New Agricultural Production Tools in Southern Song Dynasty

Agricultural tools in this period mainly have the following characteristics:

One is efficient. During this period, some efficient agricultural tools appeared, such as hoes for intertillage, sickles for mowing, wheat chaff, wheat straw, wheat cages, rollover, trucks for irrigation and so on. Many of these tools use wheels or gears as transmission devices, reaching a fairly high level.

The second is labor saving. This refers to agricultural tools that can reduce labor intensity or play a role in labor protection, such as plowing, raising horses, paws for paddy fields, etc.

The third is dedication. This is a more detailed and professional division of labor. As far as plowshares are concerned, there are two kinds of plowshares: plowshares are narrow and thick, which can only be used, and plowshares are wide and thin, which can be turned over. Therefore, it is appropriate to use plowshare for cultivated land and plowshare for ploughing. Ploughshares are used in the north and shovels are used in the south. "Agricultural Book" clearly expounded the characteristics and scope of application of Zha and Hua. In addition to ploughing plows, there are special plows for reclaiming reed and wormwood wasteland, special "plows" for spring ploughing in northern Khan Ze land, and "plows" for shallow tillage combined with sowing. Another example is the flat operation of paddy fields, where flat plates and ridges are used for seedling raising, and Honda uses them. There is a kind of "roller shaft" specially used for weeding in seedling stage of direct seeding rice field in Jianghuai area. There are special harvesting tools in the wheat field and so on.

The fourth is perfection. If a hook is used to cross-check the plough shaft, the Qu Yuan plough that appeared in the Tang Dynasty will be further improved. Another example is to add a device with fine dung or silkworm excrement behind the bucket of the cart, so that sowing and fertilization can be completed at the same time, which is called dung sowing.

The fifth is supporting. The dry farming tools in the north were basically matched in the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, and were further improved at this time. The farm tools of paddy fields in southern China had been plowed, harrowed, plowed and plowed in the Tang Dynasty, and plows, irons, flatbed cars and fields were added in the Song Dynasty, forming a complete series. In addition, there are seedling ropes, seedling bombs and horses for seedling raising and transplanting, swinging and turning in paddy fields, reversing cars, carts and buckets for irrigation and drainage. So far, the farm tools in paddy fields in South China have been completely matched. In the northeast, there are also farm tools suitable for ridge planting and sowing. This series of characteristics shows that the traditional farm tools in China have reached a mature stage.

While the traditional farm tools are becoming more and more complete, people also write articles on electricity to deal with emergencies caused by various natural disasters, including the increase of emergency farm tools and the use of water and wind power. Since the use of Niu Geng in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, cattle have become a treasure of farmers and have a close relationship with the upper rulers. By the Tang Dynasty, people had realized the truth that "cow dung is manure". At the same time, because the agricultural structure in China is dominated by agriculture and mulberry, the development of agriculture and mulberry leads to the atrophy of animal husbandry. Coupled with natural and man-made disasters, the lack of animal power in turn plagued the development of agriculture and mulberry industry. Therefore, people actively protect cattle, and at the same time actively develop some farm tools that can still be cultivated without cattle. Here we should mention the "man-ploughing method" invented by Fangyi Wang in the Tang Dynasty, the popular treading plough in the Song Dynasty, and the popular iron scaffolding after the Tang and Song Dynasties.