As longer days and warmer temperatures ring in the summer season, you’re probably looking forward to the next rotation of summer crops. But before jumping into planting, there is work that must be done to ensure a successful harvest.
Preparing your field for the season begins before summer is in full swing, and this work is crucial to creating optimal conditions for crop growth. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll break down crucial practices that promote growth, enhance crop yield, and increase the value of your land.
Soil Testing and Analysis
Dirt, loam, soil, earth – no matter what you call it, this is the foundation of a successful farm. Therefore, it’s crucial to perform soil testing before you break ground.
Research shows that high-quality crops require over fifteen essential nutrients, most of which can be found in healthy soil. If your land lacks these nutrients, or the supply is never replenished, you will notice the difference in crop quality.1
Testing soil is like learning to speak your land’s language. A thorough analysis will tell you what the soil needs and how to improve it.
Understanding Your Soil’s Needs
Crops are only as healthy as the soil they grow in, as they receive essential nutrients from the ground up. A soil analysis allows farmers to1:
- Identify nutrient deficiencies or imbalance
- Measure pH levels
- Determine how much fertilizer to use
- Gauge soil fertility
Once the results are in, you’ll be able to create a nutrient plan to help your crops thrive.
Benefits of Professional Soil Analysis
The USDA recommends soil testing every 3-5 years, but if your farmland was recently acquired, don’t wait—you’ll want the lowdown on your soil as soon as possible.2
Generally, farmers can collect a soil sample themselves and bring it to a nearby soil testing lab. Depending on the state, some land grant universities even provide free testing. Professional interpretations of the results will help save time and money in the long run, thanks to nutrient and fertilizer recommendations.
Effective Weed Control Strategies
When crops compete with weeds for nutrients, water, and other resources, their growth can become stunted.3 That’s why weed control is a crucial step in farm preparation. Luckily, there are many sustainable ways to help keep weeds at bay.
Methods for Preventing Weed Growth
If your land is weed-prone, soil testing can be a helpful first step in identifying nutrient deficiencies and identifying the roots of a persistent weed problem. After that, it’s time to get your hands dirty. Here are some common weed prevention strategies3:
- Ensure proper tillage. Clean field margins help deter weeds from proliferating in empty spaces and encroaching on your farmland. Mow the grass regularly, trim bushes, and remove debris both before and after planting.
- Rotate your crops—Determining a consistent rotation to alternate between crops with different planting seasons, and harvests helps prevent weed germination.
- Plant in dense rows – For crops that can tolerate high density (wheat, squash, tomatoes, leafy greens), the higher nutrient competition and leaf shading can help deter weeds.
- Wipe everything down. Livestock, machinery, and equipment can easily bring weed seeds onto your land. Clean diligently before introducing them to new acreage.
Another strategy is to plant cover crops—keep reading to learn why.
Benefits of Cover Crops in Soil Health
Cover your crops to help suppress weed growth, and combat nutrient competition, and soil turnover. Unlike much of your farm, you don’t plant them for harvest.
Plus, cover crops provide lots of benefits to the soil ecosystem, such as:
- Reduced soil erosion
- Nutrient conservation
- Higher soil fertility
- Pest control
Great summer cover crops include buckwheat, cowpeas, and soybeans.3
Optimizing Irrigation Practices
Adequate irrigation is more important than ever during the hot and dry summer months. Assess your irrigation infrastructure in the spring to ensure you can continue maintaining it all summer long.
Plan Your Watering Schedule
Create a detailed irrigation schedule based on each crop’s needs. This will help maximize your harvest, prevent over- or under-irrigation, and conserve water overall.
An irrigation plan begins with the soil water deficit. There are three basic ways to calculate this data:
- Soil sensor technology
- Evapotranspiration data
- Appearance and physical feel
In essence, a soil sensor is the most accurate and precise method for an irrigation plan.4
Implement Crop Rotation and Diversity
Crop rotation is a crucial preventative measure for farms both big and small. With a little planning, this is a simple and easy way to improve soil health, optimize yields, and help your farm thrive. Plus, it’s practically free—and will only reduce fertilizer costs in the future!
Implement crop rotation to5:
- Minimize weeds
- Deter soil crusting
- Reduce erosion and soil loss
- Interrupt pest cycles
- Decrease fertilizer and pesticide use
- Optimize soil nutrients
- Improve crop emergence and growth rates
Thanks to these benefits, crop rotation is an affordable way to increase crop yields.
Choosing Diverse Crops to Enhance Soil Health
In addition to a spring, summer, and fall schedule, it is beneficial to encourage a diversified crop rotation. Switching between diverse crops with different characteristics improves soil health, helps control pests, and increases overall harvest.
For instance, try growing a grain after a legume or a vegetable following hay to experience the benefits of rotation firsthand.6
Selecting the Right Seeds
As you execute crop diversification, make sure to choose the right seeds for your field and for the summer weather. First, contact a local seed supplier. Local seeds are already well-suited to the climate, may be resistant to local pests, and are a sustainable option. A supplier will be able to provide recommendations on high-quality seeds.
Nutrient Management and Fertilization
By now, you’re well aware of the important role that soil nutrients play in crop growth. As you prep for the summer season, use your professional soil analysis to get a head start on nutrition. We mentioned above how to go about this.
Then, there are two steps to follow.
- Develop a tailored nutrient plan – Plants rely on many essential nutrients for healthy growth. A soil test will reveal your land’s nutrient deficiencies, which you can use as a basis for your plan.
- Choose the right fertilizers – Once you know what your soil needs, it’s time for fertilizer to help correct nutrient imbalances. Your soil analysis will include a fertility recommendation, aka the quantity of fertilizer to use.
Your nutrient management plan may look different than your neighbor’s— remember that there is no blanket approach or guaranteed method. Focus on the unique needs of your land to sustainably support your farm.
Pest and Disease Prevention Techniques
Pest infestations can wreak havoc on an otherwise healthy farm in no time. Pest management actually starts with pest prevention, a key step in your summer prep. First, make sure you have the infrastructure in place to monitor and respond to pest infestations. Then, implement the following plan.
Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Strategies
IPM is a sustainable, eco-friendly approach to long-term pest control. Rather than focusing on pesticide application, IPM prioritizes non-chemical pest prevention through various management strategies.
Here are some pest prevention tips and tricks based on IPM7:
- Removing clutter, debris, and overgrown vegetation
- Keeping livestock areas tidy
- Eliminating standing water
- Pest traps
- Heat/cold treatments
- Weatherization
- Crop rotation
When following these steps, the foundations of IPM are inspection schedules and routine monitoring, using pesticides only as absolutely necessary. Some of these tasks will get checked off to-do lists simply by staying on top of regular farm maintenance, but remembering to log them remains important to effective IPM.
Understanding Timing and Seasonality
“Warm weather” is pretty broad—how do you know exactly when to start prepping and eventually planting for the summer season?
As spring comes to a close, there are several top considerations for summer planting dates8:
- Soil temperature – À la Goldilocks, the soil temperature must be just right. Too cold, and seeds won’t germinate; too hot, and plants won’t have enough time before the first frost. A handy soil thermometer will do the trick.
- Last frost date – The last spring frost usually marks the start of the summer season. The date of the last potential frost damage depends on your location.
- Microclimates – Many individual factors can influence optimal planting dates, whether your farm is near a body of water or on a west-facing plot.
All in all, don’t be afraid to adjust your plans based on the local climate.
Leverage Land.com for Agricultural Success
Find support from the Land.com community while maximizing your farm’s potential through these preparation practices. Rural real estate is our bread and butter, and we help farmers every step of the way with expert guidance on seasonal preparations, harvesting, and the selling process.
Check out LAND Magazines and Land News to learn about enhancing land value, making a property more attractive to buyers, and more summer sale prep.
Prepare Your Farm for the Market with Land.com
If your summer plans include listing your property for sale, you’re in the right place. Through extensive listings and targeted reach, Land.com is the leading network for agricultural real estate.
With over 12 million monthly site visits across all our platforms, we pride ourselves on a broad marketing reach and high search engine visibility to seamlessly connect sellers and prospective buyers. Plus, achieve a faster sale by partnering with a local Land Pro for top-notch real estate guidance. Find a land broker today to get started.
Or are you in the market for new acreage? Browse listings for sale across the nation, or contact us to connect with a team member.
Sources:
- New Mexico State University. Soil Analysis: A key to soil nutrient management. https://pubs.nmsu.edu/_a/A137/.
- USDA. Small Scale Solutions for your Farm. https://www.farmers.gov/sites/default/files/2022-09/farmersgov-small-scale-factsheet-soil-testing-9-2022.pdf.
- Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE). Manage Weeds on Your Farm. https://www.sare.org/wp-content/uploads/Manage-Weeds-on-Your-Farm.pdf.
- University of Minnesota Extension. Irrigation management. https://extension.umn.edu/soil-and-water/irrigation.
- Natural Resources Conservation Service. Rotations for Soil Fertility. https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/sites/default/files/2022-09/stelprdb1167375-rotations-soil-fertility.pdf.
- SARE. Building Soils for Better Crops. https://www.sare.org/publications/building-soils-for-better-crops/diversifying-cropping-systems/.
- EPA. Introduction to Integrated Pest Management. https://www.epa.gov/ipm/introduction-integrated-pest-management.
- Almanac. Understanding When to Plant Vegetables. https://www.almanac.com/understanding-when-plant-vegetables.
