Soil Cultivation

Tillage in combination with fertilizers and other cultural practices is one of the basic conditions to obtain high and stable yields.  Different techniques of soil cultivation depend on the quality of soil, the zone and biological characteristics of the crop.  The main task of tillage is to create the best conditions for the growth and development of crop plants and to obtain a high yield. Cultivation supports the root zone of soil in the state where plants are well supplied with water, food, heat and air. Soil cultivation protects crop plants from weeds, pests and diseases. The positive impact of cultivation on the biological, biochemical and mechanical processes in soil and on the development of crop plants is as follows:

1. Topsoil is maintained in a condition, in which crop plants have the most favorable conditions for the high productivity.
2. Microbiological processes activates in the root zone of the soil. There is a constant flow of nutrients to the roots of plants during the growing season.
3.  Weeds, pests and plant diseases are completely destroyed.
4.  There are significant reserves of moisture in the soil in the southern arid regions using early fall plowing, harrowing, steam treatment, slit, dikes, and other measures. All of these guarantee to receive the crops of grain and other crops even in dry years.

In cultivation soil is exposed to diverse technological processes: undercutting of the layer of soil and roots, loosening or crumbling, incorporation of the sod cover, stubble and fertilizers into the soil, the alignment of the surface and the formation of fissures or rolls on the surface of the soil. There are two different types of soil cultivation: primary and secondary tillage. Primary cultivation can be defined as plowing, performed mainly in order to uncover all the layers of the soil. This is the first loosening of soil, which takes place after the harvest of the previous crop. A sufficient amount of moisture is needed to plow and loose soil as well as to create a strong pull in soil. The main function of this kind of cultivation is loosening of soil and its oxygen saturation. The secondary tillage is a more gentle procedure for soil. Large clumps of soil that remain after the initial plowing are crushed by harrowing. Properly conducted tillage in compliance with farming requirements improves growing conditions and plant nutrition. Thus, cultivation of soil of high quality is the key to the health of plants and good crop.