Gardening can be a difficult job. Planting, fertilizing, cultivating and other jobs can be taxing on any gardener. Thankfully, there are tools available that will make it much easier. One company that makes life easier for many gardeners like myself is the Hoss line of Wheel Hoes and their many attachments.
Hoss Tools offers a complete line Wheel Hoes and other gardening equipment made in America and designed to last a lifetime. Hoss Wheel Hoes come in several configurations, with a wide variety of attachments for just about any gardening task.
Pros And Cons Of The Different Models
| Model | Pros | Cons |
| Single | Less expensive Will do everything the Double Hoe will do Easily converted to Double Hoe | Will not straddle row Therefore, it takes a little more time |
| Double | Will straddle rows for working both sides of the row at one time Stands upright for storage | A little more expensive than the Single |
| High Arch | Straddles taller crops Saves time cultivating taller Corn and Potatoes Stands upright for storage | Not as user-friendly for cultivation because of its wider design |
Having been a gardener for 40 years, I’m always looking for a “better way” to do things. And, as I get older, I’m also looking for an easier way to do things. HOSS TOOLS has developed an amazing line of products to aid gardeners of every skill and experience level.
The Wheel Hoes
Hoss has 3 different wheel hoe designs, the Single Wheel Hoe, the Double Wheel Hoe, and a High Arch Wheel Hoe. Choosing between the three different models can be difficult as they all have different strengths. I have all three wheel hoes, so let me explain the differences I’ve found and the pros and cons concerning the operation and function of each model.
There are three main jobs of a good wheel hoe; Furrowing, Hilling (corn or potatoes) and soil cultivation. Any of these Hoss wheel hoes will do all of these jobs, but in some instances, one particular configuration will do a specific job better than the other two.
The Single Wheel Hoe
The Single Wheel Hoe is what most folks will be familiar with. Wheel hoes have been around for decades. The Hoss Single Wheel Hoe is based on a centuries-old design but made with modern precision. This one will furrow your ground, hill your crops and cultivate the soil. In some cases, it will be a little slower than one of its cousins because it will force you to go down the row twice (once in each direction) to “hill” or cultivate because it will be rolled beside each row of crops instead of straddling the row.
Having said that, the Single Wheel is probably their best seller and is a great “entrance” hoe into the wonderful world of wheel hoe convenience. Thousands of gardeners have the Single Wheel hoe and love it. It can be converted to the Double Wheel Hoe for a very reasonable price. We’ll talk about the conversion later.
The Single Wheel Hoe comes with a set of 3 Cultivator Teeth.
The Double Wheel Hoe
The Double Wheel Hoe will do all the Single will do and more. Instead of walking down the side of each row to cultivate or “hill” the Double will actually straddle the row of smaller plants allowing you to work both sides of the row with your favorite attachments. This can be a huge time-saver.
The extra wheel adds stability to the hoe and in many cases (depending on which attachment you have on it) will allow it to stand upright for storage purposes.
The Double Wheel Hoe comes with a set of 4 Cultivator Teeth.
High Arch Wheel Hoe
Here’s where things change a little bit. It must have occurred to the Hoss folks that there was a need to “hill” taller plants like corn, so, they developed the Hoss High Arch Wheel Hoe.
The High Arch Wheel Hoe has a clearance of around 15 inches. It allows you to straddle taller plants, working both sides of the row. It’s perfect for cultivation, weeding and throwing dirt to the middle of the row when the crop is taller. It’s great for hilling potatoes or corn.
The High Arch Wheel Hoe also comes with a set of 4 Cultivator Teeth.
Although the “arch” is around 15 inches, I have hilled corn much taller than that. Here’s a video I made hilling some taller corn plants:
Design
I’ve seen (and used) other wheel hoes and as far as I’m concerned, the quality and workmanship of the Hoss line of wheel hoe products are unmatched in the industry. The metal parts are powder-coated and are about 1/4″ thick. Very heavy duty. They are engineered to close tolerances which help in the ease of assembly.
It’s hard to find American made products anymore. This company is not only family–owned, it’s American made, and their products have an attention to detail that is lost on most other companies. I’m convinced that their tools should last a lifetime, and if cared for properly, can be handed down to future generations of gardeners.
Here’s My Single Wheel Hoe Assembly Video:
Attachments
A wheel hoe is nothing without an attachment. Hoss has a huge line of attachments for their wheel hoes. All are just as well made as the wheel hoes are.
Hoss Wheel Hoe Attachments I Own:
- Sweeps – My favorite tool – Cuts the weeds off just below the soil
- Cultivators – Teeth-like mini-plows that cultivate deeply
- Plow Set – Reversible plows for hilling or furrowing
- Oscillating Hoe – My 2nd favorite tool for cultivation
- Winged Sweeps – Another set of cultivation tools
Hoss Wheel Hoe Attachments I Don’t Own
- Drip Tape Layer – For the Double – Installs drip tape underground
- Disc Harrow – Also for cultivation and row preparation
- Dibble Wheel – Places evenly spaced holes in soil for planting
- Seeder Attachment – Plants evenly without wasting seed
The sweeps (again, my favorite attachment) cut the weeds just below the soil level. Because the blades work so shallow, the ease of pushing the Hoe is really incredible. In loose soil, pushing the Hoss Hoes is almost effortless.
I’ve spent a lot of time behind a tiller, and let me tell you, pushing the Hoss Hoes is much easier. No, they don’t do everything a tiller will do when it comes to garden preparation, but once the beds are prepared, I promise, you’ll want to switch to the Wheel Hoe for cultivation.
Using a Wheel Hoe allows you to get closer to your plants for cultivating the fine weeds without injuring the “good” plants. I’ve ruined many seedlings when my tiller “veered off” a little during the cultivation process. Using a wheel hoe allows you to see the plants in the row clearly, and make better judgments as to how you’ll go about working them. It’s a whole new ballgame.
Here’s an amazing fact. If you buy a Single Wheel Hoe and want to “move up” to a Double Wheel Hoe they sell a conversion kit. How cool it that? It’s not very expensive and it only took me about 5 minutes to convert my Single to a Double.
My Recommendation
So… Which one would I recommend to you? Well, since I own all three, I would say… (drum roll)… the Double Wheel Hoe. Why? Well, I like the extra stability it has over the Single. I like the fact that it stands upright when you want to store it. It accepts all the attachments (some attachments can’t be used on the Single). For me, the Double Wheel Hoe is the best all-round wheel hoe HOSS offers.
Having said that, the Single Wheel Hoe is an amazing piece of equipment, and I don’t hesitate to recommend it. And remember, if you want to step up someday to a Double from a Single, there is a Conversion Kit that makes it so easy to do.
My Video Converting The Single Wheel Hoe to a Double Wheel Hoe:
Disadvantages
Any disadvantages to these wheel hoes are common to anyone’s wheel hoe, not just the Hoss line. As I said before, wheel hoes of one sort or another have been around for over a century, and there are certain conditions that are less than perfect for them.
One disadvantage would be working hard, rocky, compacted soil. The Hoss hoes (like any wheel hoe) work much better in loose soil. I’m not saying they will not work in harder soil, I’m just saying it will take a little more effort.
Having said that, I do have an area where my soil is not as pliable as most of my garden is. I have used the Hoss hoes with the Sweeps and the Oscillating Hoes with a lot of success even in the harder ground. Because the sweeps cultivate so shallow, they are not digging deep into the clay soil. That takes a lot of the effort out of working hard soils.
The High Arch has one disadvantage over the Double. Because it’s designed to straddle the row and go over taller crops, there is a big gap in the middle. This makes it (in my opinion) less able to cultivate the middle when it is tracking down the row. The cultivator teeth set won’t reach the middle (between the wheels) which makes it miss some cultivation area.
It’s not a big deal, but I like to do everything in one pass, and sometimes the High Arch will need a second pass to address the unplowed gap. That’s why I like the Double Wheel Hoe.
Various Attachments For The Hoss Wheel Hoes:
I hope that has answered many of your questions. The main thing I want you to know is that Hoss is a quality company, Family owned and dedicated to your satisfaction.
Hoss also sells Seeds, Seed starting accessories, Seed Potatoes, Potting Mix, and so many more products. Take a look at the HOSS TOOLS line of products HERE, or click the HOSS banner on the right sidebar.
I have an entire Playlist on My YouTube Channel showing my experiences with some of the products offered by Hoss Tools. You can find my HOSS TOOLS YouTube Playlist HERE.
In addition, I have over 800 Videos on my YouTube Channel dealing with gardening, livestock, fruit production, and emergency preparedness. You can find my YouTube Channel HERE.
Homestead Advisor participates in affiliate programs with Clickbank, ShareASale, and other sites. Homestead Advisor is compensated for referring traffic and business to these companies.
