Seni Bertani: di Balik Potensi dan Tantangan Relasi Petani Bawang Merah Desa Ngepoh, Kecamatan Dringu, Probolinggo

Abstract

This study examines farmers’ lived experiences in managing shallot farming amidst the suboptimal functioning of farmer groups and the dynamics of agricultural resource organization. The focus of this research is to understand how farmers interpret and carry out farming activities in their daily lives through the management of labor, work objects, and farming equipment as an integrated production process. This research employs a qualitative approach using a phenomenological method. Data were collected through in-depth interviews, observations, and documentation involving shallot farmers as the primary actors of agricultural practices. Data analysis emphasizes farmers’ subjective experiences in organizing production processes, which include labor (family members and hired workers), work objects such as land and crops, and farming tools used in cultivation activities. The findings indicate that shallot farmers rely more on independent resource management and informal social relations in conducting farming activities. In practice, labor, land, and equipment are managed based on experiential knowledge acquired through daily practice, inherited knowledge, and informal learning processes. Farmers also attempt to maintain a balance between production needs, labor availability, farming motivation, and knowledge to ensure the continuity of agricultural activities. This study concludes that farmers’ experiences in shallot farming reflect an adaptive process to conditions in which farmer groups do not function optimally. Farming is therefore not merely a technical production activity, but also a social experience shaped by practice, relationships, and meanings constructed in farmers’ everyday lives.