Top 8 Agriculture Hand Tools

Agriculture and farming jobs require a long list of hand tools. The tools help to make various tasks easier to do by hand, and also shorten the time to do it. Some of the most common agricultural tools are as follows:

Axe

The axe is probably one of the oldest agriculture hand tools, primarily used for cutting wood and harvesting timber. They are great at lopping, chopping and cutting through branches and thicker woody stems. Made from carbon steel, axes have tampered cutting edges to ensure a better cutting efficiency. In a farm or garden, the tool can be used to trim branches, prune trees and cut woods.

Hoe

A long-handled tool with a thin metal blade, the hoe is used to shape the soil, remove weeds, clear soil, and harvest root crops. Farmers also use it to plant new seeds as the hoe helps with digging narrow furrows and shallow trenches for planting seeds. The tool also serves in a garden by helping in weeding jobs.

Sickle

The sickle is one of the most essential agriculture hand tools. It is used for harvesting or reaping grain crops. The tool comprises of a curved metal blade attached to a short wooden handle. While the outer edge is blunt, the inner side of the blade is very sharp that is used to cut long stems of grass. Farmers often use a sickle to cut juicy grass for feeding livestock. If the tool has a long handle, it can be used for plucking low-hanging fruits.

Spade

With a flat rectangular blade that comes attached to a long handle, spades are among the best agriculture hand tools used for digging. They are useful in digging holes and trenches, making seedbeds, ridges, mounds and heaps, and for leveling the soil. It also helps with transplanting seedlings, turning the soil and mixing manure, and light weeding. A spade will have a triangular block on the rear end of the handle to provide a tighter grip.

Digging Fork

The tool looks like an enlarged version of a kitchen fork. There is a long handle with four or more short, sturdy metal tines. It is ideal for breaking up hard or compacted soil. They are useful in loosening, lifting and turning over the soil in a farm or garden. Digging forks also help with mixing manure into the soil and removing weeds.

Shovel

The shovel is a common hand tool used for digging, lifting, and moving soil. They are more typically used for gardening jobs. A broad blade fixed to a medium length handle, shovels are used to dig or scoop the soil, and to move dry leaves and other debris.

Garden Rake

The comb-like toothed bar of a garden rake is ideal for turning the soil, mixing earth, and pulling out weeds, stones and other pieces of debris. It helps to level out the soil before planting new seeds or seedlings.

Hand Fork

The hand fork is shorter than a digging fork. Its metal prongs are ideal for small gardening jobs such as planting, weeding, digging and potting.

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