Farmer's response to vegetable technology in Thung Luang Community, Chiengmai, Thailand / Numchai Thanupon.

Thesis (Ph.D. - - Extension Education) University of the Philippines, College, Laguna.

Includes bibliographical references.

NUMCHAI THANUPON, University of the Philippines at Los Banos, November 1985. Farmers' Response to Vegetable Technology in Thung Luang Community, Chiengmai, Thailand. Major Professor? Dr. Priscilla A. Juliano

The study was conducted in the Karen community which is located in the highland area of Thung Luang, Sanpatong District, Chiengmai Province. It sought farmers! perception of attributes of recommended vegetable technologies and their adoption of these recommended vegetable technologies, Moreover, it aimed to find out if the Karen farmers! socioeconomic and demographic characteristics and their perception of attributes of recommended vegetable technologies, are associated with their adoption of recommended vegetable technology.

The data were gathered from 128 Karen vegetable growers. The average age of the respondents was 32 years and they were all males, Majority had attended training programs. The average size was 7. They had been farming for an average of 17 years and had an average farm size of 5.8 rais (0.93 ha.). less than one-half were affiliated as members of organizations and slightly less than one-half had a high level of aspiration. Material gain was primarily their motivation for joining the vegetable program. Majority seemed to be high conformists to group norms and were aware of and had high trust in extension agents, who were the most common source of news of farm information} however, the village headman was the source of information about social problems outside the village. The average number of contact made between the respondents and the extension agents was 3 times a month, Majority of the respondents perceived the recommended vegetable technologies as simple, observable, and having relative advantages. However, they considered that special training is needed in planting the recommended vegetable variety and applying pesticides.

Majority of the respondents were high adopters of the following recommended vegetable technologies: cultivation practices (83%), use of recommended vegetable varieties (77%), use of composts (66%) and use of pesticides (62%). However, more
than one-half (51%) of the respondents were low adopters of the use of fertilizers.

Fifty-seven percent of the potato growers were low adopters of the use of fertilizers, while 51 percent of the head lettuce and 50 percent of the welsh onion growers were high adopters of this recommended technology. The head lettuce growers and the welsh onion growers were found to be significantly different from the potato growers regarding the level of adoption of the use of fertilizers. Moreover, the head lettuce
growers were found to be significantly different from the potato growers on the level of adoption of the use of pesticides.

However, it was found that no significant differences existed among the three groups of vegetable growers on the level of adoption of the rest of the technologies. Five out of ten personal characteristics of farmers in the study were found to have significant relationship with their adoption of recommended vegetable technologies. These were? training experience, household size, farm size, farmers! trust in extension agents and frequency of contact with extension agents. Moreover, farmers! Perception of the cultivation practices was found to have significant relationship with the adoption of cultivation practices among the head lettuce growers group and the welsh onion growers group.

Farmers! perception of the use of pesticides was also found to have significant relationship with its adoption among the head lettuce growers group and the potato growers group.

Submitted to the University Library 10/07/1994 T-1411