King Xiulote stood before the bronze plow, silently solemn, with only the flow of time visible in his eyes.
Familiar agricultural tools lined up, each coming into view, bringing his scattered thoughts back to his homeland nearly two millennia ago. It was a time remarkably similar to today, a time of change!
"The great affairs of the state lie in sacrificial rites and weaponry." This was the Spring and Autumn period in 578 BC, the beginning of a new transformation.
"The rise of a state depends on agriculture and war!" This was the Warring States period in 356 BC, when Shang Yang first reformed.
Reform was conceived in the Spring and Autumn and took place in the Warring States. The true driving force was iron farming tools and the continuous development of agricultural productivity!
The course of history progressed in cycles, social productivity and social systems alternately advancing. In today’s Mexica Alliance, in the present-day lake fief, Xiulote had already referred to Shang Yang’s reforms and initiated social transformation. Correspondingly, he further promoted the development of agricultural productivity to match the systemic innovation of the Qin and Han dynasties and to establish the foundation of a unified empire!
Guided by historical logic, Xiulote’s administrative approach was notably clear. The first step in developing agricultural productivity was to control the land of the fief and centralize agricultural capital; the second step was to register households and require and encourage cultivation to boost agricultural labor input; the third step was the widespread adoption of bronze hand tools to increase the efficiency of making wood and stone farming implements and to manufacture and apply new bronze tools!
During the long pre-Qin era, the Celestial Empire boasted a highly prosperous Bronze civilization. Bronze farming tools existed for a long time, capable of improving agricultural productivity, yet they did not become widespread in the Yellow River Basin. This was mainly due to the preciousness of bronze and the scarcity of bronze resources in the north. Limited bronze was used for sacrificial vessels, military weapons, and chariot accessories. In contrast, the Yangtze River Basin was rich in bronze resources. The production and usage of bronze farming tools during the Shang and Zhou dynasties were significantly more advanced.
"With ox plowing still far away, and iron tools also out of reach, the only way to improve agricultural technology in the fief is by accumulating manure, building dikes, and utilizing bronze tools."
King Xiulote’s thoughts returned from the passage of time. He carefully examined the categorically arranged farming tools. These tools were drawn from his memory, altered with the input from experienced farmers. He had many subsequent designs still remaining on paper.
The tools in front of him were divided into seven types, corresponding to the seven activities in agricultural production.
"Human-powered bronze plow, shaped like a spoon, with a footboard for stepping, often used by one person. Hmm, not bad, it is simple yet durable and can be called a step plow. Using the step plow for five days equals one day of ox plowing, although very tiring, it is the best outcome!"
Xiulote first grabbed the newly made bronze step plow, briefly examined it, and a smile appeared on his face. This was the first and most important tool for plowing and preparing the land. Plowing was crucial for agricultural production as it effectively promoted crop growth and increased yield. There were many reasons for this.
First, turning the soil. Leveling the land and breaking up soil clumps made it easier to sow seeds in the soil layers.
Next, aeration. Loosened soil improved aeration, helping the roots of crops grow deeper.
Then, fertilization. Plowing brought fertile soil from the bottom to the surface and buried the remnants of the previous season’s crops, forming new fertilizer.
Additionally, weed removal. Before sowing, it removed sprouting weeds and disrupted the weed growth cycle. In the rain-abundant tropics of America, rapidly growing weeds could significantly reduce crop yields, requiring substantial labor to manage.
Lastly, pest control. By turning the soil, it brought underground insects and their eggs to the surface, allowing predators and tropical sunlight to kill them.
It was because of these benefits that agricultural production was dubbed farming, and the popularization of iron plows and ox plowing revolutionized agricultural production!
Historically, in the Celestial Empire, plows were divided into the ancient human-powered step plow and the more common animal-powered plow. The animal-powered plow evolved from the straight-beam plow of the Han Dynasty to the curved-beam plow after the Tang Dynasty, which featured a freely rotating plow disk on the yoke head and a plow grading on the plowshaft to control plowing depth, continuing to be used until the popularization of agricultural machinery.
In Xiulote’s mind, the image of the curved-beam plow from later rural times still lingered, roughly understanding its principle, capable of drawing it out. However, the advantages of such plows had to be matched with draught animals to be realized. For the Central American civilization of this era, the human-powered bronze step plow was more appropriate. A rope for human traction could also be attached to the front of the plow, adding the assistance of another person.
Following the bronze plow were other tools used for turning the soil, including a bronze rake, but more refined tools like spades and scoops were not in King Xiulote’s memory.
Alongside the plow and rake were seeders, the top part made of wood with a bronze foot, categorically a cart seeder. This was the second type of sowing tool, the ancient equivalent of a row-seeder. Due to the lack of animal power, Xiulote designed the two-legged cart seeder, which was pulled at the front by one or two persons and pushed from the back by another person. And to suit the planting of corn, the cart seeder had a wider spacing between its two legs to provide greater inter-row spacing for the crops.
Next was the third type, a mid-cultivation weeding tool. Quite simply, it was a bronze hoe. Xiulote merely glanced at it before nodding and moving on. Bertade frowned slightly; this farm tool seemed more like a bronze weapon handed out to farmers. And following behind, Toltec, quite curious, handled the hoe, his eyes sparkling as he pondered how to use this oddly shaped mid-length blade.