Economic Analysis and Profitability of Protected Flower Cultivation: A Case Study in the Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh

This study provides a comprehensive analysis of the socio-economic dynamics and cost-and-returns assessment of five flowers i.e. Carnation, Gypsophila, Lilium, Limonium and Eustoma cultivated under protected conditions in Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh. A sample of 200 protected flower growers was selected using mixed method sampling technique. The socio-economic analysis revealed that most sampled households had nuclear family structures, with an average size of 5.53 persons. A noteworthy 94.95 per cent of family members were literate, reflecting an average education quality index of 2.08. Agriculture emerged as the primary occupation, engaging 91.52 per cent of the workforce in farming activities. The average area under protected cultivation was 665.74 m², out of which 630.64 m² to 885.91 m² area was under marginal and small farm categories, respectively in the study area. The total initial investment on polyhouses was ₹1,67,250. The cost analysis revealed that Limonium had the highest cultivation cost of ₹1552.80/m², followed by Gypsophila ( ₹1216.54/m²), Lilium ( ₹1147.59/m²), Eustoma ( ₹1140.51/m²) and Carnation ( ₹291.81/m²). Despite this, Lilium showed the highest gross returns at ₹2925.63/ m², surpassing all other crops. It also yielded the greatest net returns at ₹1778.03/m². Carnation, though with lower returns, had the most efficient output-input ratio at ₹2.63, followed closely by Lilium ( ₹2.55), Eustoma ( ₹1.91), Gypsophila ( ₹1.84) and Limonium ( ₹1.62). These findings underscore the significant potential of protected cultivation in not only enhancing farm profitability but also in uplifting rural livelihoods in the region.