Jolly Scythers
Jolly Scythers
"Jolly Scythers" was launched when Jo and Bryan joined with Christoff Schneider in 2009 in bringing scything tools and other equipment suitable for use on farms and gardens of New Zealand. We had lots of jokes about grim reapers- hence "Jolly Scythers"
Since then we have done"Art of Scything" tours and workshops througout New Zealand and introduced many people to Austrian Scyths.
After the first tour we learned a lot about the conditions for scything in New Zealand, and that they were different from the conditions in Austria, where they have had continuous use of the scythe for hundreds of years.
The blades we have chosen to promote, have been made in the same factory since 1540. Christoff designed new blades for New Zealand. These are the ones we call Kiwi Blades and Tui blades. They are still made in the same factory and need the same care, but are easier to use as they suit our NZ conditions.
The Austrian scythe is quite a different creature to the English or American ones most commonly known in New Zealand They are lighter, more nimble - a real pleasure to use and not hard on the body.
It does take some skill however to use them well- which is why we run "Art of Scything workshops"
We will be doing more tours . Please contact us if you are interested.
What people say!
From a happy student:
"Having just come inside - hot sweaty and exhausted but feeling good - from over an hour of scything, I thought I'd let you know how much I am enjoying it, albeit no great expert at it yet. I am working my way around the fruit trees, and find that when I try to scythe open grass, I often find myself going round in circles as I tend to move my left leg more often, out of habit! My husband mowed part of the orchard the other day [with his mower] and commented on how easy it was just doing the open bits and not having to worry about getting too close to the trees - and being able to see the small ones we planted this winter. I really enjoy scything, thank you." Cally
