Ancient Egyptian Agriculture

The agriculture was the foundation of the egyptian civilization. They were passionate farmers and gardeners. The egyptian farmers developed tools to make their work easier for irrigation and food supply. For example, the shadoof or shaduf which came into use in the 16th century; the shadoof or shaduf is a bucket attached to a long pole that it was used to lift water from the Nile River and empties it into a bucket to irrigate the land. Many Egyptian farmers still use the shaduf these days. The wooden ploughs were lightly build shods tied to the horns of couple of cows. The ploughing was used to break up the top soil before sowing or for covering the seeds for a future time. Egyptian farmers also used hoes when tending growing crops. The hoes was a wooden handle and blade bound together with rope and used to loosening the soil. Another tool was the sickle. The sickle had a short handle and a crescent-shaped blade made of wood which was used for reaping during harvest. The sower walked back and forth over the moist field, a bag in one hand and spreading the seed with the other.

The Egyptians used the water from the Nile River for land irrigation. The Nile River was perfect for growing food. The ancient Egyptians grew some foods such as fig trees and wheat and barley. The vegetables included leeks, garlic, melons, squashes, pulses, lettuce, and grapes that were made into wine and could only grow in the hot climate. The also cultivated emmer and barley, and several other cereal grains. There was almost always enough food in Ancient Egypt and it was easy to produce which meant there was always time for other fun