Introduction
Indigenous agricultural knowledge is fundamental to rural livelihoods, cultural identity, and sustainable farming systems. Developed through generations of observation and adaptation, saffron-related knowledge in South Khorasan encompasses soil preparation, irrigation timing, corm selection, harvesting, drying, storage, and quality preservation (Mohammadi et al., 2023; Vafaee et al., 2024). However, much of this knowledge remains tacit, orally transmitted, and insufficiently documented, leaving it vulnerable to gradual loss. Public librarians can contribute by collecting, organizing, digitizing, preserving, and facilitating access to this knowledge, while agricultural experts can assist in its interpretation, validation, and transmission. Despite their complementary expertise, little research has examined their joint role in managing indigenous agricultural knowledge, particularly knowledge concerning saffron cultivation in Iran. Therefore, this qualitative study investigated the roles of public librarians and agricultural experts in documenting and retrieving indigenous saffron knowledge in South Khorasan, while identifying the challenges and strategies associated with its long-term preservation and accessibility.
Research Questions
1. What methods can public librarians and agricultural experts use to document and retrieve indigenous knowledge related to saffron production?
2. What challenges do public librarians and agricultural experts face in documenting and retrieving indigenous knowledge related to saffron production, and what strategies can be employed to address them?
Literature Review
Literature emphasizes stakeholder participation and collaborative knowledge ecosystems. Chigwada and Ngulube (2025) argue that indigenous knowledge initiatives require the involvement of local communities, librarians, cultural institutions, policymakers, and technical experts. Similarly, Dei (2024) found that indigenous knowledge is transmitted through storytelling, mentoring, festivals, rituals, and apprenticeships, although these practices often remain informal and undocumented. Indigenous knowledge management should therefore be understood as a social and cultural process grounded in trust, cultural legitimacy, and community participation, rather than as a technological activity. Although studies propose artificial intelligence-based systems, including Retrieval-Augmented Generation, for agricultural knowledge management (Han et al., 2026), such systems depend on structured, documented, and retrievable knowledge bases. Traditional agricultural practices, including saffron cultivation, are not yet systematically represented in digital infrastructures (Adefila et al., 2026). Existing research has primarily addressed preservation, dissemination, or digitization, with limited attention to agricultural knowledge retrieval. In Iran, no study has examined the combined roles of public librarians and agricultural experts in documenting, retrieving, and facilitating access to indigenous saffron knowledge in South Khorasan.
Methodology
This qualitative study employed a case study design to examine how indigenous saffron knowledge was documented and retrieved by public librarians and agricultural experts in South Khorasan. Using purposive judgmental sampling, 30 participants were recruited: 20 public librarians and 10 agricultural experts from Birjand, Qaen, Darmian, Sarbisheh, and Ferdows. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews lasting 40–70 minutes. Data saturation was reached after interviews with 17 librarians and eight agricultural experts; additional interviews were conducted to confirm saturation. The interview protocol was developed from the literature, and two pilot interviews were undertaken to refine the process. With informed consent, interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using MAXQDA version 21. Coding proceeded through open, axial, and selective stages, involving the identification, comparison, consolidation, and categorization of codes into themes aligned with the questions. Credibility was supported through participant checking of interview interpretations. A second researcher coded the data, and intercoder reliability was assessed using Cohen's kappa, producing a coefficient of 0.98.
Results
The findings revealed that documenting and retrieving indigenous saffron knowledge required coordinated interaction among libraries, agricultural institutions, technologies, and local communities. Participants identified multiple documentation methods. Oral documentation was considered essential for capturing farmers' experiences and tacit knowledge. Multimedia approaches, such as audio, video, and photographic records, were viewed as suitable for preserving cultivation practices and locally embedded techniques. Participatory documentation involving farmers, librarians, and agricultural experts was also emphasized as a means of improving accuracy, contextual relevance, and community trust. For retrieval and access, participants recommended structured digital repositories, searchable databases, standardized indexing and metadata, mobile applications, and library-based information services. However, implementation was constrained by human, technological, managerial, cultural, and organizational challenges. The principal barriers included inadequate digital infrastructure, limited inter-organizational collaboration, difficulties accessing indigenous knowledge holders, insufficient managerial and financial support, limited technological competencies, and concerns regarding trust and ownership. Suggested strategies included strengthening collaboration among librarians, agricultural experts, farmers, and local institutions; expanding digital infrastructure; providing targeted education and professional training; developing supportive policies; and establishing ethical protocols for consent, ownership, and access. Collectively, these measures were considered necessary for ensuring the sustainable preservation, retrieval, dissemination, and intergenerational transmission of indigenous saffron knowledge.
Discussion
The findings demonstrated that the management of indigenous saffron knowledge required an integrated approach combining oral, participatory, multimedia, and digital practices. The importance of interviews, storytelling, and recording farmers' experiences confirmed that saffron knowledge remained tacit and intergenerational, consistent with Dei (2024) and Chisita (2011). Multimedia documentation can preserve the practical and contextual details of cultivation more effectively than written records alone, supporting earlier findings by Adeyemo and Adebayo (2018) and Chigwada and Ngulube (2024). However, documentation without organization and retrieval mechanisms cannot ensure meaningful access. Digital repositories, metadata, indexing, and searchable databases are therefore essential, as emphasized by Balogun (2023) and Goswami (2023). Their implementation in South Khorasan remains constrained by inadequate infrastructure, limited digital competencies, weak institutional coordination, and insufficient managerial support. Participants' concerns about trust, ownership, and reluctance to share knowledge further indicate that indigenous knowledge management is not merely a technical process but a culturally sensitive social practice. Consequently, preservation requires community consent, recognition of knowledge holders, capacity building, and collaboration among libraries, agricultural agencies, cultural institutions, and farmers. Librarians and agricultural experts should function jointly as documenters, validators, information intermediaries, and facilitators of intergenerational knowledge transmission.
Conclusion
This study concluded that managing indigenous saffron knowledge in South Khorasan required a comprehensive, participatory, and multidimensional approach. Much of this agricultural and cultural knowledge remained tacit, experiential, and orally transmitted among farmers and local experts, making it vulnerable to gradual disappearance. Public librarians and agricultural experts can identify, record, organize, preserve, and facilitate access to this knowledge through oral, written, multimedia, participatory, and digital documentation methods. Nevertheless, preservation is hindered by inadequate infrastructure, limited institutional cooperation, insufficient financial and managerial support, difficulties accessing knowledge holders, low appreciation of indigenous knowledge, and concerns about trust and ownership. Establishing an indigenous knowledge management system is essential. Such a system should combine documentation, organization, retrieval, access, dissemination, and intergenerational transmission while respecting cultural and ethical considerations. Institutional partnerships, community participation, digital infrastructure, information-literacy training, supportive policies, and trust can enable libraries and agricultural organizations to safeguard indigenous saffron knowledge for future generations.