agricultural tool used for tilling and harvesting the soil, consisting of a wooden handle and a flat, sharp iron blade set crosswise at one end
AI overview
A hoe is a simple farming tool with a wooden handle and a flat iron blade at the end, used to break up and prepare soil for planting as well as to harvest crops. It matters because it has been essential for agriculture for centuries, allowing farmers to work their land efficiently by hand.
AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.
Article
A farmer using a hoe to keep weeds down in a vegetable garden.
A hoe is an ancient and versatile agricultural and horticultural hand tool used to shape soil, remove weeds, clear soil, and harvest root crops. Shaping the soil includes piling soil around the base of plants (hilling), digging narrow furrows (drills) and shallow trenches for planting seeds or bulbs. Weeding with a hoe includes agitating the surface of the soil or cutting foliage from roots, and clearing the soil of old roots and crop residues. Hoes for digging and moving soil are used to harvest root crops such as potatoes.