Comparative Analysis of Farmer Profiles and Their Relationship with Fertilizer Management in Major Field Crops of Telangana, India

Abstract

Fertilizer management is a critical factor influencing agricultural productivity, and understanding it at the micro-level is essential, especially among farmers cultivating major field crops. This study aimed to (i) assess the profile characteristics of farmers practicing fertilizer management in major field crops and (ii) determine the relationship between these characteristics and their fertilizer management practices. The research was conducted in 2024 using both ex-post facto and exploratory research designs. Telangana state was purposively selected due to its high nutrient consumption. Six major field crops were chosen based on cultivation area. For each crop, one cultivating district was randomly selected, followed by two mandals per district and three villages per mandal, resulting in 36 villages. Ten farmers per village were randomly selected, yielding a final sample size of 360 farmers. Fourteen independent variables and one dependent variable were studied. Results showed that the majority of farmers were middle-aged, had medium farming experience, small landholdings, annual income above ₹2 lakh, and medium levels of risk-taking ability, labour availability, and benefit from government policies, high levels of environmental orientation, confidence in fertilizer application and low levels of farm machinery possession and health orientation. Many exhibited high irrigation intensities, followed a two-crop pattern, and had high cropping intensity. The Kruskal-Wallis test revealed significant differences among farmer groups in farm size, income, machinery ownership, risk-taking ability, health orientation, labour availability, irrigation intensity, cropping pattern and cropping system at the 0.01 level. No significant differences were observed in age, farming experience, environmental orientation, confidence in fertilizer application, or govt policy benefits. Correlation analysis indicated that farm size, annual income, risk-taking ability, irrigation intensity, and farming experience had significant positive relationships with fertilizer management. Other variables showed positive but non-significant associations. These findings highlight key factors influencing efficient fertilizer use among farmers.