Here’s the muse: “If you pray for potatoes, have a hoe in your hand.” Anonymous
Here’s a picture:
That’s one of my hoes, getting ready to work its magic between a few rows of corn.
And here’s the prose:
Some gardeners think that vegetable gardens take a lot of work, that they require hours of hoeing between the rows.
But you don’t have to spend hours hoeing in your garden.
Here are some suggestions on how to take the hoe out of your vegetable garden and increase your enjoyment of this kind of gardening.
Plant in raised beds instead of tilling up the garden each spring. If you stay on the paths between the beds and don’t compact the soil in the raised beds by walking on it, you can usually plant in the spring after just some light surface hoeing to remove any weeds.
Put the vegetable garden near the kitchen door. It isn’t always possible to put the garden up near the house, but you don’t want it to be so far away that you can’t run out and pull a few onions or pick a pepper or two when you are in the middle of cooking dinner.
Have a good source of water nearby. Sometime during the growing season, there is bound to be a dry spell during which you will want to water the garden to ensure a good harvest. It will be a lot easier to water if you have a hose spigot nearby.
Plant what you want to eat. If you don’t like the vegetables you are growing, you’ll lose interest in the garden and before you know it, you’ll have a patch of weeds.
Harvest regularly. If you keep harvesting, many of the plants in the garden will keep producing.
Give your surplus away. Non-gardeners especially get so excited when you offer them some of your extra produce because they know how good it will taste. And you’ll feel good about being so generous, even if it is zucchini you are giving away and they are doing you a favor by taking it.
Hoe those beds up a bit to get rid of weeds. Even if you don’t have a lot of weeds, go out and hoe anyway because hoeing makes you stronger physically and mentally. It builds character. It just makes you a better gardener.
Yes, hoeing makes you a better gardener!
For more, and probably better, muses, visit Sweet Home and Garden Chicago.
I have a little flat hoe that I keep outside by the back door during summer. I usually walk around the garden with it. I like to shuffle the mulch with it. I like to think it is good for me too.
We don’t have to hoe snow tho. 🙂
I am getting to that point where I wouldn’t mind a little hoeing. The sunshine in your picture looks particularly appealing too.
Such good words of wisdom. We are dreaming of sowing, hoeing, harvesting, and eating from the garden. Ahhhh!
Frances at Faire Garden
Great advice, Carol. Thanks. Dee
Well done, Carol. Thank you for joining our Muse Day.
Sound advice. I have a wonderful Japanes weeded hoe on a long hoe handle.
Hey Carol, guess what? My mom got me a HOE for Christmas!!! I’m sure you have one like it. I’ll have to check your “inventory.” LOL
It’s a Winged Weeder!
LOL, you are such a hoe-addict, aren’t you? Couldn’t resist getting your hoe in, could you? 🙂
As you know I have a veggie garden and I don’t spend many hours hoeing it, simply because I haven’t got a hoe. Now there’s a good tip for someone who doesn’t want to spend hours hoeing! 🙂
Have a great weekend!
Lisa at Greenbow… That’s a good idea to take a hoe with you as you walk in the garden.
Frances… Thanks, we are still dreaming of spring, aren’t we?
Dee… Thanks for the nice comment.
Carolyn Gail… Thanks for hosting these muses.
Aunt Debbi/Kurts Mom… I wonder if it is like any that I have?
Kylee… Cool. A winged weeder, that’s a pretty good hoe.
Yolanda Elizabet… You should try hoeing at least once. Some of my best hoes came from the Netherlands!
Thanks for the nice comments,
Carol, May Dreams Gardens
Some excellent advice here Carol – thanks for your posting on my blog… I should really go to and get some sleep – reading other people’s blogs can get addictive!!
Happy gardening… Miranda