Moser, Bob (author / Director, Ohio Cooperative Extension Service, Ohio State University)
Format:
Journal article
Publication Date:
1989-03
Published:
USA: Wooster, OH : College of Agriculture, Ohio Cooperative Extension Service, Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center,Ohio State University.
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 87 Document Number: C05801
Batte, Marvin T. (author), Jones, Eugene (author), Schnitkey, Gary D. (author), and Department of Agricultural and Rural Sociology, Ohio State University
Format:
Journal article
Publication Date:
1990-12
Published:
USA: Experiment, GA : Southern Agricultural Economics Association.
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 92 Document Number: C06729
AGRICOLA IND 91016420, Farm producers attempt to mitigate risk and uncertainty by utilizing accurate and reliable information. This research attempts to identify sources of information used by Ohio fruit producers and then determine which of these sources are best meeting their information needs. Results are based on a logic analysis of Ohio fruit producers and several factors are shown to influence producers' evaluation of the "adequacy" of their marketing information. Among these factors are age, business size, education, type of enterprise, and types of information sources. Reported findings have implications for marketing efficiency, particularly if producers' evaluation of information as adequate is positively related to its efficient use.
11 pages, Diversifying a farm's production operations or marketing channels can boost income and raise farm survival rates. But are beginning and small-scale farmers inclined toward a strategy of diversification? We analyzed 578 attendee surveys from 10 years of an Extension workshop for new and small-scale farmers in Ohio. We investigated the farming profile of beginning and small-scale farmers, the degree to which they are interested in pursuing diversified farming, and whether these interests vary by gender. We found evidence that new and small-scale farmers are interested in alternatives to commodity grain farming, that these alternatives are associated with diversified farming systems, and that some specific diversification interests vary by gender.
Whiting, Larry R. (author / Head, Information and Applied Communications, The Ohio State University, Columbus) and Head, Information and Applied Communications, The Ohio State University, Columbus
Format:
Journal article
Publication Date:
1989
Published:
USA
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 74 Document Number: C03625
James F. Evans Collection, cited reference, Although computer technologies have evolved rapidly, farmers have been slow to adopt these technologies. This research identifies factors influencing farmers' adoption of computers and the number and type of applications for which the computer is used. Ohio commercial farmers were randomly sampled and analyzed using multinomial logit techniques. Results suggest that older farmers are less likely to adopt computers, less likely to find them useful, and make fewer applications of the computer in their business. Education level is positively associated with computer adoption and with increased number of applications made of the computer. (author)
15 pages, Cover crops—crops grown primarily to protect and improve soil—are widely considered to be an important component of sustainable agricultural systems because their use can provide multiple ecosystem services without compromising yields over time. Specialty crops—fruits, vegetables, and horticultural crops—are increasingly important to US agriculture and food security and uniquely vulnerable to climate-related problems that cover crops can help to address. Yet far less research has been conducted on cover crop use by farmers who grow mainly specialty crops, compared to the much larger body of research on farmers who principally grow row crops like corn (Zea mays) and soybeans (Glycine max). In this study, we draw on survey data from a stratified, random sample of 881 specialty crop growers in Michigan and Ohio to accomplish two main goals. First, we seek to characterize cover crop use among this important group of farmers, focusing on types of cover crop used and use of multiple types. Second, we examine the relationship between cover crop use on vegetable and fruit farms and key social and economic factors, with particular attention to farmers’ environmental values, adherence to organic principles, and sources of information. According to survey results, cover cropping is more likely when farmers (1) manage certified organic (p < 0.01) or organic-in-practice (p < 0.05) farms; (2) report being influenced by private crop consultants (p < 0.01); (3) attach high importance to agri-environmental goals (p < 0.01); and (4) grow vegetable crops instead of or in addition to fruit crops (p < 0.001). No relationship was found to exist between cover cropping and farmers’ concerns about climate-related risks, education level, or perceived self-efficacy. We conclude by suggesting that the importance of structural factors to farmers’ decisions about cover crops should not be underestimated. Promoting and strengthening the market for organic food may be the most direct pathway toward increasing the number of farmers who use cover crops. Historically important entities in agricultural networks, including cooperative extension and conservation nongovernmental organizations, might enhance their impact on cover crop use by forming new partnerships with private crop consultants.
