The Care of Steel: Ancient Wisdom for Keeping Homestead Tools Alive

Every great harvest begins with a well-cared-for tool.

This week,  we’re stepping into the workshop to explore the forgotten art of tool maintenance.

🪓 Learn how to: • Prevent rust with the classic sand-and-oil bucket • Sharpen hoes, shovels, axes, pruners, and knives • Care for wooden handles • Store tools for generations of use • Embrace the old philosophy of repairing instead of replacing

Because stewardship doesn’t stop in the garden—it extends to every tool that helps us tend the land.

🎧 Join us as we rediscover the wisdom of caring for the things that care for us.

Transcript

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There is an old saying, take care of your tools and they'll take care of you. Long before disposable culture, our ancestors understood this truth. A shovel wasn't replaced every few years, an axe wasn't thrown away when it became dull. A pruning knife might pass from parent to child. The hammer hanging in the barn wasn't simply a tool. It carried decades of work inside its worn handle. Every scratch told a story. Every sharpened edge represented another season survived. Our ancestors couldn't afford neglect. A broken hoe during season planting season meant lost food. A dull axe meant wasted energy. Rust wasn't merely cosmetic. It was the slow theft of something valuable. Today we're slowing down long enough to remember how to care for the things that care for us. From sharpening edges and preventing rust to repairing wooden handles and honoring the simple tools that help feed our families. This episode is about stewardship, not just of the land, but of the tools that connect us to it. Welcome, witches, pagans, heathens, spiritualists, and anyone interested in living sustainably. This is Old Ways, New Days, where the old ways meet the good dirt. I'm Kayla, and I'm Nel. And each week we explore the sacred art of living close to the land. From compost to covens, chickens to charms, we're reclaiming self-sufficiency, seasonal living, and ancestral wisdom. Whether you're stirring your cauldron or your soup pot, this is a space for wild-hearted folk walking the homesteading path with intention, magic, and muddy boots. So I had to prop up my tomato plants because they were drooping. Well, drooping and getting heavy. Getting really heavy. So I pulled I um nipped off some of extra excess branches so that their airflow could get in there and um unfortunately knocked a green tomato. So I didn't have to worry about that. No? No. I had to move my tomato plants to my deck. Oh, where the deer. The deer launched on them. Haha. I should give you some of my onions where you can just break off some onion heads because the deer don't like onions. Well, and they were leaving them alone up until I looked at them one day. And you know, I was like, oh, you're doing good, because I planted marigolds in them. Oh yeah. Well, deer don't care about marigolds. Well, they don't like the smell. Uh supposedly. Clearly, they just they left them alone for the longest time. Yeah. And then yeah. So yeah, I had to. But they didn't chop them all the way down. They just chop like the top. Okay. A little bit. So they did they did some pruning for me. They did some pruning for me, but I don't have any buds on it. Oh. Yeah, no, I have probably a good handful of tiny green tomatoes. And in my process of fixing and staking them upright and prop giving them support, I knocked one off. So I don't know if it'll if it'll ripen and on this counter. Yeah. So it still needs growth. It did. It's uh smaller than an egg, but larger than a grape. So yeah, it still needs to grow. Yeah. It's it's not a cherry tomato. No, they are not cherry tomatoes. They're not they aren't beefsteak either. I forget what kind I got. They aren't Romas. It's just some generic round tomato. I know. They didn't pay attention. Random seeds that she just throws. Okay, let's see what I grow. I know, I know. It's gonna be a cross between a cucumber and a tomato and a squash. Be like as uh the um South Park episode where they made to tomato tobaccos. Tomaco! We're not yeah, I'm not growing tomacos. No, please don't. Alright, so we're talking about tools, because tools matter. Yes, they do in more ways than one. Yeah. So modern society often teaches us to replace. The old ways taught us to repair. Every well-maintained tool saves money, time, physical effort, materials, fruit, frustration. Sharp hoe cuts weeds effortlessly. A sharp pair of pruners make clean cuts that help plants heal. A sharp axe splits wood instead of bouncing dangerously. Maintenance isn't extra work, it's part of the work. And a lot of people, I think, forget that. This one's dull, hmm? Yeah. So your biggest enemy with your tools is rust. Uh steel loves oxygen. Add moisture, and rust begins. What? No way. I know. One of the oldest tricks for protecting hand tools is surprisingly simple. A bucket, some sand, and some oil. Hmm. Uh many farmers kept a five-gallon bucket filled with clean sand mixed mixed lightly with boiled linseed oil or a light machine oil. You want to avoid using oily rags carelessly, as linseed oil soaked rags can spontaneously combust if left crumpled. So don't do that.

unknown 6:06

Oh, that sounds like fun.

SPEAKER_00 6:07

Yeah, dry them flat or dispose of them safely. So, little little safety note there. Uh after it sounds like fun. I know. After using a shovel, trowel, or cultivator or any metal clipper or anything. You want to brush off any loose soil, push the metal several times into the sand. The sand gently scrubs away remaining dirt. The oil leaves behind a thin protective coating that helps reduce rust. It's inexpensive, it takes seconds, and it works remarkably well. Another important habit: never put tools away wet. Even morning dew can begin the corrosion process. Yes, yes, it can. Your tools deserve the same attention your cast iron skillet receives. After gardening, remove mud, remove sap, remove plant residue. For sticky tree sap, a little mineral spirits or rubbing alcohol on a rag can help clean the blade. Wash afterwards if appropriate and apply a light protective oil. Dry completely, then oil lightly. Even thirty seconds of care dramatically extends a tool's life. Now they just need to make a hand trowel that doesn't bend and snap. Do you bend and snap? Yeah, there's a lot of things. They tools nowadays though are so cheaply made and yet so expensive. Yes. Which is why you want to take care of the ones that are good. Especially from generations before you. Right. You have your grandpa's old farm tools? Keep them. Yeah, keep them and take good care of them. So one of the biggest misconceptions is that every edge should be razor sharp. Different tools require different edges. Most hose should have a sharp working edge. A mill-blasted file is usually all that's needed. Follow the existing bevel, that's the where the metal goes from straight to pointed. Push the file in one direction. Lift it on the return stroke. Avoid sawing back and forth. Shovels. Many factory shovels are surprisingly dull. A slightly sharpened edge slices into soil and roots with much less effort. Use a file or grinder carefully. Maintain approximately the existing factory bevel rather than creating a knife edge. For pruners, sharp pruners make cleaner cuts. Clean cuts, heal faster. Always sharpen only the beveled cutting edge unless the manufacturer specifies otherwise. After sharpening, wipe clean, oil the pivot, check the tension. Axes require a balance. Too thin an edge chips. Too thick wastes energy. A file works well for routine maintenance. You want to finish with a sharpening stone if desired. Never overheat an axe on a power grinder. Heat can ruin the temper of the steel. Knives such as your kitchen knives, a harvesting knife, a hori hori knife, which I think is like a curved knife. Pocket knives, and regular honing uh regular honing keeps an edge aligned, while periodic sharpening removes metal to restore the edge. A sharp knife is actually safer than a dull one because it requires less force and is less likely to slip. We're gonna care for the wooden handles. One is alive long after the tree is gone. It dries, shrinks, swells, cracks. Once or twice each year. Clean the handle. Lightly sand rough areas if needed. Apply boiled linseed oil, allow it to soak in, and wipe away the excess. The oil nourishes the wood and helps reduce drying and cracking. Inspect handles regularly for splinters, loose heads, or cracks. Replace damaged handles rather than risking injury. And nowadays it's pretty nice, you can just buy them with the pre-made screw end. So you can just rescrew into the head of whatever yelp tool that you're using. So of course, storage matters. Where you keep your tools matters almost as much as how you use them. Avoid leaving tools outside, which is my biggest issue. Oh, of course it is. I know. I do the same and then I get yelled at. Resting metal directly on damp concrete for long periods, throwing everything in a pile. Instead, long hand. Instead, hang long-handled tools, keep edges protected, store in dry spaces. Good storage prevents accidents as well as corrosion. There is something deeply powerful about growing your own medicine. Not the kind that comes in a plastic bottle from a pharmacy shelf, but the kind that begins with soil under your fingernails, sunlight on green leaves, and the quiet patience of the seasons. For thousands of years, people all over the world turned to plants first. Long before modern pharmaceuticals, families kept small plots of healing herbs close to the kitchen door. Plants for fever, for cough, for sleep, for calming the nerves after a long day's work. Those gardens weren't just practical, they were sacred. Medicinal garden is one of the simplest ways to reconnect with that tradition, even if you only have a patio, a balcony, or a few containers in a sunny window. That's why we have partnered with a medicinal growing kit that's perfect for beginners and seasoned plant lovers alike. This kit comes with carefully selected seeds for classic healing herbs like chamomile for calming teas, calendula for skin healing, lemon balm for stress and sleep, peppermint for digestion, lavender for relaxation. What we like about this starter kit is that it removes the overwhelm. You're not standing in a garden center staring at hundreds of seed packets wondering where to begin. Instead, you start with the plants that have been traditionally used in herbalism for generations. With your seed kit, you'll also receive a copy of the Herbal Medicinal Guide from Seeds to Remedies. This guide will show you how to turn these 10 plants into tinctures, ointments, salves, poultices, decoctions, infusions, essential oils. All in minute detail so you can follow the guide even if you've never made an herbal medicine in your life. And if you're someone who practices earth-based spirituality, herbal magic, or simply wants to reconnect with older ways of caring for yourself and your family, growing medicinal herbs can become part of your seasonal rituals. Planting seeds becomes intention, harvesting becomes gratitude, and every cup of tea carries a story from the soil to your hands. If you're interested in starting your own medicinal herb garden, check out the affiliate link in the show notes. Supporting the link also helps support the podcast and keeps episodes like this growing, because sometimes the most powerful medicine is the kind you grow yourself. Many homesteaders naturally slow down in late autumn. This is the perfect time for tool maintenance. Lay out every hand tool, clean them, sharpen them, oil the metal, condition the wood, repair what's needed repairing, and replace broken handles. It could also be done during the winter months when there's not a lot of you know right outside stuff to do. Well, that's why I said late autumn. Okay. Inventory what is missing. And just as we preserve food for winter, we preserve our tools for another growing season. So the spiritual side of tool care is something that's quiet and sacred about maintaining the objects that help sustain us. Many cultures blessed farming tools. Blacksmiths were often regarded with awe. The forge itself was considered transformative. Fire, earth, metal, human skill, combined into something capable of feeding families. When we care for our tools, we acknowledge the labor that they make possible. Each scratch speaks of gardens planted, each worn handle remembers harvest gathered. Perhaps stewardship begins not with buying better things, but with appreciating what we already have. If you're able, think of your favorite tool. Perhaps it's your grandfather's hammer. A well used trowel, an old pair of pruning shears. Imagine holding it. Notice the worn handle, the polished steel, the places your hands naturally rest. Think of everything this simple object has helped create meals, gardens, shelters, warmfires. Now gently or now silently offer gratitude. Not because the tool is magical, but because it represents the relationship between your effort and the living world. The old ways reminds us respect is shown through care. Every season asks something different of us. Spring asks us to plant, summer asks us to tend, autumn asks us to harvest, and winter asks us to prepare. Tool maintenance belongs to every season, because a well cared for tool isn't just an object. It's an investment in future harvests. It's a promise that when the work returns, you'll be ready. May your blades stay sharp. May your handles remain strong. May your tools serve you faithfully for decades to come. And may you continue finding wisdom in the simple act of caring for the things that help you care for the land. Until next time, keep your hands in the soil, keep your eyes on the seasons, and your spirit rooted in the old ways.