1. Introduction
1.1 Background
Proper harvest management is required to avoid
appreciable loss of agricultural produce. It has been estimated that about 10%
of durable commodities and 40% of perishable commodities are lost due to
improper harvest practices. It is necessary to adopt improved harvesting
practices to reduce such losses. Proper time and method of harvesting are
important to avoid yield losses in the field. Both early and late harvests are
detrimental with respect to yield and quality.
The cereal crop beings to
flower four to five weeks after sowing and continues to flower and produce seed
until freeze up. The crop should be swathed prior to a killing frost at a stage
when in appears the crop will produce the largest seed yield. A killing frost
on a standing crop results in considerable harvest difficulty plus yield loss
due to shattering and lodging. Swathing is sometimes made difficult by the
succulent nature of the stalks. Research conducted in Canada
indicates the optimum time for swathing to obtain maximum yields is when
flowering is near completion and about 25 percent of the seeds are still green.
If shattering becomes severe, the crop should be swathed immediately. The crop
should be swathed in the morning when the crop is wet with dew or in damp
periods to avoid seed shattering. Stalks are succulent and require considerable
time to dry. A frost while the crop is in the swath speeds drying.
Objectives
·
To know
the harvesting tecqunic of winter cereals crops.
·
To know
the tools used to harvesting of
winter cereals crops.
