Consideration Of Farmers Research Articles

The Basics of Loans for Farmers and Ranchers

Borrowing a loan can be a useful tool for farmers and ranchers, especially to fill in gaps when cash or working capital is short to cover current obligations or to make necessary or planned capital purchases. Before signing for a loan, understand the loan terms and repayment requirements as spelled out in the loan documents. This article defines and explains important lending terminology and considerations for farmers and ranchers.

FACTORS AFFECTING THE TRANSFER OF FUNCTION OF ORANGE LAND TO OIL PALM IN SUMBER BAKTI VILLAGE

This study aims to identify and describe the extent to which the influence of farmer age, citrus farming experience, number of dependents, citrus capital, and total area of ​​citrus land on the conversion of citrus land to oil palm in Sumber Bakti Village, Darul Makmur District, Nagan Raya Regency. This study took 31 samples from a total of 31 populations with consideration of farmers converting citrus land to oil palm. Data collection techniques used in this study were observation and interviews. Data analysis techniques using descriptive analysis, quantitative analysis using multiple linear regression analysis. The results of the study simultaneously show that the variables of farmer's age, citrus farming experience, number of dependents, citrus capital, and the total area of ​​citrus land influences the farmer's decision to change land functions. Although partially only the variables of farmer's age, citrus capital, and total area of ​​citrus land that influence farmers' decisions to convert citrus land to oil palm.

Agroforestry-based community forestry as a large-scale strategy to reforest agricultural encroachment areas in Myanmar: ambition vs. local reality

Key messageThe Forest Department strongly influences agroforestry design, tree species selection, and the participation and motivation of farmers to plant trees. Farmers perceive trees as harmful to crops and have avoided planting them near crops. We recommend considering farmers’ preferences, establishing farmers’ field schools, and increasing their awareness about the benefits of trees to improve adoption rates of agroforestry systems.ContextThe high rate of deforestation in Myanmar is mainly due to agricultural expansion. One task of the Forest Department is to increase tree cover in the agricultural encroachment areas by establishing large-scale agroforestry-based community forests (ACFs).AimThe objectives of this study were to analyze the adoption and performance of the ACFs in the agricultural encroachment areas in the Bago-Yoma Region, Myanmar; and to provide recommendations to enhance the adoption of ACFs by farmers.MethodsWe inventoried 42 sample plots and surveyed 291 farmers. Survey responses were analyzed by binary logistic regression, one-way ANOVA, and non-parametric correlation tests to evaluate factors influencing the adoption of ACFs. Stand characteristics were calculated from the inventory data to evaluate the performance of ACFs.ResultsOur results show that farmer participation in ACFs was lower than stated in the registry of the Forest Department. Farmers practiced four different agroforestry designs in ACFs with different outcomes. The Forest Department strongly determined tree species and planting designs, farmers’ perception and participation in ACFs. Farmland size, unclear, and insufficient information on ACFs, and a negative perception of raising trees in crop fields were the major factors limiting the adoption rates of ACFs.ConclusionWe recommend capacity building for farmers and Forest Department staff and raising awareness about the benefits of planting designs and trees on farmland. A stronger consideration of farmers’ preferences for design and species selection could increase their motivation to adopt ACFs and improve the long-term sustainability of ACFs.

Trends and Problems of the Development of the Russian Farming Sector According to the Agricultural Micro-Census of 2021

The priority task of modern agrarian policy is to stimulate small business in agriculture, and above all its central link – peasant (farm) farms. This requires a comprehensive analysis of the patterns and problems of their development. The article, based on the results of the Agricultural Micro-Census of 2021 published in December 2022, in comparison with the results of the AllRussian Agricultural Census of 2016, characterizes the farming sector, identifies trends and problems of its development for 2016-2021. The main conclusion is that despite the reduction in the number of farms and farmers’ access to budget subsidies, the areas of agricultural land used by them, acreage of high margin crops and cattle are increasing. There are significant differences in the development of farms in the subjects of the Russian Federation. Based on the analysis, the following measures are proposed to stimulate farms: ensuring wider access of farmers to budgetary and credit resources; strengthening the role of the federal center in state support and regulation of farms in order to equalize regional differences and form a single economic space in the agro-industrial complex; more careful consideration of farmers’ interests in conducting land policy; formation of an effective system marketing of farm products.

Labour demand – The forgotten input influencing the execution and adoptability of alternative cropping systems in Eastern Australia

CONTEXTUnderstanding the quantity and timing of labour to fulfill the goals of different cropping systems or crop rotations is critical, but poorly quantified and understood in many agricultural systems, including the grain-growing regions of eastern Australia. Yet, labour supply and demands are important considerations for farmers and can significantly influence their agronomic management and decisions to adopt modified crop rotation systems. OBJECTIVEHere, we investigated the extent to which crop rotation systems, that differed in their intensity (i.e. the proportion of time when crops were growing), and diversity (i.e. the range of crops grown) influence labour requirements and labour productivity. METHODSWe used the Agricultural Production Systems sIMulator (APSIM) to simulate a set of different crop rotations and combined the output with farmer survey data and expert knowledge derived from farm advisers to compute the labour inputs for key crop operations (i.e. sowing, spraying, harvesting). This information was used to calculate the labour required and the timing of this demand for each cropping system. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONSWe showed that as the cropping intensity increases the labour demand also increases, and vice versa. However, only small differences in labour demands were identified between systems with differing crop diversity (i.e. range of crops grown). Thus, when it comes to labour demands, crop diversity is less critical than cropping intensity. Labour demand was highly seasonal, with peaks around the intense operations of sowing and harvesting. These peak demands constrained the area that could be managed by a unit of labour, particularly as the cropping intensity increased. Further, this analysis highlights that the most profitable systems may not necessarily be the most efficient in terms of labour productivity (i.e. return per unit of labour). This analysis shows that when labour is limiting, labour demands and especially peak periods may contribute to a farmer's choice of cropping systems, adding to other critical factors like risk aversion and profit maximisation. SIGNIFICANCEThe analysis contributes to the literature on the role of labour in the context of influencing the implementation and adoption of what are seemingly more productive or profitable farming systems. In particular, the results demonstrate how labour as a critical farm resource (i.e. its quantity, seasonality and timing, and productivity) can influence the design of crop rotations.

Understanding the Farmland Rights Confirmation Policy from the Perspective of Farmers: Evidence from Jiangxi, China.

Since the 1970s, although the Chinese central government has constructed farmland rights confirmation policy to stimulate the vitality of rural land elements, it is rare to discuss the effectiveness of the policy from the perspective of farmers. This paper applies the deep interview and questionnaire to present an analysis framework consisting of “policy implementation–input behavior in agricultural production–farmland transfer” and testifies the framework with the mediation model. The findings show that, in general, the farmland rights confirmation policy (FRCP) has a significant negative impact on leasing out farmland and a significant positive impact on leasing in farmland. In particular, for farmland leasing out, the mediating effects of agricultural capital input and agricultural time input account for 15.504% and 14.536% of the total effect, respectively. In addition, for leasing farmland in, these two mediating effects accordingly account for 13.798% and 12.155% of the total effect. It is worth noting that in the future, we should understand FRCP based on the consideration of farmers’ behavior in a given local context, while also focusing on policy implementation as well as policy design.

A Study on Farmers’ Attitude towards Soil Health Card in Rangareddy District, Telangana State, India

The Soil Health Card flagship programme has been implemented to address the national soil issues due to indiscriminate usage of synthetic fertilizers. An ex-post-facto-research design was employed in the study. The present study was conducted in Shabad and Kothur blocks of Rangareddy District of Telangana State during the year 2019-2020. Data were collected using standardized, pre-tested interviews and scored, tabulated and statistically analyse. Our investigation in Rangareddy District disclosed that the majority of respondents possessed a favourable attitude towards soil health cards and realized the importance of soil health and soil conservation management practices. The present work serves as a complementary contribution to the comprehensive study of the Farmers’ Attitude on Soil Health Card to maintain healthy soils to ensure the nation’s food and nutrition security. It was reported that the more than half of the interviewed farmers (52.50 %) were having more favourable attitude towards Soil Health Card, whereas 30.00 % and 17.50 % of them had favourable attitude and less favourable attitude towards Soil Health Card, respectively. The scale contained 16 statements each measured on a three-point continuum namely less favourable, favourable and more favourable. The possible score for farmers’ attitude towards soil health card ranged from the minimum of 16 to the maximum of 48. All the profile characteristics of farmers had significant influences on their attitudes.
 Indian Agriculture has been transformed from green revolution to evergreen revolution on a sustainable basis. By understanding farmers’ attitude towards Soil Health Card and the associated personal profile characteristics, the scheme could be further implemented with installing proper soil testing laboratories in consideration of farmers’ need and interest to double their income through distribution of soil health cards, reduced pest and disease incidences and improved soil health management practices.

Assessment of farmers' water and fertilizer practices and perceptions in the North China Plain

AbstractIrrigation and fertilization are vital to increasing crop yield, but their application often exceeds crop requirements. Excessive fertilization under inefficient irrigation depletes the already scarce water resources while contributing to water pollution. To overcome these problems, the introduction of fertigation in combination with modern irrigation technologies has been promoted in the North China Plain (NCP), but farmers have been reluctant to adopt such technologies. To better understand the current situation and farmers' perceptions, we performed a case study in the People's Victory Canal Irrigation District (PVCID) of NCP. A field survey was carried out using a participatory approach, and field monitoring was conducted on a representative farm. We found that farmers are generally satisfied with their irrigation and fertilization practices, although they result in low application efficiency and distribution uniformity. In principle, the lack of knowledge about how to implement fertigation technology, the small‐scale farming conditions, and the high cost of developing advanced fertigation systems are the main obstacles for fertigation adoption. We further conclude that (i) to improve the on‐farm performance in terms of efficiency and uniformity of irrigation and fertilization, evidence‐based guidelines are required to help farmers to implement; (ii) for effective adoption of new technologies, consideration of farmers' situation and perspectives is critical; and (iii) surface fertigation might be a good start for fertigation promotion.

Sustainability cultivation and traditional conservation of taro diversity in Bogor Indonesia

Fresh taro and its processed products have been produced in Bogor for decades. It has become a popular commodity from this city and evoked an image of Bogor. The essential component of this issue is the sustainability of taro farming, and farmers are the major preserver who has primary decision-making in agricultural management. It assumes there were unusual agricultural practices that promote the long-term viability of taro cultivation. Farmers’ consideration of taro cultivation and their on-farm activities were observed, and the impacted-on sustainability was studied. We surveyed 30 taro farmers in 8 districts Bogor with a rapid rural appraisal and field observation to validate the obtained data and plant diversity analysis. The result showed that taro has provided more income for farmers, and they prefer an intercropping approach in taro farming. Seed availability was the main consideration of farmers in cultivating this plant consistently for a long time. The seed rotation by seed sharing between farmer’s communities was the mechanism of seed exchange and spread of taro cultivars. There was also found the diversity of taro that divided into three groups similarities and simply to distinguish by the plant stature, color of petioles and corms cross-section.

Participatory evaluation of lupine genotypes on biomass and grain yield performance and nutritional value in the highland of Ethiopia

ABSTRACT A study was conducted to evaluate the adaptability, yield performance and nutritional value, and to identify farmers preferred lupine genotypes. Four lupine genotypes were evaluated using participatory approach at Arbegona and Bule districts of Ethiopia on the farmer’s plots. The experimental layout followed a randomised complete block design with four replications. Farmers as well as researchers gave the first rank for accession No. 239042 and accession No. 239047 and least for Sanabor (Accession No. 144) in overall performance. Moreover, according to the results of the current study, accession No. 239004 and 239042 were the best lupine genotypes, which gave the greater grain yield, forage dry matter production and nutritive value than the other accession tested. Based on the laboratory evaluation, sweet lupine forage and seed can be used as homegrown protein source in livestock feeding. Farmers preferred all the tested lupine genotypes for their after assessing its grain yield. Even though Sanabor (Accession No. 144) was inferior in its grain yield, the farmers preferred the Sanabor mainly due to their early maturity, short growth habit, lodging tolerance, despite its high vegetative growth. Thus, the consideration of farmers’ preference for forage crops is crucial for increased adoption of improved forage crops.

#farming365 – Exploring farmers’ social media use and the (re)presentation of farming lives

Rural studies now has a well-established corpus of work exploring how rural spaces and practices become (re)presented within various media and how these representations serve to perpetuate the ‘cultural fantasy’ of the rural idyll. To date, however, there has been a dearth of studies which have considered the role that social media may play within representing rural spaces and activities. The following paper attends to this omission through a consideration of farmers' use of social media and an exploration of how it may be used to document and (re)present their everyday working lives and practices. Drawing on the communicative practice of “working out loud” (WOL) and through analysing 5000 farming tweets, the paper shows how social media may offer a more broadly sourced, grassroots, depiction of rural farming life and examines how farmers assemble a range of sources – including the non-human – in (re)presenting the countryside and revealing the nature of their work. The paper notes how social media might enable farmers to reveal the often-hidden aspects of farm work, share and document practices as well as express and reflect their perspectives in communicating to (and with) farming and non-farming audiences, and how such communicative practices might serve to (re)construct their farming identities.

Energy audits and eco-feedback: Exploring the barriers and facilitators of agricultural energy efficiency improvements on Australian farms

This paper aims to understand the farm-level barriers and opportunities to greater energy efficiency in the Australian agricultural sector. Using a mixed methods approach informed by social practice theory, we detail the experiences of 12 farmers who received an energy audit and energy use feedback dashboard (eco-feedback) through government-supported energy efficiency initiatives. Findings suggest on-farm energy use is dictated by a number of heterogeneous factors and practices, where despite an overall positive reception to the interventions, a lack of available time, funds, complicated electricity tariffs and inadaptability of practices represent barriers to energy efficient actions. In response, this paper makes suggestions for the design of energy efficiency initiatives, policy and farm-specific eco-feedback, including: (1) Increased support around tariff navigation, (2) consideration of farmers’ financial circumstances in audit recommendations, (3) a re-ordering of program instruments and (4) designing eco-feedback specifically for farmers, including hardware that supports multiple meters, and real-time water use feedback.

Reallocation model in land consolidation using multi‐objective particle swarm optimization dealing with landowners' rights

AbstractIn conventional reallocation, farmers' preferences are used to determine the location of their new parcels in predetermined blocks. The most common conflict that can arise during this process is that demand may be high for some blocks. The manner of resolving such disputes, which deal directly with landowners' rights, can affect the success or failure of land consolidation projects. In this study, a novel model for land reallocation is proposed which is based on the principle that the initial situation of the landowner's parcels before land consolidation will be comparable with the new situation that includes all of his/her rights. For this, a spatial similarity‐based approach was proposed, taking into account geometric, ownership, physical, and locational criteria. Then, the agricultural land reallocation model (LR‐MOPSO) was developed using the multi‐objective particle swarm algorithm. Three objectives were defined: (1) simultaneous consideration of farmers' priority and spatial similarity criteria; (2) pooling of farmers' fragmented parcels; and (3) optimal placement of parcels within the block. The LR‐MOPSO model was applied to an Iranian case study and results were compared with a conventional approach. With this model decision‐makers in land consolidation projects will be able to redistribute parcels in a more transparent way, while dealing with landowners' rights.

Livestock Keepers’ Attitudes: Keystone of Effective Community-Based Breeding Programs

Livestock keepers in southwestern Burkina Faso hold the local Lobi taurine breed, local Zebu cattle, and their crosses. Some communities in the region have begun to implement community-based cattle breeding programs (CBBPs), which involve animal tagging and recording and, potentially, also bull sharing. Based on the hypothesis that the participation of livestock keepers in CBBPs depends on their attitudes towards these programs, we used questionnaires to survey the attitudes of 125 farmers towards cattle breeding strategies and tools. Results were analyzed using principal component analysis. Farmers showed a highly positive attitude towards maintaining the features of their preferred cattle breed, but their attitudes varied substantially towards crossbreeding for breed improvement. Farmers generally agreed that performance was more important than animal appearance, and most of them were willing to cooperate with breeders’ associations but were skeptical about sharing their bulls with other farmers. The majority was reluctant to record performance data, which may be due to a capacity deficit and their confidence in being able to select the best animals based purely on phenotype. Our analysis suggests that breeders’ associations, as a key component of CBBPs, should lay down clear rules and obligations for their members from the outset. Timely consideration of farmers’ attitudes towards different breeding tools may improve their uptake and guarantee the sustainability of CBBPs.

Exploratory Research on Overfertilization in Grain Production and Its Relationship with Financial Factors: Evidence from China

Although there have been many studies on the degree of overfertilization, there are few systematic comparative analyses on the degree of overfertilization of three major grain crops (wheat, rice, and maize) over a long time span in recent years. Whereas the studies of the influence of government efforts, individual characteristics of farmers, and economic factors on farmer’s fertilization decision ignored the financial consideration of farmers. This study aims to systematically investigate the degree of overfertilization in the production of three major grain crops in 21 provinces of China from 2004 to 2018 by developing a panel-data model, and explores the impact of financial factors on overfertilization by applying Arellano-Bover/Blundell-Bond linear dynamic panel-data estimation. The results showed an upward trend in overfertilization in the production of three grain crops from 2010 to 2018, although a decline between 2007 and 2009 may indicate that the financial crisis had a short-term impact on overfertilization. Overfertilization varied across regions, and chemical fertilizers were applied most excessively in wheat production in the Huang-Huai-Hai region and in maize in Southwest China. The analysis of financial factors showed that cash earnings from wheat and maize positively affected overfertilization, whereas cash cost and farmers’ income had opposite effects. In fact, farmers value cash earnings and cash costs rather than the time value of money. In addition, the sensitivity and cautiousness of farmers regarding economic events may indicate that farmers have a certain degree of economic rationality regarding fertilizer input in several provinces, such as Anhui and Yunnan. The study provides necessary supplements to existing research on the influence factors of overfertilization and has implications for improving the design of fertilizer sales collection methods by the government and the financial service sector.

Feasibility of Swamp Paddy Farming with New Superior Varieties and Different Planting System

Alfayanti A, Wilda M, Taupik R. 2020. Feasibility of swamp paddy farming with new superior varieties and different planting system. Jurnal Lahan Suboptimal: Journal of Suboptimal Lands 9(1): 50-56.Efforts to fulfil the community food demands could be achieved by swamp land optimization. One technology that can be developed on swamp land is utilization of new superior variety and planting system. Economic feasibility is one of considerations for farmers to adopt a technology innovation. The study aimed to determine the combination of the most economically viable new superior variety and planting system to be developed in swamp rice farming. The study was conducted from May-August 2016 in Karang Anyar Village Semidang Alas Maras district, Seluma Regency. There are 7 New Superior Varieties of swamp paddy cultivated; Inpara 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, and Dendang and 1 existing variety as benchmark variety, Cigeulis. The planting system applied were legowo planting system (2:1) with insertion and without insertion. The data used to achieve the research objectives is primary data in the form of farming data to calculate economic benefits and feasibility. Farm profit is calculated using partial analysis whereas economic feasibility is calculated by evaluating the break even point and R/C ratio. The results showed that Inpara 6 with legowo planting system with insertion yield the largest profit Rp 15.096.600,-/ha with R/C ratio of 2.92.

Three Decades of Agricultural Extension in Mozambique: Between Advances and Setbacks

This article aims to analyze the intervention in the area of public agrarian extension in Mozambique, taking into consideration the trajectory of this policy in this country. The methodology used is the literature review and consultation of documents that guide the agrarian extension in the country. Documentary analysis of plans and programs that address the theme was performed, as well as the consultation of articles available on Google scholar published between 2000 and 2019, which brought discussions about agrarian extension. The results suggest that the intervention of extension technicians is still low. This reality may be associated with the fragility of agricultural extension sector policies and agricultural policies that support the area. The verified data demonstrate that the number of extensionists tends to increase, but the rate of farmers who benefit from these services tends to reduce. Low coverage of extension services and poor consideration of farmers’ social economic conditions at ultimately contribute to low rates of agricultural productivity. Therefore, agrarian extension services should be taken as a fundamental support instrument for farmers, contributing to the increase of agricultural production and productivity and to the improvement of economic social and commercial conditions in Mozambican agriculture. Therefore, it is considered relevant for Mozambique to develop land extension policies and implement them to enable greater capillarity with farmers.

Tingkat Penerapan Teknologi Pertanian dan Strategi Pengembangan Budidaya Bawang Merah (Allium cepa. L) di Desa Tes Kecamatan Bikomi Utara Kabupaten Timor Tengah Utara

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk: (1) mengetahui tingkat penerapan teknologi budidaya bawang merah di Desa Tes Kecamatan Bikomi Utara Kabupaten Timor Tengah Utara, (2) menganalisis faktor internal dan eksternal serta merumuskan strategi pengembangan usahatani bawang merah di Desa Tes Kecamatan Bikomi Utara Kabupaten Timor Tengah Utara. Penelitian ini telah dilaksanakan di Desa Tes pada bulan September sampai bulan Oktober 2018. Pengumpulan data menggunakan metode survei. Penentuan sampel dilakukan secara purposive sampling dengan pertimbangan petani yang telah budidaya bawang merah selama 3 tahun di Desa Tes sebanyak 22 responden. Alat analisis yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah analisis skala likert dan analisis SWOT. Hasil penelitian menyakatan bahwa teknologi pertanian yang digunakan meliputi peralatan (traktor, kultivator, motor air), dan pengelolaan usahatani bawang merah. Analisis skala likert menyakatan bahwa presentase penggunaan teknologi pada usahatani bawang merah yang sesuai anjuran adalah 76,38% dan yang tidak sesuai anjuran adalah 23,38%; sehingga dikategorikan sesuai anjuran. Sesuai analisis SWOT usahatani bawang merah dikelompokkan dalam kuadran I, dengan alternatif strategi antara lain: pertama strategi peningkatan modal usaha yang didukung oleh pemerintah memperoleh nilai (skor 5,78), kedua strategi akumulasi modal usaha dari petani untuk mengantisipasi peningkatan harga benih (skor 5,76). Ketiga strategi pelatihan dan penyuluhan dari PPL untuk meningkatkan kualitas SDM petani ( skor 3,48).

STUDI KOMPARATIF USAHATANI BUAH NAGA GOOD AGRICULTURE PRACTICES DAN NON GOOD AGRICULTURE PRACTICES DI DESA JAMBEWANGI, BANYUWANGI

The study was aimed to: (1) The consideration of farmers are applied GAP and Non-GAP in dragon fruit farming. (2) Determine factors which influenced dragon fruit production in GAP and Non-GAP. (3) The cost efficiency between GAP and Non-GAP dragon fruit farming. Descriptive analysis, quadratic function, and independent sample t-test are employed to determine the objective of the research. The study showed that: (1) There were some considerations in applying the GAP of dragon fruit farming such the higher selling price to collectors, the affordable manure and fungicide costs, and eco-friendly. Meanwhile, the consideration of farmers in applying Non-GAP of dragon fruit farming was the larger size of fruit, the higher excitement of the consumers, and it was easier to obtain fungicide and manure. (2) In GAP farming number of plants, organic manure and labor force were significantly influenced toward dragon fruit’s production. While cropland acreage and fungicide had no a significant effect. In the other side, dragon fruit’s production in Non-GAP farming was significantly influenced by number of plants, organic manure, and labor force. While cropland acreage, plant lifetime, anorganic manure, fungicide, and growth hormone substances had no a significant effect. (3) The independent sample t-test analysis showed the significant value (sig. 2-tailed) had 0,000 < α (0,05), it means that there were significant differences in cost efficiency between GAP and Non-GAP.

Analisis Dampak Rehabilitasi Jaringan Irigasi Tersier Terhadap Pendapatan Petani Di Kabupaten Aceh Besar

The function of the irrigation is very important in agriculture system. Irrigation is utilized by farmers particularly rice farmers to irrigate and maintain the adequacy of water in their rice fields. Since the first of the irrigation system has developed, the different in quality and system managements still, Aceh Besar regency has an area of 31,998.0 Ha of rice fields and the land that have irrigation scope are 20,275 Ha. With the irrigation rehabilitation programs becoming more eficient in rice production and farmer’s income are increasing therefore the researce on the analysis of impact the rehabilitation of tertier irrigation on farmer’s income and an analysis of the breakeven point (BEP) in Aceh Besar regency conducted. This research was conducted with a purposive sampling method (deliberately) based on the consideration of farmers around the location of the study received support rehabilitation of irrigation tertiary fund budget for fiscal year 2016 for data analysis using quantitative approaches such as analysis of t test, R / C ratio and analysis of breakeven point.