A.

LandLAND
Preparation
PREPARATION
- necessary for the germination and
subsequent growth of the crop

- accomplished by the mechanical

manipulation of the soil (tillage) and
transforming it into desired condition
- the single most labor- intensive, most
expensive activity in crop production

- involves initial cutting of the soil, breaking up

the small clods into smaller particles and levelling
of the field
Purposes of land preparation
Main reason: to provide good physical soil condition which
promotes favorable biological soil condition for optimum
growth

Specifically:

1. to develop desirable soil structure

 easy root development
 improve the infiltration of water and
internal drainage
 enhance the aeration of soil

2. to incorporate stubbles and weeds into the soil

 control weeds
Primary and secondary tillage
a. Primary tillage (plowing) –
includes hoeing,
spading or plowing
Purposes:
 to cut or break the soil
 partly pulverize the soil
 incorporate weeds and
stubbles
The number of plowings and
harrowing’s is dependent on:

 Soil type
 Weed density
 Moisture content
 Crops to be grown
Practices in Land Preparation
a. The Conventional Method
 Upland soil condition: plowing  harrowing
o time of plowing
o type of soil
o type of crop to be grown
o type and density of prevailing weeds in the field
Interval: 2 to 7 days
Equipment:
Carabao or bullock drawn
moldboard plow and spike-tooth harrow
Hand tractor
Four-wheeled tractor

Characteristics of an ideal upland field

Granular and mellow
• Free of trash and vegetation
• Contains sufficient moisture
Types of Land Preparation

• Wetland / Lowland preparation

• Upland / Dryland preparation

• Lowland preparation

a. Soaking

b. Plowing

c. Harrowing & Rotavation

d. Levelling
• Upland Preparation

a. Plowing

b. Harrowing & Rotavation

c. Levelling

d. Furrowing
 Wetland soil condition
Preparations vary depending upon the nature of and
the availability of irrigation water.
Characteristics of a well-prepared lowland ricefield:
a) soil and water are thoroughly mixed
b) weeds, straw and stubbles are thoroughly decayed
c) land is well leveled

Improved Methods
 Use of heavy duty plow harrow
- used in preparing light soils
 Use of rotary tillers
- equipment chops and pulverizes the soil
 Minimum tillage
- method combines land preparation and
planting operations
Wet land vs. Dry land Preparation
Physical Changes
Wet land
• Flooding & soaking involve
• Puddling – destroys soil structure & • No puddling --- structure &
particles densely packed
• Macropores are lost, micropores
maintained & increased bulk
density upon drying ---leaching
percolation reduced
• Formation of plowpan --- further
reduces percolation & seepage
• When dried, puddled soils
become denser, hard &
structureless ---tillage without
submergence more difficult
Dryland
• No flooding
granulation maintained
• Macropores and micropores are
maintained --- high seepage &
percolation
• Water drains easily, good
drainage except when plowpan
is developed
• Tillage is easy specially at field
capacity
Wet land vs. Dry land Preparation
Chemical Changes

Wet land Dryland

• Formation of thin (about 1cm) • Well aerated root zone
oxidized layer and a reduced
zone --- anaerobic root zone
• Presence of aerobic – anaerobic • Presence of aerobic organisms
microorganisms in oxidized and
reduced layers
• Reduced zone---redox potential • Redox potential is high and
decreased = 0.2 -0.3v positive
• Increase in pH in acid soils &
reduction in pH in alkaline soils --- • pH stable
converge to 6-7
• Increase in availability of nitrogen • Mineralization is high --- some N
--- although mineralization is immobilized by microorganisms at
slower in anaerobic condition initial phases
Wet land vs. Dry land Preparation
Chemical Changes

Wet land Dryland

• Availability of P,K, Si & Mo • Lesser availability of P, K, Si & Mo

increased

• Water – soluble concentration • Availability of Zn & Cu not

of Zn & Cu reduced affected

• Generation of CO2 , CH4 , N2O, H2 • Lesser generation of gases and

S and toxic reduction products organic acids
Forms of Tillage Operation

• Conventional tillage
• Conservation tillage
• Minimum tillage
• zero tillage

Tillage
- the practice of working the soil for the
purpose of bringing about more favourable
conditions for plant growth
• Conventional Tillage

- usually involves a series of field operations that result in a residue

– free soil surface at the time a crop is planted

- can extend over many months and take place before,

during, and after planting

• Conservation Tillage
- involve pre-plant tillage but maintain residues from a
previous crop on the soil surface
Minimum or Zero Tillage

Minimum Tillage
- reduced tillage intensity

- combines several operation into one pass

e.g. plow-plant method, rotavation

Zero Tillage
- no tillage (plowing/harrowing) operations before
planting