Assessment of Knowledge Level and Information Sources of Vegetable Growers regarding Tunnel Farming in District Sargodha
Muhammad Yaseen1*, Muhammad Luqman1*, Zahoor Hussain2, Usman Saleem3, Asif Nawaz1, Tahir Munir Butt4 and Muhammad Umer Mehmood1
ABSTRACT
This study is an effort to exploit the information sources of vegetable growers in district Sargodha aside from their knowledge level about vegetable production under tunnels. Every year there is a lot paid from the national exchequer for the import of vegetables, especially from the neighboring countries. To at least minimize those expenditures tunnel farming to a maximum level can give us a way forward. This transverse study has the Sargodha district as its universe. All the vegetable growers who used to grow off-season vegetables were the population of the study. The snowball sampling technique led us to have 8 off-season vegetable growers in Sargodha tehsil, 13 in Bhulwal, 27 in Bhera, 17 in Kot Momin, 9 in Shah pur, 11 in Sillanwali, and 5 in Sahiwal. This way a sample of 90 respondents was interviewed using a structured interview schedule. The content validity of the instrument was checked by the panel of experts and followed by the reliability test run through SPSS. Data were analyzed and evaluated by Microsoft Excel and SPSS to reach a meaningful decision in the consideration of data acquired. The maximum numbers of respondents were falling in the age range of 26 to 50 years, having qualifications of matric and intermediate, growing vegetables up to 5 acres, and depicting agriculture as the main source of income. Tomato, pepper, and cucumbers were the highest grown crops in the study area. Variables of site selection, land preparation, and sowing of seeds got a quite satisfactory response. Replantation of nursery and distance between plants and rows of plants were also answered quite satisfactorily. Farmers do not know how to overcome the increasing attack of insects, pests, and diseases in tunnel farming. Some areas were identified, which require the attention of responsible authorities for the relevant knowledge.
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