For perennial crops, the transition between seasons is rarely a hard stop. Preparations for the upcoming year begin the moment the current harvest concludes.
As soon as the final fruits are picked, the plant shifts its biological focus from crop production to recovery, nutrient storage, and bud development for the following year. Growers can support this transition with post-harvest pruning, targeted fertilization, and pest management to help the canopy recover and ensure the plant builds sufficient reserves to survive dormancy.
Far from being a period of rest, the post-harvest window sets the foundation for next seasonâs yield. In perennial farming, the end of harvest is simply the first step toward the future crop.
Why Post-Harvest Management Matters
Post-harvest is a critical time to improve crop and soil conditions:
Recondition and Rebuild the Soil: Assess soil health to optimize the root zone biome, improve trafficability, and ensure reliable water and nutrient delivery for next seasonâs demands.
Heal and Protect: Address harvest-related wounds while managing pests and diseases. Remove excess foliage to maximize airflow and canopy health.
Restore Energy Reserves: Replenish carbohydrate levels to provide vital winter hardiness and set a strong foundation for next yearâs yield.
Fall is the critical window to prepare for next seasonâs crop. Neglecting this important maintenance can compromise future yield and quality.
Here are some helpful steps and products that can increase your chances for success next year:
1. Start with Soil and Tissue Testing
Taking leaf tissue and soil tests immediately after harvest provides a valuable nutritional baseline while field data is still fresh.
Tissue analysis reveals what the plant actually absorbed and utilized, while soil testing identifies what nutrients remain available in the root zone. Together, they allow you to more accurately correct imbalances and optimize fertility before dormancy sets in.
2. Build Soil Health and Infrastructure
2.1 Cover Crops
Cover crops and perennial grasses improve soil structure, boost microbial activity through organic matter, enhance trafficability, and help prevent erosion.
Richardson Seed offers versatile options, including:
- Cereals: RS Barley, Oats, Winter Wheat, and Fall Rye, are options for winter survival or die-back.
- Blends: RS Low Maintenance, featuring drought-tolerant fescues and ryegrass, and RSÂ Alleyway Mix, a chewings fescue and ryegrass blend tailored for heavy traffic.
2.2 Humic Substances
Widely recognized as important for fertile soil, organic matter naturally depletes after two to three years of cultivation and requires regular replenishment.
- Dry Application: Humalite offers a low-ash, low-clay dry formula designed for easy in-between-row spreading.
- Liquid Application: EL HumiLink delivers 12% humic acid in a versatile liquid fertilizer suitable for soil drench or application through drip fertigation.
2.3 Seaweed
AcadianÂŽ Seaplants meets the demands of todayâs growers by providing a premium seaweed extract proven to increase root growth and early development.
Acadianâs Stella MarisÂŽ, a TerraLink exclusive in Western Canada, is made from a highly active seaweed species and is hand harvested while preserving the base of the plant to allow regrowth. Stella Maris is produced using a gentle extraction process designed to retain the maximum number of beneficial compounds in the final product.
Both EL Seagreen and EL Affinity combine premium Acadian seaweed with liquid organic carbon from humic and fulvic acids.
2.4 Calcium and Soil pH
Calcium is essential for perennial crops, serving as a structural component of cell walls and supporting root development and long-term plant health.
BF Gyp-Link is a certified organic micronized and granulated gypsum sourced from leading gypsum suppliers. It provides available calcium with excellent solubility and calcium release.
Where both calcium and pH adjustment are required, consider Dolopril or Calpril.
Lime takes longer to activate than gypsum, so apply lime products as early as possible post-harvest. In blueberries, adjust soil pH according to the requirements of the variety.
2.5 Magnesium
Soils requiring additional magnesium to balance their cation exchange capacity can benefit from a fall application of K-Mag.
3. Help the Crop Recover and Prepare Next Yearâs Buds
Post-harvest applications can help plants recover from fruiting, build reserves, improve winter hardiness, and support bud development for the coming season.
3.1 Post-Harvest Biostimulants
Stella MarisŽ and EL Seagreen, containing Ascophyllum nodosum, help plants recover from fruiting, rebuild carbohydrate reserves, and transition into regenerative growth.
3.2 Winter Hardiness
EL Post Harvest is an organic-based liquid foliar treatment that boosts cold tolerance to help minimize frost damage from late fall through spring.
Also consider EL Cal-O-Bor. When applied in post-harvest or pre-winter programs, calcium helps support cell wall and membrane stabilization and tissue hardening.
3.3 Spring Bud Preparation
Apply EL Max as soon as harvest is complete, followed by Agro-Kâs Top Set, with boron and molybdenum, along with Agro-K Zinc +5 to support upcoming bud development.
Cal-O-Bor can also be considered as a foliar calcium application.
3.4 Specialized Micronutrient Packages
Agro-K Zinc +5 DL, with magnesium, copper, iron, manganese, and zinc, is an option to replenish minor nutrients.
For fields that test low in magnesium, consider Agro-K Magnesium Dextro-Lac.
Both products should be applied before leaves begin turning.
4. Replenish Nutrients in the Soil
Apply nutrients to your fields after harvest to support plant recovery and prepare the crop for dormancy and the following growing season.
If extra nitrogen is already present in the soil, EL Enhanced Fall dry granular fertilizer can help balance fertility and resulting growth. Apply as soon as possible after harvest.
EL Max is readily absorbed to help meet phosphorus and potassium requirements before winter dormancy.
EL Top-30 K and EL HeavyWeight provide rapid uptake of potassium during critical plant stages, particularly during the post-harvest period.
Start Planning for Next Season
The decisions made after harvest can have a direct impact on crop performance next year. Soil conditions, nutrient reserves, winter hardiness, and bud development all need to be considered as part of a complete post-harvest program.
TerraLinkâs technical field representatives can help you determine the right steps and products for your crop, soil conditions, and production goals.
Contact us today for more information and a detailed post-harvest plan of action.
Written by: Shahzad Khan, P.Ag M.Sc. (Hons) Agriculture