RHS Range - Steel Burgon & Ball Hoe

This traditional stainless steel polished hoe from Burgon & Ball is designed to weed the vegetable or ornamental garden without chemical products and to work the soil on the surface. Hoeing has been part of the gardener's vocabulary since the Middle Ages, with hoeing meaning "to do twice". After hoeing, which involves cutting the weeds, the gardener uses the hoe for the second time to remove their roots and loosen and break up the surface layer of the soil. This aerates the soil around the cultivated plants in the vegetable or ornamental garden. An old saying rightly states: "Hoeing is worth two waterings" Indeed, under the action of watering or rain, clayey or loamy soil tends to harden when drying, forming what is called a compacted crust that is very difficult to rehydrate and suffocating for plants, which also promotes the rise of water to the surface and its evaporation—breaking this crust after watering limits the evaporation of water. This model includes an attached FSC-certified hardwood handle with a socket and a forged head. It is made of polished stainless steel that offers less resistance to penetration into the soil and can withstand shocks, torsion, and corrosion. The handle is compostable, and the metal head is recyclable.

* FSC is an international eco-label guaranteeing that the wood comes from sustainably managed forests

Technical specifications: Height 146 cm (58in) - Head dimensions: 9 x 9 cm (4in) - Weight: 830 grams

It must be acknowledged that the English have the privilege of being experts in gardening (but not cooking). Promesse de Fleurs has chosen the English company Burgon & Ball for the quality of its materials and its almost three-century-old steel manufacturing methods. The company has been working with steel in Sheffield since 1730, starting with a solid steel sheep shears patent. The production of garden shears and equipment quickly surpassed that of sheep shears, but the Royal Horticultural Society officially approved Burgon & Ball stainless steel tools - probably the ultimate reward in the gardening industry.

The steel used for Burgon & Ball tools is alloyed with carbon to give it strength and with chrome to prevent rust from forming. It is an exact balance that needs to be achieved between chrome and carbon, which is different for each part of the tool. For example, the ferrule of a tool is made of low-carbon, high-chrome steel, as it does not need strength for its function. In contrast, the socket, which needs to be strong enough to withstand bending, is made of thicker material with a medium balance between chrome and carbon. As for the blade of this hoe, which requires maximum strength and hardness to withstand flexing in the soil, it has a higher carbon content than chrome.