The Relationships Between Soil Health, Production, and Management Decisions Through Farmers’ Eyes: A Case Study of Tennessee Large-Scale Vegetable Farms
Understanding farmers’ perceptions of soil health is valuable for developing strategies to increase the adoption of conservation practices. A combination of soils with poor soil fertility, low levels of soil organic matter, and the use of production practices that, although necessary for vegetable p...
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MDPI AG
2024-12-01
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| Series: | Soil Systems |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2571-8789/9/1/1 |
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| author | Margarita Velandia Jennifer DeBruyn Annette L. Wszelaki Andrew W. Stevens |
| author_facet | Margarita Velandia Jennifer DeBruyn Annette L. Wszelaki Andrew W. Stevens |
| author_sort | Margarita Velandia |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Understanding farmers’ perceptions of soil health is valuable for developing strategies to increase the adoption of conservation practices. A combination of soils with poor soil fertility, low levels of soil organic matter, and the use of production practices that, although necessary for vegetable production, could negatively impact soil health makes the exploration of how large-scale vegetable producers in Tennessee perceive soil health and manage soils interesting. Using information from semi-structured interviews with operators of three Tennessee large-scale vegetable farms, we explored farmers’ perceptions of soil health and how those perceptions connect with adoption decisions. Our results suggest that farmers’ perceptions of soil health reflect a broad perspective that includes crop productivity and disease pressure. Profitability exerted a stronger influence on farmers’ decision-making than soil health. Nonetheless, farmers recognized that there is an association between soil health and profitability. The farmers included in this study found value in the information provided by soil health tests to confirm the benefits of soil management practices. The results presented in this study will contribute to the design of future studies aiming to investigate the relationship between farmer perceptions of soil health and the adoption of best soil management practices among large-scale vegetable growers. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-a8a696cd5d2d4df79b6d0792c5b94a53 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2571-8789 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Soil Systems |
| spelling | doaj-art-a8a696cd5d2d4df79b6d0792c5b94a532025-08-20T02:43:03ZengMDPI AGSoil Systems2571-87892024-12-0191110.3390/soilsystems9010001The Relationships Between Soil Health, Production, and Management Decisions Through Farmers’ Eyes: A Case Study of Tennessee Large-Scale Vegetable FarmsMargarita Velandia0Jennifer DeBruyn1Annette L. Wszelaki2Andrew W. Stevens3Department of Agricultural & Resource Economics, University of Tennessee, 2621 Morgan Cir. 314C Morgan Hall, Knoxville, TN 37996, USADepartment of Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science, University of Tennessee, 2506 EJ Chapman Dr., Knoxville, TN 37996, USADepartment of Plant Sciences, University of Tennessee, 2431 Joe Johnson Dr., ANR 301, Knoxville, TN 37996, USADepartment of Agricultural and Applied Economics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 330 Taylor Hall, 427 Lorch Street, Madison, WI 53706, USAUnderstanding farmers’ perceptions of soil health is valuable for developing strategies to increase the adoption of conservation practices. A combination of soils with poor soil fertility, low levels of soil organic matter, and the use of production practices that, although necessary for vegetable production, could negatively impact soil health makes the exploration of how large-scale vegetable producers in Tennessee perceive soil health and manage soils interesting. Using information from semi-structured interviews with operators of three Tennessee large-scale vegetable farms, we explored farmers’ perceptions of soil health and how those perceptions connect with adoption decisions. Our results suggest that farmers’ perceptions of soil health reflect a broad perspective that includes crop productivity and disease pressure. Profitability exerted a stronger influence on farmers’ decision-making than soil health. Nonetheless, farmers recognized that there is an association between soil health and profitability. The farmers included in this study found value in the information provided by soil health tests to confirm the benefits of soil management practices. The results presented in this study will contribute to the design of future studies aiming to investigate the relationship between farmer perceptions of soil health and the adoption of best soil management practices among large-scale vegetable growers.https://www.mdpi.com/2571-8789/9/1/1Cornell Soil Health Assessmentproduction and management decisionssoil healthTennessee vegetable farmer interviews |
| spellingShingle | Margarita Velandia Jennifer DeBruyn Annette L. Wszelaki Andrew W. Stevens The Relationships Between Soil Health, Production, and Management Decisions Through Farmers’ Eyes: A Case Study of Tennessee Large-Scale Vegetable Farms Soil Systems Cornell Soil Health Assessment production and management decisions soil health Tennessee vegetable farmer interviews |
| title | The Relationships Between Soil Health, Production, and Management Decisions Through Farmers’ Eyes: A Case Study of Tennessee Large-Scale Vegetable Farms |
| title_full | The Relationships Between Soil Health, Production, and Management Decisions Through Farmers’ Eyes: A Case Study of Tennessee Large-Scale Vegetable Farms |
| title_fullStr | The Relationships Between Soil Health, Production, and Management Decisions Through Farmers’ Eyes: A Case Study of Tennessee Large-Scale Vegetable Farms |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Relationships Between Soil Health, Production, and Management Decisions Through Farmers’ Eyes: A Case Study of Tennessee Large-Scale Vegetable Farms |
| title_short | The Relationships Between Soil Health, Production, and Management Decisions Through Farmers’ Eyes: A Case Study of Tennessee Large-Scale Vegetable Farms |
| title_sort | relationships between soil health production and management decisions through farmers eyes a case study of tennessee large scale vegetable farms |
| topic | Cornell Soil Health Assessment production and management decisions soil health Tennessee vegetable farmer interviews |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2571-8789/9/1/1 |
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