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Asian Journal of Agricultural Extension, Economics & Sociology 37(2): 1-8, 2019; Article no.AJAEES.52727 ISSN: 2320-7027 Improved Vegetable Cultivation Practices: An Adoption Study among the Farmers’ of Some Selected Areas in Bangladesh Moushumi Mobarak Mou1, Md. Rafiquel Islam1, Tanushree Mondal1*, Nipa Monalesa1 and Md. Masum Abdullah1 1Department of Agricultural Extension and Information System, Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, Dhaka, Bangladesh. Authors’ contributions This work was carried out in collaboration among all authors. Authors MMM and MRI designed the study. Authors TM, NM and MMA performed all the statistical analysis. Data collection was done by the authors MMM, TM, NM and MMA. Authors TM, NM and MMA made the rough draft. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. Article Information DOI: 10.9734/AJAEES/2019/v37i230264 Editor(s): (1) Dr. Kwong Fai Andrew Lo, Professor & Dean, Institute of Earth Science, College of Science, Chinese Culture University, Taipei, Taiwan. Reviewers: (1) Arta Moro Sundjaja, Binus University (Universitas Bina Nusantara), Indonesia. (2) Marina Mazón, National University of Loja (Universidad Nacional de Loja), Ecuador. (3) Hussin Jose Hejase, Al Maaref University, Lebanon. Complete Peer review History: http://www.sdiarticle4.com/review-history/52727 Received 15 September 2019 Accepted 19 November 2019 Original Research Article Published 05 December 2019 ABSTRACT The research work has been done to determine the extent of adoption of improved vegetable cultivation practices by the farmers. Attempt was also made to explore the contribution of selected characteristics of farmers viz. age, education, family size, farm size, experience in vegetable cultivation, annual income, vegetable cultivation knowledge, extension media contact, organizational participation, innovativeness, training experiences and problems confrontation on their adoption of improved practices in vegetable cultivation. It is a Field Survey Research Shajahanpur upazila under Bogra district of Bangladesh by the department of Agricultural Extension and Information System between January to June of 2018. Data were collected from randomly selected 112 farmers of Chopinagar union under Shajahanpur upazila of Bogra district by using a structured interview schedule. Appropriate scales were _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ *Corresponding author: E-mail: [email protected]; Mou et al.; AJAEES, 37(2): 1-8, 2019; Article no.AJAEES.52727 developed in order to measure the variables. Multiple regression test was used to ascertain the contribution of the concerned independent variables on the dependent variable of the research work. 50% of the farmers had low adoption while 40% had medium adoption and 9.80% had high adoption of improved practices in vegetable cultivation. Among the selected characteristics education, experiences in vegetable cultivation, annual income, innovativeness and training experiences showed significant and positive contribution to their adoption of improved practices in vegetable cultivation. However, family size and problems confrontation showed the negative significant contribution to adoption of improved practices in vegetable cultivation of the farmers. Age, farm size, vegetable cultivation knowledge, extension media contact and organizational participation did not show any significant contribution on the adoption of improved practices in vegetable cultivation of the farmers. Adoption of improved vegetable cultivation practices by the farmers will not be possible to improve in a significant extent unless the concerned authorities (like-Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute, Department of Agricultural Extension) take proper steps. Keywords: Adaptation; crops; practices; farming; agriculture workers; Bangladesh. 1. INTRODUCTION of total cropped areas, whereas only 7 percent of the total cropped land is used for horticultural Bangladesh is predominantly an agricultural crops, including root and tuber crops [4]. The country. Agriculture remains the major pillars of area under vegetable cultivation accounts for the Bangladesh national economy and is highly only 2.56 percent of the total cropped areas. dependent on its rural economy as 80% of the From this small proportion of the cultivable land people live in rural areas [1]. Sustained area, Bangladesh produces about 1.76 lac metric government investment in irrigation facilities, tons of vegetables annually, of which about 65 rural infrastructure, agricultural research and percent are produced in winter and the rest in extension services has helped Bangladeshi summer. Therefore, production is not well farmers achieve dramatic increases in distributed throughout the year and produce for agricultural production. The process of domestic use is relatively scarce in the off- agricultural production is, however, fortified by season [5]. So there was a gap between supply the increasing use of agrochemicals and multiple and demand. Thus, to fulfill farmers consuming cropping and while significant production and economic demand they are getting more transformation has been achieved. Food involved in vegetable cultivation along with rice production has more than doubled since cultivation [6]. The major vegetable growing independence in 1971. areas of Bangladesh are Jessore, Bogra, Comilla, Chittagong, Khulna, Kushtia, Dhaka, The normal diet of the people of Bangladesh is Tangail, Rangpur, Rajshahi and Dinajpur [7,8]. cereal based, particularly rice based. The intake ratio of cereals and vegetables is about 5:1, whereas in many other developing countries it is It is a matter of sorrow that the quality of about 1:2. The traditional food and culture of vegetables intake is very negligible in Bangladeshi people is one of the reasons for Bangladesh. Nutrition survey of Bangladesh [9] such inequity in the consumption of cereals and reported that average intake meets only 80% of vegetable. Hence, Vitamin and mineral Calorie, 58% of Vitamin A, 50% of Riboflavin and deficiency diseases are very common in 51% of Vitamin C requirements. The Production Bangladesh [2]. In Bangladesh, the average per of vegetables in Bangladesh is so low that per capita daily vegetable intake is 56 g per day, capita/day available is hardly 32 gm whereas the whereas the recommended intake is 250 g/day requirement is estimated to 220 gm. This gap is [3]. Vegetables not only minimize the malnutrition probably one of the main reasons for widespread but also maximize the financial returns. malnutrition in the country. Vitamin A is not only Vegetable generate cash to the growers. It helps important to prevent blindness but also has effect to reduce dependence on rice. Eating excess on digestion of food, child morbidity and rice, which we do in general, is not good from the mortality. It is estimated that about 80 percent of health point of view. the population suffers from Vitamin C deficiency [2]. Being a poor nation, it is difficult to overcome Most of the agricultural production in Bangladesh such a big malnutrition problem by eating fish, is strenuous in rice, occupying about 75 percent meat, egg, butter, ghee. But vegetables can play 2 Mou et al.; AJAEES, 37(2): 1-8, 2019; Article no.AJAEES.52727 a very important role to improve the nutritional purposively selected for the study, as this is one level of the rural people in the country which is of the major vegetables producing area of almost entirely overlooked. In other words, Bangladesh. Bogra district consists of twelve problems related to malnutrition can easily be upazilas and nine union. Here vegetables such overcome by eating adequate quantity of as tomato, brinjal, country bean, chilli, cabbage vegetables, which require some adjustment in etc. are growing. Out of nine union of the dietary habit and also by increasing per yield Shajahanpur Upazila, Chopinagar union was of vegetable [10]. randomly selected and two villages Shahnagor and Bihigram were randomly selected out of The above-mentioned discussion simply twelve villages of Chopinagar union. indicates the importance of vegetable in our daily life from nutritional point of view. From the One farmer from each of the vegetable producing economic point of view, vegetables should be families was considered as the respondent. The cultivated for higher farm income, increasing total number of respondents under the study cropping intensity, improvement of socio- area was 199. Sub Assistant Agriculture Officers economic condition and protection of (SAAO) of Shajahanpur Upazila helped to create environmental pollution, development of healthy list of the respondents. There are several and efficient manpower; higher export potentials, methods for determining the sample size; here, reducing import and enhancement of Yamane’s [11] formula was used to make industrialization, employment generation, and appropriate sample size for the study. The less consumption of cereals, which leads to formula is- overcome food shortage. According to () n= (1) Agricultural Marketing Department, Bangladesh () () earned Tk. 31 core by exporting 8 thousand tons of vegetable [10]. Adoption of improved practices where, of an individual on certain aspects serves as a driving force for constant efforts on certain n = Sample size; perceived action. Unless the farmers of N = Population size = 199; Bangladesh have sufficient knowledge about e = the level of precision = 8%; improved vegetable cultivation practices it would z = the

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