4 steps SOIL PREPARATION done before growing a new crop?
Proper soil preparation should be done before growing a new crop.
Every crop plant lives in the soil. It can be a crop as tiny as a pea to the biggest fruit plants like mango trees all of them depend on the soil for their nutritional needs and water requirement. Soil gives plants a support to their spreading root system. It gives all the minerals, vitamins, macro and micronutrients that are necessary for the healthy growth and development of the crops.
Farmers who plant crops and vegetables should know well about the growing season of and when to do the soil preparation beforehand. Proper preparation of soil ensures good crops and ultimately great yield and happiness to a farmer.
Soil preparation refers to the process of loosening the soil particles by turning them with the help of a hoe or a plow (oxen driven or tractor driven plow) and the loosened and finer soil particles are then pushed across the flat surface of the garden to make it level (this is called soil leveling).
By the end of the season, the same garden that we used to plant crops in the last season is hard, unpenetrable by the roots. Such hard soil has to be dug to get it to loosen and ready to receive new crops in it. Digging can be done with the help of a hoe (in a small garden) or plow (in a bigger field).
The soil that was dug is usually consist of large lumps. These lumps have to be broken further. With the same implements, the soil is repeatedly turned again and again until they become thoroughly broken into finer pieces.
Manure and farmyard manure are then added to the fine soil and mixed thoroughly.
Leveling or heaping
The final step of soil preparation is leveling or heaping of the worked out soil. Leveling is done with a leveling plank or a harrow.
The soil which was prepared is ready to receive seeds or young seedlings.
Next read: How to select seeds that are good for planting?
Every crop plant lives in the soil. It can be a crop as tiny as a pea to the biggest fruit plants like mango trees all of them depend on the soil for their nutritional needs and water requirement. Soil gives plants a support to their spreading root system. It gives all the minerals, vitamins, macro and micronutrients that are necessary for the healthy growth and development of the crops.
Farmers who plant crops and vegetables should know well about the growing season of and when to do the soil preparation beforehand. Proper preparation of soil ensures good crops and ultimately great yield and happiness to a farmer.
Soil preparation refers to the process of loosening the soil particles by turning them with the help of a hoe or a plow (oxen driven or tractor driven plow) and the loosened and finer soil particles are then pushed across the flat surface of the garden to make it level (this is called soil leveling).
Steps in soil preparation
Breaking the hard soil
 |
| Soil Preparation | Hoe |
Make the broken soil into smaller or finer pieces
Mix farmyard manure with the fine soil
Leveling or heaping
Leveling
 |
| Leveling of soil |
The soil which was prepared is ready to receive seeds or young seedlings.
Next read: How to select seeds that are good for planting?
