Agriculture – The Development of Technology 3.2

Early Tools First farm tool was the digging stick that was used for digging roots and bulbs Today, some parts of the world use only the digging stick and machete Native Americans developed first agricultural tools Stone axes Fire-hardened sticks Clam shells Hoes

Bigger Machines to Prepare the Ground Egyptians used 2 oxen to pull the plow First plows were made of wood 1797 – N.J. farmer Charles Newbold invented a cast-iron plow Thomas Jefferson designed moldboard plow to work in all soils Has curved metal plate 1837 – John Deere invented steel plow Could cut through heavy, sticky soil

Modern plows have a coulter (circular steel blade) which cuts through sod or debris at the surface Gang plows have several coulters and moldboards and are pulled by tractors The plow made it possible for fewer people to produce more food, it has also caused the loss of much topsoil

Machines for Planting Wheat and barley were scattered by hand before the invention of the hand-cranked broadcast seeder Grain drills are used on larger farms No-till drills – cut through sod and plant seeds w/o plowing and making a seed bed Jab planter – steel blade that is jabbed into the ground to make an opening for corn seed

Machines for Reaping Sickle was first tool for reaping Scythe – larger blade w/ longer curved handle Mechanical reaper (binder) was perfected, manufactured, and marketed by McCormick in 1831 Many couldn’t afford his machine so he allowed farmers to pay in installments Helped provide money, food, and men necessary for North to win Civil War

Today combine harvesters are used to harvest all types of grain Threshing machine separated grain from straw and the chaff (protective sheaths) Today combine harvesters are used to harvest all types of grain Combination reaper and harvester Binders were replaced w/ mechanical corn harvester, the corn picker Potato digger has a modified moldboard that digs and raises the potatoes onto prongs

More Food with Less Labor 1800s – 180 man-hours to produce 100 bushels of corn; 1900s – 4 man-hours to produce the same Bigger and better machines Hybrid corn was introduced in 1933 Better varieties of seeds and development of chemical fertilizers and chemicals to control diseases, weeds, and insects 1950 – each farmer produced food for 27 others; today each farmer produces food for 135 people