Comparative Analysis of Soil Quality Assessment and Its Perception by Rice Farmers
Shakeel Ahmad Mir,
Nasir Bashir Naikoo,
Fehim Jeelani Wani,
M. H. Chesti,
Inayat Khan,
Eajaz Ahmad Dar,
Bodiga Divya,
Navaneet Kumar,
Prashant Kaushik,
Hamed A. El-Serehy,
Muntazir Mushtaq
Affiliations
Shakeel Ahmad Mir
Division of Soil Science, Faculty of Horticulture, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Shalimar 190025, J&K, India
Nasir Bashir Naikoo
Division of Soil Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Wadura, Sopore 193201, J&K, India
Fehim Jeelani Wani
Division of Statistics, Faculty of Agriculture, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, Wadura, Sopore 93201, J&K, India
M. H. Chesti
Division of Soil Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Wadura, Sopore 193201, J&K, India
Inayat Khan
Division of Soil Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Wadura, Sopore 193201, J&K, India
Eajaz Ahmad Dar
Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Shuhama, Ganderbal 190006, J&K, India
Bodiga Divya
College of Forestry, Sam Higginbottom University of Agricultural, Technology and Sciences, Allahabad 211007, Uttar Pradesh, India
Navaneet Kumar
Division of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, Dr. Rammanohar Lohia Avadh University, Ayodhya 224001, Uttar Pradesh, India
Prashant Kaushik
Instituto de Conservación y Mejora de la Agrodiversidad Valenciana, Universitat Politècnica de València, 46022 Valencia, Spain
Hamed A. El-Serehy
Department of Zoology, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh l1451, Saudi Arabia
Muntazir Mushtaq
Division of Germplasm Evaluation, ICAR-National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, Pusa Campus, New Delhi 110012, Delhi, India
The present study was conducted in three villages of district Budgam in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, to find out how farmers differentiate the quality of soils and to determine the level of concurrence between farmers perception and scientific assessment of soil quality. Five fields in each village were selected and ranked on the basis of soil quality indices computed from the minimum data set of indicators, including plant available nutrients N, P, K, Ca, Mg, S, OC, BD, WHC (water holding capacity), CEC (cation exchange capacity) as well as microbial count. The respondents ranked the same 5 selected fields on the bases of their experience and perceptions of soil quality. The study reveals that 58% of farmers ranked the best soils correctly whereas, the percentage of farmers who ranked 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th soils correctly was 40, 30, 40, and 45%, respectively. The study found that a greater number of farmers from the remotest village Dalwash were able to judge the soils properly, thereby indicating more profound knowledge and better cognitive abilities to understand soils in the local context. The results divulged by the current study highlight the remarkable local soil knowledge of the farmers and therefore, linking this knowledge system with scientific concepts would prove valuable for sustained land-use management.
