Farm Tools
Senior 1 · Agriculture
Farm Tools
Lesson 3 of 4
22 min
Let's begin
Most farm injuries are not caused by machines. They are caused by everyday hand tools: a panga that slips off a tough stem, a hoe head that flies off a loose handle, a rake left teeth-up in the grass, or pesticide spray blown back into a farmer's face.
Using a tool effectively means getting the job done well with the least effort. Using it safely means nobody is hurt, including the people around you. The two go together.
Pesticides are poisons. They enter the body through the skin, the mouth and the lungs, so the rules protect all three.
Question: A pesticide label says: use 20 mL of product in each 15-litre knapsack tank, and apply about 300 litres of spray mixture per hectare. Uwase must spray a 0.1 ha plot of tomatoes. (a) How many litres of mixture does she need? (b) How many full tanks is that? (c) How much product does she measure out in total?
(a) Mixture = rate × area = 300 litres per ha × 0.1 ha = 30 litres.
(b) Tanks = 30 litres ÷ 15 litres per tank = 2 tanks.
(c) Product = 2 tanks × 20 mL per tank = 40 mL.
Why it matters: too little product fails to control the pest and encourages resistance; too much wastes money, harms the crop and leaves poisonous residues on food.
Press a clean cloth firmly on the wound to stop the bleeding, wash it with clean water, cover it, and go to a health centre if the cut is deep or dirty, since soil can carry tetanus.
Tip
Memory hook for sprayer safety: "Skin, Mouth, Lungs: cover all three" (gloves and overalls, no eating or drinking, mask and no spraying in wind).
Exam technique: give each safety rule with its reason: "carry a panga pointing down, so that if you trip it does not cut you or others".
Give three general safety rules for using hand tools.
Solution: Any three: check heads and handles are firm and smooth; keep 2 m from others when swinging a tool; carry blades pointing down and covered; never throw tools; never leave tools lying in grass; wear strong shoes.
Explain why a sharp panga is safer than a blunt one.
Solution: A sharp blade cuts with little force. A blunt one needs hard swings, so it is more likely to bounce or slip off the stem and cut the user.
List four items of protective clothing worn when spraying pesticides.
Solution: Any four: gloves, gumboots, overalls with long sleeves, goggles or face shield, mask, hat.
A label says 30 mL of product per 15-litre tank. How much product is needed for 3 tanks?
Solution: 3 × 30 mL = 90 mL.
A 0.25 ha field is sprayed at 240 litres per ha with a 15-litre sprayer. How many full tanks are needed?
Solution: Mixture = 240 × 0.25 = 60 litres. Tanks = 60 ÷ 15 = 4 tanks.
Summary
Sources and credits
This lesson adapts CC BY-SA material and is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
