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    Land Preparation Methods

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    Daniel Dowding
    Land preparation involves selecting an appropriate site for a crop and preparing the soil. It includes clearing the land by removing trees and debris. The soil is then tilled, which breaks up the soil surface and incorporates organic matter. Drainage is set up to remove excess water. Finally, the land is leveled and beds are formed suited to the crop and conditions.

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    Land Preparation Methods

    Uploaded by

    Daniel Dowding
    2K views2 pages
    Land preparation involves selecting an appropriate site for a crop and preparing the soil. It includes clearing the land by removing trees and debris. The soil is then tilled, which breaks up the soil surface and incorporates organic matter. Drainage is set up to remove excess water. Finally, the land is leveled and beds are formed suited to the crop and conditions.

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    Land preparation methods

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    Land preparation involves selecting an appropriate site for a crop and preparing the soil. It includes clearing the land by removing trees and debris. The soil is then tilled, which breaks up the soil surface and incorporates organic matter. Drainage is set up to remove excess water. Finally, the land is leveled and beds are formed suited to the crop and conditions.

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
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    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    2K views2 pages

    Land Preparation Methods

    Uploaded by

    Daniel Dowding
    Land preparation involves selecting an appropriate site for a crop and preparing the soil. It includes clearing the land by removing trees and debris. The soil is then tilled, which breaks up the soil surface and incorporates organic matter. Drainage is set up to remove excess water. Finally, the land is leveled and beds are formed suited to the crop and conditions.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    Land preparation methods

    What is land preparation?

    It ensures that the soil is well prepared before a crop is planted. It involves
    selecting an appropriate site for a crop and selecting the most appropriate crop
    for the land available.

    Land preparation involves:

    1. Site selection- selecting a location that requires inputs to prepare the land
    for planting will cost the farmer money and time. Understanding the best
    location for each crop, or adjusting the cropping decision based on the land
    available will help the farmer to create a more efficient and profitable farm
    business

    2. Land clearing- clearing the land is normally the first operation. Depending
    on what the land was previously used for, it usually involves removing trees,
    bushes, shrubs, tall grasses and crop residues usually with a bulldozer or
    cutlass.
    Follow this sequence when clearing land:
    ⮚ Remove trees and heap them in windrows
    ⮚ Scrape off the top soil and place it into
    heaps
    ⮚ Grade the land, filling in any depressions
    ⮚ Spread topsoil over the entire area

    3. Tillage- refers to the breaking up of the soil


    surface and incorporating organic matter into the soil. It
    is usually divided into two stages:
    ⮚ Primary tillage: land that has been cleared is either
    dug manually with a garden fork or ploughed
    mechanically using a tractor. The effect of primary
    tillage is to loosen up the soil surface, allow air and
    water to enter the soil more freely, and bury and mix
    organic matter with the soil.
    At the end of primary tillage, the soil is in large lumps or clods.
    ⮚ Secondary tillage: refers to breaking
    up the large clods of soil into smaller
    pieces. This may be done manually
    using a hoe, rake or hand fork or
    mechanically using a harrow or a
    rotovator. The effect of secondary
    tillage is to obtain tilt suited to the
    crop, produce a seedbed for the cultivation of crops, cut
    up and mix organic matter, and allow roots of crops to
    penetrate easily and grow freely in the soil.

    4. Drainage- farmers must set up drainage to remove excess


    water from the surface and sub-surface of the soil,
    especially during the rainy season. Drains may be prepared
    manually using fork, spade, hoe, rake and garden line or
    they can be dug manually using a ridger/ banker or a
    backhoe.

    5. Leveling and making beds- after the drains have been dug, the land needs
    to be levelled to form beds suited to the crop, soil type, season and weather
    conditions. During the dry season, flat-topped
    beds may be used. In the wet season, the beds
    need to be constructed so that excess water
    is removed, especially in areas with clay soil.

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