Field/land preparation for Sweet Sorghum

For rainy season crop, with onset of rains in May-June, the field is ploughed once or twice to obtain a good tilth. Harrowing of soil should invariably follow after each ploughing to reduce the clod size. After the initial ploughing, the subsequent ploughings and harrowings are carried out when the moisture content of the clods are reduced. Field preparation depends on the system of sorghum sowing. Tropicultor is having a provision of attachment of different implements to a tool bar for field operations like plowing, cultivator and blade harrow operation is done with changing the required implements. Similarly operations like broad-bed formation (BBF) and ridge and furrow (R&F) land configurations with attachment of ridgers and chain

Three systems of sorghum sowing are followed, a) sowing on a flat surface, b) using ridge-and-furrow system, c) broad bed-and-furrow system.

• Broad bed and furrow (BBF) is highly suitable for Vertisols whereas, flat sowing followed by opening of furrow in every row/alternate by ridger at inter-cultivation (20 DAS) is effective for Alfisol or lateritic soils under rainfed situations or conservation furrows along with contour sowing.

• If sowing is done on a flat surface, the land should be leveled after final plowing using bullock-drawn or tractor-drawn levelers (Figure 1)
• Ridges and furrows (Figure 2) is effective under irrigated conditions. In ridge and furrow system, ridges are made using either tractor or animal drawn ridge ploughs at 60-75 cm spacing (Figures 3, 4 and 5).