The Japanese Hori Hori knife is a versatile gardening tool that serves several useful functions. It is sometimes referred to as a soil knife or a weeding knife. Once you try this interesting tool, it will always be with you when you work in your garden.

The words “hori hori” literally mean “dig dig” in Japanese. The name is reminiscent of the sound that the tool makes as it is used to work the soil.

The blade of a hori hori knife is typically slightly concave for digging and strength. One edge is a straight sharpened blade and the other has a scalloped serrated edge. Some, such as the model we are featuring here, have a depth gauge stamped on one site to aid in planting bulbs.

Upon close examination it is clear that the Hori Hori is a digging tool, a knife, a saw and a soil aerator. It can even be used as a small axe for chopping suckers and small branches. This is one tool that easily replaces many tools.

The Hori Hori can be used for digging, cutting roots, cutting branches, weeding, transplanting, removing plants, splitting perennials and planting bulbs. It is also handy for cutting open fertilizer bags, cutting sod and pruning.

Hori Hori knives can be made of carbon steel or stainless steel. After using them in our Arizona alkaline soil that tends to rust most metals, I strongly recommend a stainless steel version. A stainless steel blade is also stronger and much easier to clean.

We also recommend a model with a scalloped edge on the serrated side of the blade, because that is easy to sharpen with a round diamond sharpener or fine round file.

The handles on all of the Hori Hori knives that we have seen are wooden, which is the traditional manufacturing design in Japan. The overall length is typically around 13 inches.

The Hori Hori knife makes a great gadget gift for anyone who loves gardening.

You can find this stainless steel Hori Hori knife at: