Mechanization in 1801, displacing the centuries-old hand method of making individual sheets of paper. One of the first mechanical devices used in agriculture was the seed drill invented by Jethro Tull around 1700. The seed drill allowed more uniform spacing of seed and planting depth than hand methods, increasing yields and saving valuable seed. Mechanized agriculture greatly increased in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries with horse drawn reapers and horse powered threshing machines. By the late nineteenth century steam power was applied to threshing and steam tractors appeared. Internal combustion began being used for tractors in the early twentieth
Seed drill Seed drill A seed drill is a device that sows the seeds for crops by metering out the individual seeds, positioning them in the soil, and covering them to a certain average depth. This makes sure the seed will be placed evenly. The seed drill sows the seeds at equal distances and proper depth, ensuring that the seeds get covered with soil and are saved from being eaten by birds and being blown by the wind. This allows plants to get sufficient sunlight, nutrients, and water from the soil. Before the introduction of the seed drill, a common practice was