The Three (3) Main Land Preparation Methods in Agriculture

Understanding how land is prepared for agriculture is an essential part of food production and security. The success rate of your planting is directly influenced by how well your soil is prepared. Think of land preparation as making your bed to sleep at night; if you want a sound sleep, you will make a conscious effort to ensure the bed is well laid. If done properly, land preparation can help you increase soil fertility, reduce pest infestation and disease emergence, and ensure your crop is healthy and thriving.

There are three methods of land preparation in agriculture according to best practices. Each method has its unique tools and machinery, objective, and period of operation. Also, the cost also varies across the different methods. It is safe to conclude that the most expensive method of land preparation is the most effective. There is a lot to learn from this piece, so take your time as we explain the different methods of land preparation and their advantages.

What Is Land Preparation In Agriculture?

Land preparation in agriculture is the process of clearing and breaking up the soil for the purpose of planting. It is a cultural practice that includes all operations used for the purpose of modifying soil characteristics. Land preparation costs about 30% of the total cost of crop cultivation. The soil can be prepared in many ways; this includes clearing, plowing, and harrowing.

The main objective of land preparation is to break up soil clods, remove stones and weeds, incorporate fertilizers, adjust the moisture content, and, break the pest and disease cycle. These help to improve soil aeration, and drainage, control crop diseases and pest invasion, as well as increase seedbed quality. The final result of good land preparation is healthier crops with higher yields.

Land preparation equipment ranges from simple hand tools such as hoes, spades, and cutlasses, to heavy machinery like tractors, plows, harrows, ridger, amongst others. Land preparation can be done manually or with machinery such as bulldozers and tractors. Manual methods include digging up stones and roots with shovels and picking out weeds by hand with a hoe or scuffle hoe.

Land Preparation Methods in Agriculture

Remember land preparation involves making the soil ready for planting, hence, there are three main methods to carry out land preparation for planting, they are:

1. Conventional Tillage Practice:

Conventional land preparation is the holistic manipulation of the soil ecosystem to create a better and more adaptable planting medium for seeds. This is the best and the most expensive land preparation method; conventional land preparation is commonly adopted in large farms that are highly interested in high yield at reduced environmental impacts. This land preparation method is achieved in about 3 weeks.

In conventional land preparation, the land is cleared, plowed twice, fertilized, and harrowed before planting. The plowing is called primary tillage while the harrowing operation is called secondary tillage. Farm implements used in conventional land preparation methods are moldboard plows, disc plows, subsoil plows, chisel plows, and harrows; they are usually powered by tractors or draft animals like cattle, donkeys, etc.

The plowing operation is done twice; during the first plowing, the soil is lacerated, lifted, shattered, into large lumps of soil. The purpose of this is to break the compacted soil structure, turn up the soil to expose the hideouts of vertebrate pests, and disrupt their living cycle. The second plowing is done at 2 weeks after the first plowing.

During the second, large lumps of soil produced during the first plowing are broken into smaller particles to make an even soil surface for planting seeds and seedbed preparation. Organic fertilizer, mostly animal waste or manure, and debris from the weeds are incorporated with the soil to boost the soil fertility. The depth of the plowing varies from 10-30 cm.

After 5 days of the tillage operations, a harrowing operation takes place using an implement called a harrow. Harrowing makes the soil finer and makes it fit for planting; the operation involves pulverizing, raking, and leveling large lumps of soil to form a fine well-drained, weed-free, and aerated soil that provides a good rooting medium for the plants. There is a common joke around harrowing, it goes like soil is so leveled that humans can have a sound sleep on it.

However, the disadvantage of the conventional land preparation method cannot be left unsaid; the soil is prone to erosion as plowing removes the vegetation cover and exposes the soil to rainfall, wind, and overland flow. Some literature opined that the trampling of the implements or draft animals on the soil induces soil compaction which affects, which negatively, soil aeration, water infiltration, and microbial proliferation.

2. Minimum tillage practice:

As the name implies, minimum tillage is the little manipulation of the soil. It is otherwise referred to as the traditional tillage method. It is not as sophisticated and technical as conventional tillage. Minimum tillage involves only the primary tillage operation. It means the land is plowed only once, then planting is done. In situations where the farmer cannot afford to use a plow, cutlass, and hoe can be used to cutlass to slash weeds and vegetation regrowth on the the land.

The idea of minimum tillage is to have a little manipulation of the soil ecosystem; the soil is disturbed to a minimum extent and the soil structure is not fully disintegrated, the stubble is used as mulching material to conserve soil moisture, and the decomposition of the weed and debris add nutrients to the soil. Minimum tillage is cost-effective and not as expensive as the conventional tillage. and saves time.

The disadvantage of minimum tillage cannot be overlooked too; labor shortages can make it expensive and tedious, also, the pest invasion is not totally uncontrolled, unlike the conventional methods. In addition, weed emergence is fast and common because most of the weed seeds are still present due to the minimal manipulation of the soil. The soil output is good but not as drained and aerated as seen in the conventional land preparation method.

3. Zero tillage practice: 

Zero tillage otherwise called no-tillage is a simplified form of minimum tillage. It involves only the opening of a narrow strip 2-3cm wide or a hole in the ground for seed or seedling placement. The land is not plowed and no pre-planting seedbed preparation is done. The soil ecosystem is well-preserved and undisturbed. The seeds are planted directly without plowing the soil; weeds and pests are controlled using herbicides and pesticides respectively.

The zero tillage has its own advantages and advantages. The good side is, that zero tillage is highly effective in areas that are prone to erosion; because the soil is not manipulated, the soil structure is retained and the movement of water and nutrients within the soil follows a regular pattern. Of course, zero tillage is the cheapest and easiest method of land preparation; it is not expensive and labor-intensive like the other land preparation methods.

On the other side, the zero tillage has some of the disadvantages that must be mentioned. Firstly it is not recommended for commercial farming. Land prepared with zero tillage is prone to weed and vertebrate pest invasion within a few weeks of cultivation. Lots of plant diseases are common in such soil as the cycle of pest and disease pathogen is not broken like the two aforementioned land preparation methods. The use of agrochemicals like fertilizer, pesticides, and herbicides, can increase the cost of production, increase soil acidity, and have detrimental effects on the environment.

Advantages Of Land Preparation In Agriculture

Land preparation benefits the soil and crop production in several ways, including:

• Land preparation allows farmers to grow more crops in an area since they have removed all unwanted plants and weeds from their fields which would have taken away nutrients from their crops.

• Land preparation helps improve soil quality as well as increase its water retention capacity which will lead to better crop growth in the future.

• Land preparation reduces erosion because it removes loose topsoil which might otherwise be carried away by wind or rainwater flow into streams or rivers which could damage aquatic lifeforms living there like fish or frogs etc.

• Land preparation is necessary for successful crop growth because it allows for proper drainage, which reduces the risk of flooding or waterlogging.

• Land preparation also helps in improving soil fertility by adding organic matter through tillage operations. Soil nutrient content increases with time due to the decomposition of organic matter by microorganisms present in the soil.

• Land preparation also allows for maximum exposure to sunlight, which helps crops grow properly.

From my experience and humble opinion, I recommend the usage of the conventional land preparation method as it provides a better medium for seed growth and has good record of increased yield from farmers. Good land preparation is one of the prerequisites to having a good yield in crop cultivation. The aim of land preparation is that it makes it easier to plant seeds which in turn leads to better growth of crops. It’s important to understand what your options are and how they can help you.