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Hori hori foraging and gardening knife

Mar 27, 2023

Aside from being a beautiful foraging and gardening knife, the Barebones Ultimate Hori Hori is sturdy, comfortable to use, and built with heirloom quality.

Where to get it

We got our Barebones Hori Hori Ultimate knives through our Bespoke Post subscription box at a huge discount! You can use the link above to get $20 off your first Bespoke Post box, or you can buy this hori hori directly through the manufacturer or via Amazon.


Get the Barebones hori hori gardening knife with sheath, or  without a sheath on Amazon.


We earn commissions when you order through the links on this page. That’s how we fund the site, but we only review items we use and highly recommend for the journey toward self sufficiency. Learn more in our FAQs.


Why we like it

This hori hori foraging and gardening knife is built to last. It has a thick, heat-tempered, stainless steel blade that’s slightly concave to help with digging up roots as well as planting seeds. 


With a serrated blade on one side and a straight edge on the other, it makes for a very versatile tool for cutting small limbs and twine, cutting notches for grafting trees, and digging up a variety of foraged roots. The handle is perfectly carved for a comfortable, ambidextrous grip and to protect the hand from slipping if you’re digging into hard soil. The handle is seriously comfortable enough for Prepper Chic and Prepper Dude to use … and there’s a big difference in our hand sizes … because seriously, God made men and women different (physically, emotionally, and instinctually). Embrace it!


Beyond that, the end of the handle is a steel block that can be used as a mallet. This is perfect for pounding small stakes into the ground, among other things.  


Taken care of, it’ll pass down through the generations.


And, it just looks really cool. 


Some things to consider 

Barebones makes more than one hori hori. We prefer the Ultimate because of the shape and feel of the handle, the curve of the blade, and the steel pommel. View the Barebones Classic Hori Hori to see the differences for yourself.

How it impacts our prepping efforts

We keep a hori hori gardening knife in each of our foraging kits, along with gardening and harvesting bags. This means we can grab our kits and go when we notice that the amaranth, yucca, curly dock, wild onions, and other native edibles are ready to harvest. We can also use this in our greenhouse or garden beds for planting and harvesting. 


We’re also able to take our hori hori and harvesting bags with us when a neighbor messages that they want to offload a bunch of produce they don't have time to pick.


Longer term, when food is scarce, we can take to the hills and trails to forage for food to supplement our long-term dried and canned food storage. Or, maybe we’re able to find and harvest from a neglected or abandoned garden patch. This may mean anything from a few extra winter squash to a full bag of dandelion greens or a batch of purslane to make carne de cerdo, or pork in green sauce. Seriously, try out the recipe at that link. It’ll make your tastebuds dance.


Specs

The Barebones Ultimate Hori Hori has:

  • A walnut handle

  • A heat-treated 4CR13 stainless steel blade

  • One serrated edge

  • One straight edge

  • A twine cutter and bottle opener

  • An ambidextrous handle

  • A flat, steel pommel base

  • A concave blade


This hori hori gardening knife measures 13.125” x 2.25” x 2”.


We highly recommend getting the sheath as well. The sheath:

  • Is made from 900D polyester

  • Has a full-grain leather strap

  • Sports a sturdy copper snap

  • Is durable and sturdy

  • Is made to slip onto a belt


Other Barebones products we use and recommend

The best shears we’ve ever owned. Check out our review of the Barebones pruning shears. And, check out this beautiful hand trowel.


Reviews are coming soon for some of our other favorite Barebones products, including the harvesting bag and their Japanese NATA tool.

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