Farmer＇s Adoption of Improved Nitrogen Management Strategies in Maize Production in China： an Experimental Knowledge Training

• Published in: 农业科学学报：英文版 no. 2; pp. 364 - 373
• Main Author: JIA Xiang-ping HUANG Ji-kun XIANG Cheng HOU Lin-ke ZHANGFu-suo CHEN Xin-ping CUIZhen-ling Holger Bergmann
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 2013
• Subjects: 中国; 农业生产; 农民; 实验; 氮化肥; 氮素管理; 玉米生产; 知识培训
• ISSN: 2095-3119

Chemical fertilizer plays an important role in increasing food production in China. Nevertheless, excessive nitrogen fertilizer use in China has resulted in severe environmental problems. The goal of this paper is to examine the impacts of an improved nitrogen management （INM） training experiment on farmers＇ chemical nitrogen （N） use behaviors in maize production in China. Based on household data collected from 813 maize farmers in Shandong, China, this study finds that while INM training can significantly reduce farmers＇ N fertilizer use, an INM training is not sufficient to change farmer＇s practices significantly, and farmers only partially adopted the recommended INM. This study reveals that China faces challenges to transform its agriculture to a low-carbon one. The research also sheds light on China＇s extension system and future technologies in meeting the objectives of reducing the excessive nitrogen fertilizer use in agricultural production.