How can one explain that in our civilization, in the era of post-modernism and technology in full swing, we still use tools invented by our ancestors?
Well, There Are Different Reasons For It:
One is that we like to do physical work with simple tools. It’s a way of slowing down and connecting to what we’re doing. In gardening, using hand tools instead of power tools allows us to get closer to nature – experiencing the smells and textures of plants more intensely, for example.
Knife
In gardening, you can’t beat a shovel or a spade for digging holes or shifting big piles of soil around. But when it comes to cutting things, a garden knife is much better than a shovel. Digging requires a pointed blade, but cutting requires a sharp straight edge, and that’s what a knife has.
Also, a garden spade is something you use for moving the earth around, while the traditional gardening trowel is used for digging out weeds and making small holes to insert plants or bulbs. A hand fork is needed for breaking open the soil.
Hoe
Like an adze – it gets its name from “hoeing” or working up the soil in rows as one would with a plow. It was invented almost 5000 years ago in China, improved by Vikings, and then spread across Europe by Germanic tribes. The design remained unchanged until the 19th century when someone put a foot treadle on it! Nowadays, there are different kinds of hoes for different types of work, from digging up new beds to weeding.
Mattock
A mattock is a versatile kind of pick that’s been around since the Iron Age. The sharp blade at one end can chop into the soil, while the flat blade at the other end can be used as a small shovel or spade. Miners and soldiers often carried it in Europe in the Middle Ages and Renaissance (approximately 1350 – 1650). Nowadays it’s popular with gardeners too because it reduces strain on your back!
Scythe
A scythe has been good enough for cutting grass and grain crops throughout history because it provided a quick way to cut plants without bending over repeatedly as you would when using shears or scissors. Scythes are still popular among gardeners today for keeping large areas of lawn or meadow neatly trimmed. And if you want to get rid of brambles, blackberry bushes, and other invasive plants, you might consider using a brush cutter – a powered version of the scythe.
Sickle
A sickle is a small scythe with a short curved blade. It was originally used to cut grass, but it can also be used for cutting plants in the field when harvesting grain crops by hand. Sickles were once common tools throughout Asia and Europe. Still, today they’re mostly associated with Mideast countries like Lebanon, where grapevines are grown on short trellises that need to be harvested regularly not to become overgrown.
Santoku Knife
In some Asian cultures, people continue to use handheld knives and blades as part of their regular kitchen activities. In contrast, others have adopted electric or gas-powered machines for most tasks. In Japan, both kinds of cooking knives are known as ” santoku, “which means something like “three uses” because a santoku is a knife that can chop, slice and mince.