A farm systems approach to the adoption of sustainable nitrogen management practices in California

Jessica Rudnick (), Mark Lubell (), Sat Darshan S. Khalsa (), Stephanie Tatge (), Liza Wood (), Molly Sears () and Patrick H. Brown ()
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Jessica Rudnick: University of California San Diego
Mark Lubell: University of California Davis
Sat Darshan S. Khalsa: University of California Davis
Stephanie Tatge: The Freshwater Trust
Liza Wood: University of California Davis
Molly Sears: University of California Berkeley
Patrick H. Brown: University of California Davis

Agriculture and Human Values, 2021, vol. 38, issue 3, No 15, 783-801

Abstract: Abstract Improving nitrogen (N) fertilizer management in agricultural systems is critical to meeting environmental goals while maintaining economically viable and productive food systems. This paper applies a farm systems framework to analyze how adoption of N management practices is related to different farming operation characteristics and the extent to which fertilizer, soil and irrigation practices are related to each other. We develop a multivariate probit regression model to analyze the interdependency of these adoption behaviors from 966 farmers across three watersheds and diverse cropping systems in the Central Valley of California. Our analysis demonstrates that farmers adopt varying combinations or portfolios of practices, with the most common portfolio featuring a core set of fertilizer-focused practices. Irrigation infrastructure is an especially important farm operation characteristic for encouraging adoption of innovative practice portfolios that integrate water and fertilizer management. These findings highlight the ability for a farm systems approach to improve our understanding of farmer decision-making across diverse agricultural landscapes.

Keywords: Agricultural decision-making; Nitrogen management; Farmer adoption; Farm systems; Multivariate probit regression (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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DOI: 10.1007/s10460-021-10190-5

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