Comparative Analysis of the Profitability of Liquid Fertilizer Usage in Dry Season Vegetable Production in the Southern Guinea Savannah Zone of Nigeria

The gains that farmers stand to make, and the cost associated with the usage, is usually a motivating factor in deciding whether or not to adopt a new technology. Specifically, this study examined the effect of liquid fertilizer usage on the profitability of dry season vegetable production, and compared the profitability of the patterns of usage. A Multistage random sampling procedure was used to select 309 dry season vegetable farmers from two states in the Southern Guinea Savannah Zone. Data was collected using an interview schedule. Partial budgeting technique, analysis of variance, and the t-test were the analytical tools employed in the study. The t-test results showed that usage of liquid fertilizer was more profitable than the non-usage. Gross margin analysis showed that usage of sole liquid fertilizer had the highest Return to Capital Invested (RCI) of 2.52. Analysis of variance test showed there was a significant difference between the means of the RCI for the three fertilizer usage categories. The study concluded that the sole usage of liquid fertilizer was the most profitable of the different usage patterns examined. The study therefore recommended that usage of liquid fertilizer should be encouraged among the dry season vegetable farmers. This can be achieved by the inclusion of liquid fertilizer in agricultural support programmes that are designed to ensure availability and affordability of fertilizers.