CUCURBITACEOUS CROP CULTIVATION METHOD AND APPARATUS Russian patent published in 2003 - IPC

FIELD: agriculture and agricultural engineering. SUBSTANCE: method involves providing strip plowing, second tillage, sowing combined with cutting of guiding furrow, interrow cultivation, and fruit harvesting; strip plowing involves undercutting soil upper root layer with root and plant remains in two inclined intersecting planes in the process of continuous advancement of cultivator, with intersection line being arranged at the depth of 0.4-0.6 m from day soil surface; raising undercut soil layer having section made in the form of isosceles triangle or scalene trapezium to day surface by shifting it over furrow inclined wall; turning raised soil layer around furrow section body center; placing layer with stubble remains on day surface onto inclined wall of adjacent furrow or in vertical plane in spaced relation to adjacent layer; shifting adjacent furrows and undercutting soil layer at the ratio of a:b=1.25-2.50, where a is soil layer undercutting depth (furrow bottom, b is strip (furrow) spacing; cultivating soil in early spring by compacting soil upper layer under load of 0.2-0.5 MPa until joining of adjacent layers. Apparatus has soil ripper comprising frame carrying vertical knife-shaped bar and V-arranged side knives interconnected with one another in their lower parts by undercutting tillage tool. Upper mounting part of vertical bar is joined through isosceles strips and strips of V-arranged side knives inclined at an equal angle to horizontal plane. One of said strips has guide adapted for lateral shifting of undercut layer and inclined with respect to surface of strip of greater length. Guide is arranged in parallel with strip surface of smaller length. Strip and undercutting tool front portions are fitted with detachable blades arranged at strip junction points. EFFECT: improved quality and reduced costs of cucurbitaceous fruits. 3 cl, 13 dwg