Agriculture in Ancient China

The Iron Plough:   Sixth Century BCE

The creation of the iron plough was one of the greatest advantages China had over the rest of the world. Their early innovation freed them from having to use antiquated ploughs and allowed for greater agricultural productivity. Over the coming centuries, the Chinese plough would see many great improvements such as cast-iron ploughshares, more durable frames, and adjustable struts to regulate the ploughing depths. When the iron plough finally reached Europe, it was immediately copied and became the driving force of the European agricultural revolution.

Efficient Horse Harnesses:   Fourth and Third Centuries BCE

In ancient Rome, importing grain from Egypt was essential for Roman civilization. Their dependence on Egyptian ships to deliver their grain was simply because the Romans hadn’t developed a harness capable of transporting Italian grain to Rome. By the fourth century BCE, the Chinese had developed the trace harness which would exert pressure on the horse's chest rather than its throat. Therefore, the load is placed on the horse's skeletal system rather than its windpipe. The Chinese made improvements to the harness and soon after created the collar harness that is still used today all over the world.

The Multi-Tube Seed Drill:   Second Century BCE

It may be surprising to some that until around the 16th century CE, broadcast seeding was done by hand in Western civilization. Farmers often had to save crops for sowing in the following year. By the time the first Western seed drills surfaced, single-tube seed drills had existed in the Middle East for thousands of years, and the multi-tube seed drill existed in China 1700 years earlier. The Chinese multi-tube seed drill had 3 ploughshares that were drawn by one ox while one person dropped seeds and held the drill simultaneously. This invention was far ahead of its time and attributes to the great agricultural productivity of ancient China.