Land Preparation Services
Quality land preparations kills weeds, incorporates manure and other organic matter in the soil, destroy different stages of crop pest such as larva or adult stages by burying them and exposing them to heat, encourage the penetration of roots in the soil, make subsequent operation easy and encourages water penetration in the soil.
Land Preparation Services
Primary Cultivation
This is the initial opening of land either after land clearing or following a previous crop.
Primary cultivation should be done well before the onset of rains to allow for all operations to be done in good time.
Why Primary Cultivation
- To remove weeds
- To burry organic matter for easy decomposition
- To facilitate water infiltration and aeration
- To destroy soil borne pests by exposing them to predators and scorching effects of the sun
- To make subsequent operation easier e.g. planting
- Eases the penetration of crop roots
How we do it
Disc Plough is used for initial soil preparation. Generally it is used for deep tillage of land, to help turn over the upper layer of the soil, bringing fresh nutrients to the surface, while burying weeds and remains of previous crop. It also aerates the soil, allows it to hold moisture better and is tough to withstand heavy loads.
A moldboard plough is used to turn over soil, burying top growth in the ground and bringing nutrient rich soil to the surface for crops to grow in. It derives its name from the curved blade that turns the soil over as it’s pulled through the ground and known as the mold board, in front of that is the toe piece and to the side a disc which cuts the furrow at a set distance. For deep rooted crops this is ideal because it will go down to about 10 inches deep.
Secondary Cultivation
These are operations which follow the primary cultivation and means seedbed refinement practices before planting, also called harrowing or wet puddling in paddy rice production
Harrowing breaks up clods in the soil and surface crusts, very precise cultivation, Improves soil aeration and surface uniformity; Good for eliminating the weeds and kills the already emerged weeds and pulverizes the soil thoroughly.
Why Secondary Cultivation Matters
- To remove any weeds that might have germinated after primary cultivation
- To break the soil clods into small pieces for easy planting
- To level the field on order to achieve a uniform depth of planting
- To incorporate organic matter into the soil in order to encourage decomposition before planting
Implements used for secondary cultivation are: tractor drawn disc harrows, spring tine harrows and rotary plough.
Rotavator helps in breaking down soil and leveling of land. It is equally important in Seedbed preparation for sowing. Rotavator is used in primary and secondary tillage. It is cost effective as it reduces the amount of fuel used and the amount of time spent by the farmer.
Tertiary Operations
These are operations carried out to suit production of certain crops. They are carried out after land clearing primary cultivation and secondary tillage.
This is the practice of making the soil surface flat and uniform so as to promote easy germination of small seeded crops such as wheat, grasses, and barley. It facilitates uniform germination of seeds.
This is done to compact soil which is loose or fine tilth. It is done to prevent small seeds from being carried away by wind and to prevent soil erosion. Also increases seed soil contact. Implements used are: simple hand tools and heavy rollers
This is the process of digging soil in a continuous line and heaping it on one side to form a bund ( ridge) and a furrow. The ridges are important for planting root crops like Irish potatoes, cassava etc.
Why Ridging Matters
- Improves soil drainage
- Helps in tuber expansion
- Helps in water conservation
- Easy harvesting of root crops
Conservation Agriculture
Sub-soiling
This is the process of cultivating the soil for the purpose of breaking up the hard pans which might have formed as a result of continuous use of heavy machinery in land preparation. Implements used in sub soiling are:
- Sub soiler
- Chisel plough
- Cultivators
Minimum Tillage
This is the application of a combination of farming practices aimed at least disturbance to the soil.
How To Achieve Minimum Tillage
- To reduce the cost of cultivation or ploughing by reducing the number of operations
- To control soil erosion, mulching and cover cropping greatly reduce chances of soil erosion
- To maintain soil structure, continuous cultivation destroys soil structure hence its avoided
- To conserve moisture, continuous cultivation exposes the soil to the heat of the sun thus enhance evaporation of available moisture
- To prevent disturbance of roots and underground structures for example tubers and bulbs
- To prevent exposure of humus to adverse conditions such as the suns heat that cause volatilization of nitrogen
Why Use Minimu Tillage
- Application of herbicides in controlling weeds
- Use of mulch on the soil surface. Mulch prevents weeds from growing by smothering them
- Timing cultivation, late weeding of cotton crop, for example often produces a clean seedbed for finger millet to be sown without further cultivation
- Restricting cultivation to the area where seeds are to be planted. Weeds in the rest of the field are controlled by slashing
- Establishment of cover crop on the field
- Uprooting or slashing weeds on perennial crops
