chopping/eye hoes and the magna grecia hoe look great for breaking virgin ground and getting really tough weeds with a heavy root mat out.

Here is my prospective, being a woman and only 5'3" ... what I want for a raised bed is something with a short handle.

This is what I would use it is called a crows foot cultivator:



From this thread: https://permies.com/t/140245/handtools-arthritic-hands-elbows-shoulders#1099648

For thing like stork's bill or thistle that have a long tap root I use a hoe that has a pointed end.  I could not find a picture of it.  The blade is about 3" wide with a flat end on one side and a pointed edge on the other. The blade is about 7" from point end to flat end  That pointed end make digging that tap root out really easy.