Establishment of a Demonstration Farm of Vegetables at Sita Eliya Agricultural Research Station

Location : Agriculture Research Station, Sita Eliya

Funding Agency : SriLanKoRDAA and The Department of Agriculture(DoA), Sri Lanka

Agriculture Research Station (ARS) in Sita Eliya is the centre for agriculture research focusing on up country vegetable and potato. The centre has human resources and necessary skills to disseminate their knowledge on cultivation of up-country vegetables and potato.

A demonstration farm was established at ARS, Sita Eliya in 2007 to disseminate the technologies developed through research carried out by the centre. Funds and facilities were provided by SriLanKoRDAA and the DoA were used to develop a demonstration farm and to conduct training programmes. The training programmes were designed to introduce nursery techniques to produce quality seedlings of vegetables, compost production, and appropriate farming practices. Farmers were trained on cultivation of most of the up-country vegetables including broccoli, cauliflower, different types of lettuce, and long radish. Demonstrations on cultivation of temperate vegetables, fruits, culinary herbal species, all having high market values were appreciated by local farmers. The programme also demonstrated soil conservation measures, such as stone terraces, lock and filled drains, contour bounds, flat bench terraces, and use of cover crops.

A “Home Garden Package “ especially developed for up-country wet zone was the most attractive item of the demonstration farm. In 2008, a total of 328 persons participated in the demonstration and training programmes and in 2009 it was 425 persons. Participants included farmers, school children, vocational training students and undergraduates. The above project was successfully completed in 2009 and some of the activities are continued.

Projest No 2. Establishment of Community Based Participatory Seed Producing Villages