Approche et étude statistique de la production et surface des cultures maraîchères en région méditerranéenne : cas

Abstract

Potato and market-garden crops hold a strategic place in Algerian agriculture and food supply, and the region of Mostaganem is one of the country's leading production areas. This study aims to characterise the market-garden farms of the region and to analyse the dynamics of potato production by growing season (early, main and late crops). It draws, on the one hand, on statistical series of area, production and yield covering five campaigns (2020/21 to 2024/25) and, on the other hand, on a field survey of six market-garden farms. Statistical tools suited to the small sample were used: descriptive statistics, the Mann-Kendall trend test, Pearson and Spearman correlations, and the non-parametric Friedman and Wilcoxon tests. The results show that the early (primeur) crop largely dominates production (about 85%, with a rising share), whereas the main-season crop declines significantly; production is also very strongly linked to the cultivated area. The survey reveals a predominance of localised (drip) irrigation, high yields for tomato, and wilting of mainly physiological and thermal origin. Given the small sample, these results are indicative and shed light on the dynamics and constraints of market-garden production in the region.