Tillage and Crop Production

Abstract

Tillage is the practice of working the soil with implements to provide suitable condition to raise crops. It is carried out for a number of reasons including: (a) to provide a suitable tilth or soil structure for the plants to establish; (b) to control soil moisture, aeration, and temperature; (c) to destroy weeds; (d) to destroy or control soil pests; and e) to bury or clear rubbish and incorporate manure into the soil, etc. It can involve the use of a range of implements either singly or in combination, for example, mouldboard, tined or chisel ploughs, cultivators, disk or tined harrows, rotavators and ripper subsoilers. The type and number of cultivations carried out depends to a large extent upon the soil type and the environment. Thus, tillage operations differ from placed to place and crop to crop. Crop productivity and its performance are directly connected with tillage practices and can be regulated with changes in tillage operations. Generally, the use of minimum tillage has more advantages than the conventional tillage systems.