
A rake (
Old English
Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language
English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family
The Indo-European languages are a language family
A language ...
''raca'', cognate with
Dutch
Dutch commonly refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands
* Dutch people ()
* Dutch language ()
*Dutch language , spoken in Belgium (also referred as ''flemish'')
Dutch may also refer to:"
Castle
* Dutch Castle
Places
* ...
''hark'',
German
German(s) may refer to:
Common uses
* of or related to Germany
* Germans, Germanic ethnic group, citizens of Germany or people of German ancestry
* For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
* German language
The German la ...

''Rechen'', from the root meaning "to scrape together", "heap up") is a
broom
A broom (also known in some forms as a broomstick) is a cleaning tool consisting of usually stiff fibers (often made of materials such as plastic, hair, or corn husks) attached to, and roughly parallel to, a cylindrical handle, the broomstick. It ...

for outside use; a
horticultural
Horticulture is the art of cultivating plants in gardens to produce food and medicinal ingredients, or for comfort and ornamental purposes. Horticulturists grow flowers, fruits and nuts, vegetables and herbs, as well as ornamental trees and lawns.
...
implement consisting of a toothed bar fixed transversely to a handle, or
tines fixed to a handle, and used to collect
leaves
A leaf (plural leaves) is the principal lateral appendage of the vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne above ground and specialized for photosynthesis. The leaves, stem, flower and fruit together form the shoot system. Leaves are ...

,
hay
Hay is grass
Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family
In , family (from la, familia) is a of people related either by (by recognized birth) or (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of fam ...

,
grass
Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family
In , family (from la, familia) is a of people related either by (by recognized birth) or (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of families is to maintain ...

, etc., and in
gardening
Gardening is the practice of growing and cultivating plants as part of horticulture
Horticulture is the art of cultivating plants in gardens to produce food and medicinal ingredients, or for comfort and ornamental purposes. Horticulturists ar ...

, for loosening the soil, light
weeding
Weed control is the botanical component of pest control, which attempts to stop weed
A weed is a plant considered undesirable in a particular situation, "a plant in the wrong place". Examples commonly are plants unwanted in human-controlled se ...

and levelling, removing dead grass from lawns, and generally for purposes performed in agriculture by the
harrow
Harrow may refer to:
Places
* Harrow, Victoria, Australia
* Harrow, Ontario, Canada
* The Harrow, County Wexford, a village in Ireland
* London Borough of Harrow, England, UK
** Harrow, London, a town
** Harrow (UK Parliament constituency)
** Harr ...
.
Large mechanized versions of rakes are used in
farming
Agriculture is the science, art and practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary
Image:Family watching television 1958.jpg, Exercise trends, Increases in sedentary behaviors su ...

, called
hay rake
300px, A Molon 120 Mini side-delivery belt rake raking hay into a windrow.
A hay rake is an agricultural rake (tool), rake used to collect cut hay or straw into windrows for later collection (e.g. by a baler or a loader wagon). It is also designe ...

s, are built in many different forms (e.g. star-wheel rakes, rotary rakes, etc.). Nonmechanized farming may be done with various forms of a hand rake.
Types of rakes
Modern hand-rakes usually have
steel
Steel is an alloy
An alloy is an admixture of metal
A metal (from Ancient Greek, Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appe ...

,
plastic
Plastics are a wide range of syntheticA synthetic is an artificial material produced by organic chemistry, organic chemical synthesis.
Synthetic may also refer to:
In the sense of both "combination" and "artificial"
* Synthetic chemical or s ...

, or
bamboo
Bamboos are a diverse group of evergreen
In botany
Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in th ...

teeth or
tines, though historically they have been made with
wood
Wood is a porous and fibrous structural tissue found in the stems and roots of tree
In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated Plant stem, stem, or trunk (botany), trunk, supporting branches and leaves in most species. ...

or
iron
Iron () is a chemical element
In chemistry
Chemistry is the study of the properties and behavior of . It is a that covers the that make up matter to the composed of s, s and s: their composition, structure, properties, behav ...

. The handle is typically a ~1.5m haft made of wood, bamboo, steel or
fiberglass
Fiberglass (American English
American English (AmE, AE, AmEng, USEng, en-US), sometimes called United States English or U.S. English, is the set of varieties of the English language native to the United States. Currently, American Englis ...
.
Leaf rakes, used like a broom to gather leaves, cut grass and debris, have long, flat teeth bent into an L-shape and fanned out from the point of attachment. This permits some flexibility to allow the teeth to conform to terrain, while also being light to minimise damage to vegetation. Compact, telescoping leaf rakes allow the teeth to be withdrawn by sliding a movable fixture point up the shaft.
Garden rakes typically have steel teeth and are intended for heavier use in soil and larger debris. They have long, stiff teeth which must be able to withstand abrasion and bending forces.
Bow rakes are a subset of garden rakes which separate the handle and bar with a bow-shaped extension which allows the flat back of the bar to be used for levelling and scraping. These may have somewhat finer and shorter teeth and can perform a myriad of gardening and landscape tasks, and due to their more costly construction are likely to be a professional tool. Alternatively, a second set of differently shaped teeth may be added to the back of the bar.
Cultural associations
If a rake lies in the ground with the teeth facing upwards, as shown on the top picture, and someone accidentally steps on the teeth, the rake's handle can swing rapidly upwards, colliding with the victim's face. This is often seen in
slapstick comedy
Slapstick is a style of humor involving exaggerated physical activity that exceeds the boundaries of normal physical comedy. Slapstick may involve both intentional violence and violence by mishap, often resulting from inept use of props such a ...
and
cartoon
A cartoon is a type of illustration
An illustration is a decoration, interpretation or visual explanation of a text, concept or process, designed for integration in print and digital published media, such as poster
A poster is a tempor ...

s, such as ''
Tom and Jerry
''Tom and Jerry'' is an American animated
Animation is a method in which figures
Figure may refer to:
General
*A shape, drawing, depiction, or geometric configuration
*Figure (wood), wood appearance
*Figure (music), distinguished from mu ...
'' and ''
The Simpsons
''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer Simpson, Homer, Marge Si ...
'' episode "
Cape Feare
"Cape Feare" (originally titled "Sideshow Bob's Revenge") is the second episode in the fifth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons
''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the F ...
", wherein a series of rakes become what
Sideshow Bob
Robert Underdunk Terwilliger Jr., PhD, better known as Sideshow Bob, is a guest character in the animated television series ''The Simpsons''. He is voiced by Kelsey Grammer and first appeared briefly in the episode "The Telltale Head". Bob is a ...
describes as his "arch-nemesis". There is a
Russian
Russian refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (русские, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (россияне), Russian language term ...
saying
A saying is any concisely written or spoken expression that is especially memorable because of its meaning or style. Sayings are categorized as follows:
* Aphorism
An aphorism (from Ancient Greek, Greek ἀφορισμός: ''aphorismos'', d ...

"to step on the same rake" (russian: наступить на те же грабли), which means "to repeat the same silly mistake", also the word "rake" (russian: грабли) in Russian slang means "troubles".
Heavy rake
This type of rake is for conditioning and dethatching soil as well as moving larger pieces of debris. Most weeds have weaker and shallower roots than grass and thus dethatching along with (afterward) necessary sunlight, fertilizer and seed, and if later necessary any remedial chemicals, makes for a good crop of grass. Larger tools (or lawnmower attachments) are more often used for large areas of de-thatching or soil preparation. However the action of making the soil bare and exposed to sun is not good and worms do not like it. It should be protected with straw afterward. Soil aeration tools do not remove weed but prepare soil without exposure.
Plastic or metal
There are pros and cons to each. Plastic rakes are generally lighter weight and lower cost. Because they can be fabricated in widths of greater dimensions they are more suitable for leaves which have recently been deposited. Metal tined rakes are better suited for spring raking when the debris is often wet or rotted and can best be collected when the metal tines penetrate to the thatch layer.
See also
*
Aeration
Aeration (also called aerification or aeriation) is the Systems engineering process, process by which air is circulated through, mixed with or solvation, dissolved in a liquid.
Aeration of liquids Methods
Aeration of liquids (usually water) is ach ...

*
Soil
Soil is a mixture
In chemistry
Chemistry is the science, scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the Chemical element, elements that make up matter to the chemical compound, comp ...

References
External links
{{Garden tools
Gardening tools
Chinese inventions
Heraldic charges