Editing Plough (section)

===Hoeing===
{{Main|Hoe-farming}}
When [[History of agriculture|agriculture was first developed]], soil was turned using simple hand-held [[digging stick]]s and [[Hoe (tool)|hoe]]s.<ref name="Britannica" /> These were used in highly fertile areas, such as the banks of the [[Nile]], where the annual flood rejuvenates the soil, to create drills (furrows) in which to plant seeds. Digging sticks, hoes and [[mattock]]s were not invented in any one place, and hoe cultivation must have been common everywhere agriculture was practised. Hoe-farming is the traditional tillage method in tropical or sub-tropical regions, which are marked by stony soils, steep slope gradients, predominant root crops, and coarse grains grown at wide intervals. While hoe-agriculture is best suited to these regions, it is used in some fashion everywhere.