Analysis of Soil Management Practices in Cereal Based Production Systems among Small-Scale Farmers in Kwara State

Soil management practices are known for their efficiency in combating land degradation issues and improving soil productivity. The study analyses the factors that influences soil management practices among cereal farmers in Kwara State. The specific objectives were to determine the various soil management practices and the socio-economic factors affecting the use of soil management practices among cereal based production farmers in the study area. A random sampling technique was used to collect data from 118 cereal farmers. Descriptive statistics and regression model were the analytical tools used. The study shows that ridging (94.1%), crop rotation (74.6%) and use of fertilizer (69.5%) were the most common soil management practices among the farmers. Logistic regression model revealed factors like Age, farm size, number of contacts with extension agents, total labour used and total number of plots cultivated with cereals to influence the use of soil management practices by the farmers. The study recommends that farmers should be encouraged to make use of soil management practices such as green manure, zero tillage and plant residue management which will bring about soil improvement and also improve their productivity