Digging Knives

[Optimist]

Knives can be very useful when it comes to planting and digging up plants. When I was a kid we usually just used regular serrated knives, but they make purpose-built knives for digging.

Maybe five years ago I bought a Lesche Digging Tool, one of the purpose built digging knives. It has worked very well. It's halfway between a knife and a trowel and it has come in really handy in the garden. It is particularly useful for digging up and moving perennials.



It has an offset blade which is good for using like a trowel. The blade is flat so it isn't as good as moving lots of material as a trowel, but for those jobs I usually go for a shovel so it has replaced trowels in my use. The narrower blade with serrations makes it much better than a trowel for getting through roots and rocks. It is fairly sturdily built, but because it doesn't have a tang like a real knife I wouldn't use it for more than light prying. The offset blade makes it annoying to use as a knife so even if I bothered to get it knife sharp I wouldn't use it for that job.

Gardening seems like what these are mostly used for, but I've also used mine to dig around a propane line buried in very rocky ground. I imagine it would be better than a trowel for digging cat holes where I'm used to camping, but the one I have is pretty heavy so I wouldn't want to backpack with it.

Mine isn't stainless so it has some rust after being left stuck in the ground over winter. Since this doesn't seem like the kind of thing where being very sharp or striking a Ferro rod are important with I think a stainless blade would be better.

I got mine off the recommendation of some YouTuber (I can't remember who). It looks like they have gone up quite a bit in price since then. There are options out there for half the price but I have no experience with them.

[flybynight]

I've owned and used a Hori Hori knife for over ten years. I really only use it for gardening. It's great for weeding or digging trans plant holes. I keep the non serrated side sharp , but  not sharp like a regular knife.  It came with a comically bad sheath that I only use to store it in. I don't  remember where I bought it , but it looks just like this

https://www.amazon.com/Garden-Guru-Hori-Knife-Pack/dp/B00NG6GJ8W/ref=sr_1_3_sspa?crid=26UYFFOJJY2N5&keywords=hora+hora+garden+knife&qid=1686783268&sprefix=HORA+HORA%2Caps%2C169&sr=8-3-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEzSkdVWVY0MUxJRzAxJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNzYwODUyMjFMNE1BSTRMR0JVNSZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMDgzMDQ5MjcxSFBZS1YwOVAwQyZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=



The sheath in this one is many times better than the one mine came with. Which tells you just how poor my sheath is

[Optimist]

I've owned and used a Hori Hori knife for over ten years. I really only use it for gardening. It's great for weeding or digging trans plant holes. I keep the non serrated side sharp , but  not sharp like a regular knife.  It came with a comically bad sheath that I only use to store it in. I don't  remember where I bought it , but it looks just like this

https://www.amazon.com/Garden-Guru-Hori-Knife-Pack/dp/B00NG6GJ8W/ref=sr_1_3_sspa?crid=26UYFFOJJY2N5&keywords=hora+hora+garden+knife&qid=1686783268&sprefix=HORA+HORA%2Caps%2C169&sr=8-3-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEzSkdVWVY0MUxJRzAxJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNzYwODUyMjFMNE1BSTRMR0JVNSZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMDgzMDQ5MjcxSFBZS1YwOVAwQyZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=



The sheath in this one is many times better than the one mine came with. Which tells you just how poor my sheath is

That one is stainless and half the price of the one I got, so if I was buying them over again I'd probably go for the Hori Hori since it seems to have worked well for you.

[Anianna]

I've owned and used a Hori Hori knife for over ten years. I really only use it for gardening. It's great for weeding or digging trans plant holes. I keep the non serrated side sharp , but  not sharp like a regular knife.  It came with a comically bad sheath that I only use to store it in. I don't  remember where I bought it , but it looks just like this

https://www.amazon.com/Garden-Guru-Hori-Knife-Pack/dp/B00NG6GJ8W/ref=sr_1_3_sspa?crid=26UYFFOJJY2N5&keywords=hora+hora+garden+knife&qid=1686783268&sprefix=HORA+HORA%2Caps%2C169&sr=8-3-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEzSkdVWVY0MUxJRzAxJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNzYwODUyMjFMNE1BSTRMR0JVNSZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMDgzMDQ5MjcxSFBZS1YwOVAwQyZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=



The sheath in this one is many times better than the one mine came with. Which tells you just how poor my sheath is

I fucking love my Hori Hori.  I need to get another for if I ever need to replace mine, but it's no worse for wear after a decade of use. 

Mine is this one from Amazon (the sheath is nice, too): https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0007WFG2I/

[Blast]

Another vote for Hori Hori knives, here! It has been my primary foraging tool for decades. Mine is carbon steel which is needed to get through the dry, hard Texas soil in the summer. It's one of those items that is designed perfectly.
-Blast

[Optimist]

Another vote for Hori Hori knives, here! It has been my primary foraging tool for decades. Mine is carbon steel which is needed to get through the dry, hard Texas soil in the summer. It's one of those items that is designed perfectly.
-Blast

I hadn't thought of using them for foraging, but that makes a lot of sense.

[Anianna]

Another vote for Hori Hori knives, here! It has been my primary foraging tool for decades. Mine is carbon steel which is needed to get through the dry, hard Texas soil in the summer. It's one of those items that is designed perfectly.
-Blast

I hadn't thought of using them for foraging, but that makes a lot of sense.

Oh, yea.  They're bladed on both sides, serrated on one and smooth blade on the other.  It's essentially a knife in the shape of a trowel and can be used for cutting and digging and even for getting through tough roots. 

[NT2C]

Yes, these are common with hikers that I've known.  Great for digging little slit trenches for doing your business in.

[tirls]

I've never heard of these until today.
I've been trying to find out if they count as a weapon here, since it is essentially a double sided knife. But I can't find anything on it.