In the last few years, interest in the scythe has grown remarkably; and so have the sales of The Scythe Book. Now Peter Vido, who has written two outstanding articles for Small Farmer’s Journal on the use of the scythe, has contributed an addendum for this book on the practical use of the scythe based on his own extensive research and experience.
--This text refers to an alternate
Paperback
edition.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Scientific American
David Tresemer has converted me to scything. If you hate your lawn mower, you'll like this book.
From The New Yorker
In a world cluttered and confusing, Tresemer gives us a book which is a beautiful balance between care and joy, without being idyllic or idealistic. There is pride in tradition coupled with an underlying vision of things to come inherent in the image of the scythe itself.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A masters notes.,
By Elliot (Maine) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Scythe Book: Mowing Hay, Cutting Weeds, and Harvesting Small Grains, With Hand Tools (Paperback)
The second edition of The Scythe Book was released this June and I am posting this before Amazon lists it as available, but I hope that will soon change.The original text by Dave Tresemer has not been re-edited. It is still a good introduction to this wonderful tool. The core of the new edition is the addendum by Peter Vido. Peter is extraordinarily dedicated to the scythe as both a practical tool and as a model of wisely applied human engineering. Peter shows us how complex and subtle this simple tool can be. The depth of his knowledge may overwhelm the uninitiated on first reading, but as your experience grows with this tool, Peter's commentary becomes increasingly valuable. There is a lot of important information packed into this addendum and any scythe enthusiast will learn much from this master. The European scythe accomplishes more than the mundane job of cutting grass. It offers us an opportunity to step away from the craziness of American lawn culture. It gives us the space in which to breathe, listen and explore our own rhythms without burning gasoline. This book is the place to begin.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
more historical reference than how to manual,
By Laurie J. Neverman "The Common Sense Woman" (Denmark, WI United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)
This review is from: The Scythe BookSecond Edition Mowing Hay, Cutting Weeds, and Harvesting Small Grains with Hand Tools (Paperback)
First, this book is primarily about the European scythe, not the American scythe. The author mentions the American scythe very briefly before dimissing it as too heavy to use and an inferior tool. I haven't used a European scythe, and perhaps I would find it easier to use if I tried it, but I do have a couple of beautiful antique American scythes that I picked up at a farm auction and they work just fine. I was disappointed with the author's dismissal of the tool.
What the book does have is a very in depth description of the history of the scythe, including a discussion of early short handled sickles, the steps involved in crafting a scythe, harvesting techniques and quotes about harvesting from a wide variety of literary sources. After reading this book, I'm thinking about hunting down a copy of Tolstoy's Anna Karenina just to read the sections on harvesting. I was hoping for a little more "how to" info, but I think perhaps that is best obtained from an experienced user who can not only show you how to do it but critique what you're doing as you do it. The basics are here to get you started, and the author's passion for hand tools is obvious. Keep your blades sharp and your back strong and you'll be surprised what you can accomplish.
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Amish are modern,
By Valerie (Near Disaster) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Scythe BookSecond Edition Mowing Hay, Cutting Weeds, and Harvesting Small Grains with Hand Tools (Paperback)
The author rants against the 'American' scythe, and all things American, which seems to him to represent modern, industrial, evil. The 'European' scythe is traditional, pure, righteous. The reader may become confused to find that, according to this book, the 'European' scythe may have been invented in Turkey, and might be made today in China. Also, the early American scythes were made by Europeans just like in Europe.
The terminology is standard, though it is a little inaccurate. The 'European' scythe is hammer forged from a bar stock. The 'American' is stamped and formed from sheet material. So the scythe the author is so fond of is a hammer forged scythe. Simple as that. Europe really has no claim to it. Here's the basics to using a scythe: Adjust it so that you are standing and the blade is just slightly tilted up at the edge. Cut the grass when it is wet. Keep the blade close to the ground, actually just riding lightly over the ground. Swing the blade pointy end first. Don't slash like using a sword, but slice like cutting bread. Cut only a few inches at a time.
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