The research was conducted in the mandarin zone domain of Gulmi district in Dhurkot rural municipality (Fig. 2) . The study areas lay between the latitude 28°04'08.76"N and longitude 83°18'24.84"E, at an average altitude of 1000–1500 masl (NARC 2023). The entire registered mandarin farmers of Gulmi district constituted the sampling frame for this research. To ensure unbiased representation, a simple random sampling technique was employed. The estimate of total farmers was obtained from the database of Prime Minister Agriculture Modernization Project (PMAMP). The Prime Minister Agriculture Modernization Project is the largest existing project under the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development (MoALD). This is the only project of the government of Nepal (GoN), formulated by the internal vision, backed by the internal investment and internal institutional manpower (PMAMP 2024).The sample size was estimated using the F- test. Afterwards, numbers were assigned to the units and final sample selection was accomplished. The methods for data collection included interviews, key informant interviews (KII), and focal group discussions (FGD) based on the protocols outlined by Sedhai et al. (2022). The participants in the study were selected from among the list of farmers involved in commercial mandarin cultivation in the district, as provided by the PMAMP, Citrus Zone, Gulmi. Exclusively, farmers were taken from three wards of Dhurkot rural municipality. Using Cochran’s formula, 80 households were ultimately chosen using a simple random sampling technique, from the sampling frame of 385 by applying a confidence level of 95%, an error margin of 5%, and a 50% response distribution (Cochran 1963).

Figure 2. 

Map of Gulmi district showing the study areas (LGCDP 2014).

The collected data and information were analysed using different statistical software like MS Excel 2010 (Version: 4.0.4734.1000, Washington, US) and SPSS (Version: IBM SPSS Statistics 28, New York, USA). Using descriptive statistics like frequencies, percentages, means, and standard deviation, the socio-demographic attributes as well as farmers’ adoption practices were successfully documented. During the analysis, both the descriptive as well as analytical methods were used to analyse the quantitative data that had been gathered. However, the qualitative data were either further quantified or subjected to a qualitative analysis.

Scheme 1. 

Conceptual framework of the study.

The index was created by taking into account qualitative data. It was done using MS Excel 2010 (Version: 4.0.4734.1000, Washington, US), for prioritizing the issues based on farmers’ perceptions. The index of importance was computed by using the formula:

I_imp = ∑SiFi /N

Where,

I_imp = index of importance

∑ = summation

Si = i^th scale value

Fi = frequency of i^th importance given by the respondents

N = total number of respondents

Socio-economic factors such as age, education, farming experience, and farm size are considered as variables to evaluate the choices made by farmers when adopting technology or implementing particular practices (Walisinghe et al. 2017). This study found that the commercial cultivation of mandarin in Gulmi district was dominated by male farmers. Similarly, the majority (41.30%) of respondents were between the ages of 46 and 60 years. Only 7% of the respondents were as young as 18–30 years, participating in the enterprise. This indicated that elder farmers are more specifically involved in mandarin farming (Table 1). These findings are in close correspondence with the findings regarding the average age of the mandarin farmers in Gulmi district (Chhetri and Ghimire 2023). As per the respondents, the vast majority of the respondents (63%) had been involved in the mandarin farming for 5–10 years, followed by those with more than 15 years of farming experience. There was very less (1.30%) involvement of newer farmers in the farming operation in the study areas.

Additionally, it was found that, the majority (71.30%) of the respondents had attended only primary level schooling while 2.5% were found to have higher education, and very few respondents (1.25%) were found to be illiterate. The population of Gulmi district is 246,494 with a sex ratio of 83.33% and the literacy rate of 80.3% (AKC 2023), which clearly supports our findings. Agriculture was reported to be the primary source of income, while some were also involved in services, business. The average land holding of the respondents was found to be 0.72 ha, which is greater than the national average of 0.55 ha (AKC 2023). It was evident that the farming experience and educational status had correlation with adoption of good agricultural practices (GAP) and SCP measures in mandarin orchards. Similar conclusions were reported by Ye et al. (2020) and Sedhai et al. (2022).

The perception of the respondents towards adoption of various SCPs was analysed using the semi-structured, close-ended (Yes/No) questionnaire. The study showed that majority (95%) of respondents were aware of the major causes of soil degradation and its consequences such as short-term fertility issues (48%), increased yield with poor quality (52%) on mandarin production. Similarly, 31.2% of respondents were familiar with the negative effects of chemical fertilizers in soil health. According to them, heavy monsoon and thus induces soil erosion was the major cause behind soil degradation issues in mandarin farms of Gulmi district (Fig. 3).

Figure 3. 

A pie-chart showing major causes of soil degradation (in percentage).

However, incorporating SCPs was perceived to be a time-consuming and cumbersome procedure by the majority (78%) of the respondents. Contrarily, the majority (81%) of them also agreed that SCPs imparted tangible benefits via reduced cost of production and increased the farm income, while also reducing the occurrences of soil erosion, landslides and localized fertility decline.

In the study, it was revealed that majority (72.50%) of the respondents never conducted any soil tests of the orchard. Only 18.8% of respondents occasionally conducted the soil test and 7% rarely conducted soil analysis test. Regarding the kinds of soil analyses, only 15% of the respondents performed soil pH test; 2.5% for nutrient analysis and mere 7.5% of them conducted both soil pH and nutrient analysis. Approximately 61.25% of the respondents reported luvisols-type of soil, while cambisols and sandy gravel soil were reported by 36.25% and 2.50% of the respondents in their mandarin orchards.

As per the nutrient management in Mandarin orchards, the majority (58.75%) of the respondents acknowledged that they applied only organic manure in their mandarin farm, while 40% reported the integrated nutrient management (INM) approach. Similarly, 1.25% stated that they only applied chemical fertilizers in their farm. Various organic fertilizers being used are mentioned in the Fig. 4 below:

Figure 4. 

Types of organic fertilizers used by the mandarin farmers in Gulmi district.

Relative impacts of various fertilizers on the yield and quality of mandarin

In the survey, significant responses were obtained regarding yield, fruit quality and shelf life of the produce in favour of the organic fertilizers (Fig. 5) . Similar outcomes were revealed in the study conducted by Yadav et al. (2024) in their soil nutrients trial on carrot.

Figure 5. 

Bar diagram showing positive influence of organic fertilizers on mandarin farming.

The study revealed that 96.2% of respondents had adopted various SCPs in the orchard (Fig. 6). Minimum tillage and liming were done to strengthen soil structure and enhance soil fertility status by checking upon soil erosion. Very few respondents (2.5%) reported no-till farming while 5% of them also reported to practice both mulching as well as RCT. Similarly, practices like contour farming (31.3%) and terracing (17.1%) were also commonly practised for designing citrus orchards in the study areas. The study done by Dorji et al. (2016) also validate our findings that adoption of improved farming practices apparently improved the mandarin production and productivity (Dorji et al. 2016).

Figure 6. 

Soil Conservation Practices adopted by mandarin farmers in Gulmi district.

Mulching was yet another SCP widely practised in mandarin orchards in the study area. It was reported that sod culture and mulching greatly reduced field heat impact on fruit trees. In mulching, 85% of the respondents practised organic mulching using maize straw (63%), grasses (13%%) and forest litter (11%). Similarly, 1.3% of them used plastic mulching although 13% neither followed organic nor inorganic mulching. They reported the mulching interval to be yearly (76.3%) and once very crop cycle (8.8%). Mulching as recommended by Poudel et al. (2020), to be done in the dry period when the moisture content in soil is low which is in the dry month of December-April after fruit harvesting and tree fertilization. This apparently supports our findings.

Moreover, for weed management, majority (98.8%) of the respondents practised hand-hoeing while the use of synthetic herbicides was minimal (1.3%). Likewise, 91.3% of the respondents applied micronutrients. Foliar application of zinc was the most common practice among the mandarin farmers. These findings are backed by the study conducted by Srivastava et al. (2002), on organic citrus production, which emphasized the importance of micronutrients application in citrus yield and quality.

Similarly, this study revealed that highest number of respondents (57.5%) to be using Biological Soil Amendments (BSAs), which also signifies the conventional and organic farming of mandarin. Although, 35% of producers used both manure and fertilizer as the major soil amendments. Moreover, 40% of the respondents performed liming their orchard quite regularly. Such findings are in correspondence with the studies done by Srivastava et al. (2002) and Dorji et al. (2016).

According to the study, it was also found that adoption of SCP greatly influenced production of mandarin farm while also influencing the soil health and economic efficiency. For instance, 41.56% of the respondents reported increased yield whereas 55.84% reported apparently reduced events of soil erosion in the study areas. Similarly, 3.5% of the respondents experienced reduced moisture stress and decreased labour requirements as well. Similar findings were also reported by Dorji et al. (2016) and Organic Africa (2023). Moreover, the majority (81%) of them also agreed that SCPs imparted tangible benefits via reduced cost of production and increased the farm income, while also reducing the occurrences of soil erosion, landslides and localized fertility decline.

Majority of the farmers practised conventional orchard management and production. From the study, three major barriers were reported to linger the adoption of SCP in mandarin production (Fig. 7). The similar findings have been documented by Organic Africa (2023), in relation to citrus orchard improvement. In the study areas, only 21.3% of respondents, usually the educated ones, were willing towards adopting technology regarding SCPs in response to such deleterious effects of soil degradation. This may be attributed to the farmers’ perception that adoption of SCPs was a time-consuming and cumbersome procedure by the majority (78%) of the respondents. However, Ye et al. (2020), through his study on willingness model to social change, emphasized the significance of extension services and trainings to change farmer’s general perception towards adoption of new technologies and/or practices for good.

Figure 7. 

Pie-chart showing barriers of adoption of SCP (in percentage).

The awareness and information regarding SCPs are influenced by multiple factors, both the socio-demographic aspects of the farmers as well as due to the institutions involved in agricultural extension. It was evident that the farmers ‘expertise, their education and knowledge status, training, landholding size and contact with extension agents had significant association with the prompt and effective adoption of the soil conservation practices in their orchards. These findings are supported by the independent studies done by Walisinghe et al. (2017) and Sedhai et al. (2022).

In the study, 96% of the respondents were found to practise traditional cultivation practices, and faced inputs and irrigation- related problems such as scarcity of water (88.2%), lack of irrigation system (5.3%) and lack of other farm inputs (6.5%). As per the mitigation strategy, they used a traditional method to cope up with this problem such as drip irrigation (65%); rain water harvesting (5.8%) and improved drainage system (23.8%) [8].

Majority of producers ranked lack of irrigation facilities and high-quality farm inputs such as planting materials, fertilizers, pesticides and tools, as most serious problem followed by the poor extension services, lack of assessment of citrus greening, and several other issues related to production and marketing of mandarin (Table 4). The result shows that, among the production problems, poor extension services regarding SCP are perceived as the most serious issue, followed by occurrence of diseases and pests, resulting in poor resource use efficiency. Lack of quality planting materials, farm inputs and annual fruit drops also leads to lower productivity. Similar indications were also reported by the studies Paudyal et al. and Shrestha R.L. emphasizing upon the advancement of research on production and pathological aspects of citrus fruits in Nepal (Shrestha 2010; Paudyal and Shrestha 2015).

A brief account on the strength, weakness, opportunities and threats (SWOT) analysis of mandarin in Gulmi district is mentioned in Fig. 8. Mandarin in the western hills of Nepal is considered as one of the remunerative production options because of its agro-ecological feasibility in marginal hill-slopes and high value nature (Paudyal and Shrestha 2015). Similarly, it was reported that the marketing system of the mandarin in the study area was unorganized, season glut and often malfunctional and devoid of systematic post-harvest technologies, transportation and storage facilities. Similar findings were reported by Shrestha et al. (2000) and Baral et al. (2021), which support our findings.

Figure 8. 

SWOT analysis of Mandarin enterprise in Gulmi district, Nepal.