Aftercare or advanced treatment in the world of agriculture may sound unfamiliar to some farmers. Aftercare is one of the important stages that are still rarely applied which serves to maintain the quality of the soil. Agricultural land left for too long at the time after harvest can lead to a deterioration in soil quality. As a result, it can affect the commodities produced.
So what should be done when the farmer has harvested? Several stages can be done to manage post-harvest soil. Clearing the finished land is the first procedure of the overall process. This stage serves to pick up the stems and other remnants of the harvest while taking care of the condition of the soil so that weeds do not spread. The rest of the waste and some types of weeds that have been cleaned from the soil can then be turned into compost with the help of the Petro Gladiator decomposer.
After the soil is finished cleaning from the remnants of crop waste and weeds, then it goes into the second stage by allowing the soil to stand for about two weeks and no more. The goal is for the soil to improve so that it is ready for replanting. Do not forget to always do regular checks, so that no weeds appear.
Two weeks after the soil is finished, the tillage process is ready to be carried out. This tillage goes through several steps so that the soil can be fertile, including plowing the soil, applying organic fertilizers, and ending with making beds lengthwise.
Land that has gone through various stages of processing needs to be considered for humidity. This is because the growth of plant seeds is very dependent on soil moisture. Soil moisture can be measured using a Soil Tester by sticking it into the soil to be tested for moisture for 10 minutes. Soil Tester has an indicator range with a scale of 1-10. If the tool shows the numbers 1-3, it means that the soil is dry. If the tool shows the numbers 4-7, it means that the soil is moist. Then if the tool shows the numbers 8-10, it means that the measured soil is wet. Growth in plant seeds will be good if the soil condition is maintained moisture (indicating the number 4-7 in the Soil Tester).
In addition, the thing that needs to be considered at the time of tillage is the level of acidity of the soil. Farmers can measure soil acidity easily using litmus paper by sampling soil from five different points which are then moistened with water in a ratio of 1:1. After the water mixture separates and the soil settles, dip the end of the litmus paper in the water for 1 minute without touching the soil precipitate. If the paper is red, it indicates that the soil ph is acidic. If the paper is blue, indicating that the soil has an alkaline ph, and if the litmus paper turns purple, it means that the soil ph is neutral. If at the time of checking the acidity condition of the soil is still too acidic, then it can be neutralized by giving agricultural lime.
The various stages of post-harvest management are then closed with the application of a crop rotation system. This system is a rotating planting system of various types of plants on the same land. Many advantages can be obtained from implementing the system. One of them is that the soil texture will remain fertile and optimal after harvest. It is also necessary to pay attention to the order of the vegetable planting cycle so that the results obtained can be maximized. A good order of planting rotation is to follow the pattern of K-D-B-U (Beans – Leaves – Fruits – Tubers).
Bean
Legumes can carry out the fixation of nitrogenous elements from the wild that can spur the vegetative growth of plants.
Leaves/Vegetables
Vegetables such as spinach, kale, cabbage, and mustard greens are synonymous with a vegetative growth that requires a lot of nitrogenous elements. Therefore, they will grow rapidly on the soil of the former legumes
Fruit
Fruit crops such as melons, watermelons, and cucumbers do not need too many nitrogenous elements. At the time of flowering the fruit needs more phosphate elements, while during fruiting it needs more potassium elements. For this reason, fruits are more suitable for planting vegetables.
Tuber
Root crops such as sweet potatoes, cassava, potatoes, jicama, and taro are the most voracious types of plants that absorb nutrients. For this reason, root-type crops should be planted in the last order and after that planted with legumes to restore soil fertility.
Post-harvest processing can prevent weight shrinkage, slow down unwanted chemical changes, prevent contamination of foreign materials, and prevent physical damage. Every landowner should be able to apply each stage of post-harvest land processing properly and according to procedures so that the crops or commodities produced become more abundant and of good quality. (*/ZAH/FMS/WA/TRY)
