Agrotechnical measures carried out in spring and autumn, as well as during the season, make it possible to prepare the soil for the new season or for the wintering process, and to care for plants during cultivation. Let's consider the purpose of soil cultivation, why it is carried out, what types of cultivation exist. Cultivation rules and possible mistakes that can be made. Which cultivator to choose for cultivation.
What is soil cultivation
This is the name of shallow loosening, in which the wrapping of the soil layer is not involved, and the ground is leveled while the roots or stems of weeds are cut. The depth for conventional cultivation does not exceed 12 cm.
Its characteristics also depend on the purpose of cultivation. Spring tillage before sowing is carried out to the depth to which the seeds will subsequently be planted. On heavy soils with little structure, the depth should be increased. To carry out cultivation of any type, special machines are used - cultivators.
What is it for?
Cultivation is carried out to prepare the soil before sowing, the surface is smoothed, the soil layer becomes soft and airy. At the same time, moisture and nutrients are retained. Under such conditions, seeds germinate faster, seedlings take root more easily, and the root system becomes stronger and stronger.
Cultivated soil warms up faster, that is, it quickly becomes suitable for sowing or planting plants.
The soil is cultivated to destroy weeds in a resting area that is not sown or planted, or for loosening and clearing weeds from rows or tree trunk circles. An agrotechnical technique allows for hilling of crops that need it. Cultivation is also used to incorporate fertilizers and herbicides into the soil.
Types of cultivation
Let's consider continuous cultivation and row-spacing, and the differences between these methods.
Inter-row
In this case, the cultivator passes between the rows of already sprouted or planted crops, regardless of their variety. These can be vegetables, root vegetables, potatoes, corn. The number of passages is regulated by the growth of plants and weeds, and soil density.You can do without cultivation if the row spacing remains clean and the ground is not clogged with weeds.
Spring or autumn cultivation can be combined with the application of fertilizers or pesticides to the soil. When caring for potatoes during cultivation, one more important agrotechnical operation can be carried out - hilling.
Solid
This is the treatment of steam during the season or areas before sowing seeds on them. In the spring, continuous cultivation is carried out to loosen the layer of soil compacted during the winter. Air penetrates into it and a normal level of moisture is ensured. The purpose of steam cultivation is to prevent the area from becoming overgrown with weeds, so the treatment can be shallow.
Choosing a cultivator
These agricultural machines can have fixed blades that move under draft force, or with driven, rotating blades. There are hand cultivators, motor cultivators and cultivators attached to a tractor.
Hand-held machines are small and compact; with sufficient force, they can be used to cover an area of a garden or summer house, which is why they are especially popular among summer residents. Even greenhouses or areas where the rows are densely spaced can be processed using manual models.
Rules
You need to cultivate previously prepared soil. It is necessary to remove all remnants of plants that may interfere with the passage of the car.Before starting work, for example a motor cultivator, you need to prepare and install the cutters on the unit with the cutting parts in the direction of movement, and adjust the depth level. It is necessary to choose the right speed mode so that the tillage is of high quality.
From the practical experience of those using a walk-behind tractor, it follows that the optimal operating speed corresponds to second gear. At this speed, it is possible to ensure uniform and optimal penetration and high-quality cultivation of the soil. If you need to break up large clods of earth left over from digging, or embed seeds into the soil, it is recommended to additionally use a harrow.
The soil layer should be evenly loosened, without large lumps of earth, not caking, and retain moisture well. During pre-sowing treatment, care must be taken to ensure that the deviation from the norm in depth does not exceed 1 cm. Such characteristics favor seed germination and strengthening of seedling roots.
When cultivating to get rid of weeds, you need to ensure that most of them are cut off before they overgrow; if perennial rhizomatous weeds predominate in the area, you need to cultivate at a greater depth in order to cut off a significant part of the pests. If the weeds, annual or perennial, have outgrown, cultivation will be ineffective; only small, recently emerged plants will be destroyed, while some of the rooted ones will remain.
Possible mistakes
If you are using a motor cultivator, then you should install only those devices that come with it, and do not reinforce it with homemade devices. Because of this, the unit will easily fail, its motor may overheat or the cutters may break.
To process a small area, you do not need to buy a powerful machine that will not justify the investment in it. You also cannot save money and purchase a unit whose power will not be enough to process the site.
It is not recommended to work on soil that is too wet or too dry and compact. Cultivating such soil will not only require a lot of time and effort, it is risky in the sense that the cultivator may break.
Cultivation has long been recognized as an integral technique for preparing the soil for sowing. It makes it loose, finely lumpy, retaining moisture and air. In such conditions, seeds germinate and take root more easily, young plants do not die due to unsuitable conditions. Cultivation of row spacing along a growing crop rids it of weeds and, in part, of soil pests and rodents that live in or on the soil. Such treatment can be carried out as many times as needed per season; there are restrictions only on the height and width of cultivated plants, which at certain stages of development will already interfere with the passage of the unit along the rows.
