The best way to control a crop is its efficient and profitable management. We have already dedicated several articles to the care of floors, their porosity and composition. Also to the types of soil and the factors that influence the soil atmosphere. Today we will focus on efficient and profitable management.
Meaning of efficient management in agriculture
An efficient management is the one that offers the farmer a quality product and at the same time quantity, without deteriorating the soil for subsequent crops. In addition, it must carry out sustainable agriculture and that does not deteriorate the environment.
The best way to balance profitable production and sustainable soil management is to make a good planning of the entire phenological process that preserves its degradation.
As we have already indicated in other articles, the soil is made up of:
- Organic matter. It is the set of substances of plant and animal origin that are mixed with minerals. Also called hummus. It is essential for plant growth.
- Water and air. They circulate through the pores of the soil, depending on its texture or proportion of minerals that form it. Also the way of irrigation. The more selective you are, the better. The ideal irrigation in most cases is drip, which goes directly to the root system and means that we do not have as much humidity outside of it and weed growth is avoided. If the crop is extensive, spraying or other techniques are better.
- Minerals. It can be classified according to the type of materials included in the following pyramid:
Soil management favors sustainable agriculture
Sustainable agriculture is an approach to agricultural production that seeks to meet current needs for food, fiber, and other agricultural products, while preserving natural resources and promoting social and economic equity. It is based on the idea that agricultural systems must be environmentally responsible, socially just and economically viable in the long term.
Some key principles of sustainable agriculture include:
- Conservation of natural resources: Sustainable agriculture seeks to minimize the negative impact on natural resources, such as soil, water and biodiversity.
- Soil conservation practices, efficient water management, responsible use of chemical inputs and promotion of biological diversity in agricultural systems are promoted.
- Helps regulate the carbon cycle. Living organisms in the soil favor the circulation of nutrients and carbon.
- Regulates the nitrogen cycle. It is related to the activity of microbes and bacteria that nest in the soil.
- It supplies food to the population. Also pharmacological products and other resources.
- Maintains the nutrient cycle.
- Regulates the water cycle and the water footprint.
- Elps control weather cycles.
- It maintains the biological cycle of life. «Soils are a fundamental part of the balance of ecosystems: they function as filters and buffers by retaining substances, they protect groundwater and surface waters against the penetration of harmful agents, and they transform organic compounds by decomposing them or modifying their composition. structure achieving mineralization» (FAO)
All this favors the environment and makes agriculture sustainable.
How to manage your crops?
The first and most important technique to manage a plantation well is knowledge of both the soil and the climatic factors and the type of crop that adapts to it. Crop management involves a series of practices and decisions that are made throughout the life cycle of cultivated plants.
Crop planning:
Select the right crops based on factors such as climate, soil, water availability and production goals. The sowing sequence and crop rotation are also determined to optimize productivity and minimize pest, disease, and soil depletion problems.
Soil preparation:
Perform soil preparation tasks, which may include ploughing, leveling, weeding, and improving soil structure. This facilitates planting, plant rooting and nutrient availability. A soil we are not going to know it just by looking at it, it needs some analysis and a mapping of the terrain to know its exact composition. Therefore, advice from specialized companies is the most convenient.
Sowing or planting:
The sowing of the seeds or the planting of seedlings in the soil is carried out following the specific recommendations for each crop. This involves determining planting density, planting depth, and plant spacing, among other factors.
Irrigation:
The necessary water supply for the plants is managed, either through irrigation systems, such as sprinklers or drips, or by controlling rainfall patterns. It is monitored with sensors and irrigation is adjusted according to the needs of the plants and the climatic conditions. Irrigation controlled by probes is one of the best ways to manage a crop so that it receives the water it needs when you need it. Avoid saline or polluted water. With a laboratory analysis of the water we can determine its pH and salinity. The slope of the land and the orientation to the sun are also important. The atmosphere of the soil is another important factor that we must regulate. Poor aeration directly influences crop growth.
Fertilization:
Supply essential nutrients to plants through fertilizers, m avoiding chemicals. A soil analysis is carried out to determine nutritional needs and the appropriate amount of fertilizers is applied at the right time. Organic fertilizers or soil management techniques should be used to improve fertility. Provide compost and pruning remains, foliage... With this we will avoid contamination, increased salinity, acidification, alkalization and contamination.
Weed, pest and disease control:
Implement integrated pest management strategies, including regular monitoring, prevention, use of selective biological, cultural, and chemical methods, and adoption of management practices to minimize the negative impacts of weeds, pests, and diseases.
Harvest Management:
Harvest is carried out at the optimum time, using appropriate techniques for each crop. This may include manual or mechanized harvesting, proper handling of the harvested plant parts, and proper storage to preserve the quality of the products.
Registration and monitoring:
A detailed record is made of all activities and decisions made throughout the life cycle of the crop. This includes records of planting, irrigation, fertilization, pesticide applications, among others. These records help evaluate and improve management practices in future seasons.
All these techniques can be known through family tradition or agricultural studies, but currently we have technologies and professionals that help us better manage our crops. There are training courses to update our knowledge at the technological moment we are living in and to achieve maximum performance in production while better protecting the environment.
Crop management requires technical knowledge, practical skills and the ability to make informed decisions based on specific conditions. It seeks to optimize the yield, quality and sustainability of crops, ensuring production.
Plantae and controlled irrigation
Si algo influye en un cultivo es el control de la humedad del suelo, que bien gestionado hace que la planta absorba los nutrientes de forma eficaz, proporcionando un ahorro de agua, energía y fertilizantes.
If we also control factors such as conductivity that provides us with information on salinity, soil temperature that influences the health of the root system, and a weather station that controls external factors, we will have the crop managed throughout the soil process and the results will be much more profitable.
All these practices must be recorded in a field notebook and a water notebook that we will detail soon.
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