Editing Plough (section)

===Single-sided ploughing===
[[File:Ploughing match from The Powerhouse Museum Collection.jpg|thumb|Single-sided ploughing in a ploughing match]]
The first mould-board ploughs could only turn the soil over in one direction ([[Convention (norm)|convention]]ally to the right), as dictated by the shape of the mould board; therefore, a field had to be ploughed in long strips, or ''lands''. The plough was usually worked clockwise around each land, ploughing the long sides and being dragged across the short sides without ploughing. The length of the strip was limited by the distance oxen (later horses) could comfortably work without rest, and their width by the distance the plough could conveniently be dragged. These distances determined the traditional size of the strips: a [[furlong]], (or "furrow's length", {{convert|220|yd|m}}) by a [[Chain (length)|chain]] ({{convert|22|yd|m}})&nbsp;– an area of one acre (about 0.4 hectares); this is the origin of the [[acre]]. The one-sided action gradually moved soil from the sides to the centre line of the strip. If the strip was in the same place each year, the soil built up into a ridge, creating the [[ridge and furrow]] topography still seen in some ancient fields.{{citation needed|date=February 2022}}