The hand tools still used by gardeners originated with the earliest agricultural implements used by man.[citation needed] Examples include: the hoe, pitchfork, fork, rake, hand cultivator, spade, shovel and hand trowel. In some places the machete may be used as a garden tool.
The earliest tools were made of wood, flint, metal, tin, and bone. However, the development of metal working, first in copper and later in iron and steel, enabled the manufacture of more durable tools. Industrial metalworking enabled the manufacture of efficient cutting tools, including pruning shears (secateurs) and grass shears and larger, more efficient powered tools such as the trencher.
