The Scything Handbook: Learn How to Cut Grass, Mow Meadows and Harvest Grain with a Scythe

The Zen approach to mowing lawns, wacking weeds, harvesting crops, and building modern homesteader abs!

Dreading the weekly law mow? Need to whack the weeds in your orchard? Cringing at the drudgery and incessant blare of the mower? Imagine instead long sweeps of an elegant scythe cutting your grass and pesky weeds in blissful, meditative silence.

That is the power of the "scythe revolution" sweeping North America.

Written by a master of the scythe, professionally trained in Austria, and drawing deeply on research into original German texts, The Scything Handbook brings centuries-old scything techniques into the twent-first century.

Detailed illustrations cover scythe assembly, perfecting the stroke, blade selection, honing, peening, and aftercare, as well as background on how scythes are forged. Also covered are the basics of making hay and mulch by hand, and how to grow and harvest gains at the home and homestead scale for self-sufficiency.

Scything promotes health, flexibility, mind-body connection, and a meditative contemplation of the natural world while producing beautiful lawns and luscious mulch for the modern gardener and homesteader. This is truly an heirloom tool to master.

Join the scythe revolution!

Ian Miller followed a career in music with a degree in Agroecology from UC Santa Cruz. During a two year stint on a biodynamic farm in Austria he learned how to scythe and delved into historic scything texts in German. He has worked for Seed Savers Exchange in Iowa and is developing a twemty-acre scythe-based homestead near Decorah, Iowa, where he grows his own grain for bread making and makes hay by hand.

1123511391
The Scything Handbook: Learn How to Cut Grass, Mow Meadows and Harvest Grain with a Scythe

The Zen approach to mowing lawns, wacking weeds, harvesting crops, and building modern homesteader abs!

Dreading the weekly law mow? Need to whack the weeds in your orchard? Cringing at the drudgery and incessant blare of the mower? Imagine instead long sweeps of an elegant scythe cutting your grass and pesky weeds in blissful, meditative silence.

That is the power of the "scythe revolution" sweeping North America.

Written by a master of the scythe, professionally trained in Austria, and drawing deeply on research into original German texts, The Scything Handbook brings centuries-old scything techniques into the twent-first century.

Detailed illustrations cover scythe assembly, perfecting the stroke, blade selection, honing, peening, and aftercare, as well as background on how scythes are forged. Also covered are the basics of making hay and mulch by hand, and how to grow and harvest gains at the home and homestead scale for self-sufficiency.

Scything promotes health, flexibility, mind-body connection, and a meditative contemplation of the natural world while producing beautiful lawns and luscious mulch for the modern gardener and homesteader. This is truly an heirloom tool to master.

Join the scythe revolution!

Ian Miller followed a career in music with a degree in Agroecology from UC Santa Cruz. During a two year stint on a biodynamic farm in Austria he learned how to scythe and delved into historic scything texts in German. He has worked for Seed Savers Exchange in Iowa and is developing a twemty-acre scythe-based homestead near Decorah, Iowa, where he grows his own grain for bread making and makes hay by hand.

24.99 In Stock
The Scything Handbook: Learn How to Cut Grass, Mow Meadows and Harvest Grain with a Scythe

The Scything Handbook: Learn How to Cut Grass, Mow Meadows and Harvest Grain with a Scythe

by Ian Miller
The Scything Handbook: Learn How to Cut Grass, Mow Meadows and Harvest Grain with a Scythe

The Scything Handbook: Learn How to Cut Grass, Mow Meadows and Harvest Grain with a Scythe

by Ian Miller

eBook

$24.99 

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Overview

The Zen approach to mowing lawns, wacking weeds, harvesting crops, and building modern homesteader abs!

Dreading the weekly law mow? Need to whack the weeds in your orchard? Cringing at the drudgery and incessant blare of the mower? Imagine instead long sweeps of an elegant scythe cutting your grass and pesky weeds in blissful, meditative silence.

That is the power of the "scythe revolution" sweeping North America.

Written by a master of the scythe, professionally trained in Austria, and drawing deeply on research into original German texts, The Scything Handbook brings centuries-old scything techniques into the twent-first century.

Detailed illustrations cover scythe assembly, perfecting the stroke, blade selection, honing, peening, and aftercare, as well as background on how scythes are forged. Also covered are the basics of making hay and mulch by hand, and how to grow and harvest gains at the home and homestead scale for self-sufficiency.

Scything promotes health, flexibility, mind-body connection, and a meditative contemplation of the natural world while producing beautiful lawns and luscious mulch for the modern gardener and homesteader. This is truly an heirloom tool to master.

Join the scythe revolution!

Ian Miller followed a career in music with a degree in Agroecology from UC Santa Cruz. During a two year stint on a biodynamic farm in Austria he learned how to scythe and delved into historic scything texts in German. He has worked for Seed Savers Exchange in Iowa and is developing a twemty-acre scythe-based homestead near Decorah, Iowa, where he grows his own grain for bread making and makes hay by hand.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781550926279
Publisher: New Society Publishers
Publication date: 10/01/2016
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Pages: 160
File size: 15 MB
Note: This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range: 16 Years

About the Author

Ian Miller followed a career in music with a degree in Agroecology from UC Santa Cruz. During a two year stint on a biodynamic farm in Austria he learned how to scythe and delved into historic scything texts in German. He has worked for Seed Savers Exchange in Iowa and is developing a 20 acre scythe-based homestead near Decorah, Iowa where he grows his own grain for bread making and makes hay by hand.


Ian Miller followed a career in music with a degree in Agroecology from UC Santa Cruz. During a two year stint on a biodynamic farm in Austria he learned how to scythe and delved into historic scything texts in German. He has worked for Seed Savers Exchange in Iowa and is developing a 20 acre scythe-based homestead near Decorah, Iowa where he grows his own grain for bread making and makes hay by hand.

Table of Contents

Foreword by Kiko Denzer
Introduction : My story

Chapter 1
How Scything Will Change Your Life: What Will I Use My Scythe For?

Chapter 2
The Scythe and How to Use It : Scythe Assembly | Safety | The Mowing Stroke | Mowing | Drip-line Mulching

Chapter 3
Getting the Best From Your Body: Alexander Technique | Meditation | Meditation Exercise

Chapter 4
Getting the Best From Your Scythe : Optimizing the Hafting Angle | The Meeting of Scythe and Grass

Chapter 5
Blade Care: Honing to Perfection: When to Hone | Using the Right Whetstone | Whetstones, Natural and Artificial | Honing Technique

Chapter 6
Blade Care: The Peening Process: When to Peen | Preparing the Blade | Hammers, Anvils and Jigs | Getting Set Up | How to Peen | Troubleshooting | Different Blades and Edges for Different Jobs | Repairing Nicks

Chapter 7
The Forging of a Scythe Blade: Early Scythes | Steel | Charcoal | Charcoal Production | A Tour of a Pre-industrial Scythe Works

Chapter 8
Making Hay and Using Drying Racks: Hay-making by Hand | Continuous Hay-making with Drying Racks | Loading a Cart with Hay | Nutrient Loss when Drying Hay on the Ground | Advantages of Drying on Hay Racks | Comparison of Curing Methods | Hay Rack Designs | Which Method to Use | When to Begin Hay-making | Grass Growth and the S-Curve | Making the Best Ground-cured Hay | Getting the Most Out of Hay Racks

Chapter 9
Growing and Harvesting Small Grains: What to Grow? | Grow Your Own Porridge? | Growing for Thatch | Dealing with Weeds | Preparing a Seedbed | Small-scale Seed | Sowing | Harvesting | Curing | Directly Harvesting with Livestock | Threshing and Winnowing | Storage | Processing | How to Make | Sourdough Bread

Afterword
Further Information and Resources: Suggested Reading and Bibliography | Resources & Supplies
Index
Acknowledgments
About the Author
A Note About the Publisher

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"Small-scale farmsteading requires balancing body, infrastructure, and land use. In this beautiful book, Ian Miller offers a roadmap to balance, elegantly written and practically employed."
— Joel Salatin, Polyface Farm

"In The Scything Handbook , Ian Miller reintroduces us to a venerable, yet beautiful tool, the European scythe, and leads us on a journey that's personally philosophical and yet is also quintessentially practical and inspiring – part Zen and the Art of Mowing and part owner's manual that takes the reader through the how's and whys of mowing with a hand tool that's so purposefully designed it's difficult to imagine how it ever fell from grace". Whether you are an inexperienced cutter looking to make an acre of hay and maintain a keen edge, or an experienced scyther looking to improve setup and technique, The Scything Handbook deserves a place of high prominence on every homesteader's and sustainable farmer's bookshelf."
— Hank Will (Oscar H. Will III), Editorial Director, Ogden Publications and Editor in Chief, Mother Earth News

"Ian Miller has written a most comprehensive book. Not only is it about how to effectively use a scythe, it covers the history of these useful tools and how to care for them. Scything is a skill that is easily learnt and Ian outlines the steps that will enable you to proficiently master the range of scythes that are discussed, as well as very detailed descriptions of techniques to hone your scythe so that it stays sharp". The many illustrations are clear and help to explain the use, sharpening, peening, repair and care of a scythe so that it will last a lifetime. This tool and its use is becoming popular again as people endeavour to re-educate themselves with those forgotten skills that were so common not so long ago. This book is a "must have" for all homesteaders, permaculture practitioners and anyone who wants to live a more simple, yet fulfilling, life."
— Dr Ross Mars, author of The Permaculture Transition Manual and The Basics of Permaculture Design

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