Purpose: Canopy light interception and extinction play a crucial role in determining crop yield. Developing new rice varieties with improved canopy architecture along with modified intrinsic photosynthetic mechanisms will ensure the global food security. However, a comprehensive understanding of local rice varieties addressing on such avenues have not been reported. Hence, our pioneering experiments were carried out to elucidate such underlying properties among locally developed two elite rice varieties viz; At-362 and Bg 94-1 grown in the Ampara district of Sri Lanka. Research Method:The field experiment was carried out at the Agro Tech Park, Malwatta (7°20'N and 81°44'E altitude 16.0 m above sea level) between October 2019 to January 2020 implemented with Randomized Complete Block Design with four replicates. The Photosynthetically Active Radiation (PAR) distribution on the above and below canopy level was measured during the pre and post-anthesis stages. Then leaf stomatal conductance, chlorophyll fluorescence parameters and the chlorophyll content were also measured. At harvest, the final biomass produced were compared. Findings:The result revealed that variety At-362 had a higher Leaf Area Index (LAI) of 2.64 at pre anthesis and tend to decline at the latter part of their growth cycle. The striking feature was the extinction coefficient (k) seems to be much lower (0.47) in the At-362 variety than the Bg 94-1 (0.60) depicting that the former has produced vertical leaves (erect-leaf type) while the latter tends to produce horizontal leaf plans in the canopy. Hence, light attenuation was high and eventually, the bottom canopy layer received much lower PAR. Furthermore, LAI had a strong negative correlation with understory PAR indicating that the canopy architecture with an improved light interception will lead to permit more light penetration and utilization through the improved quantum yield efficiencies than the horizontal canopies. Hence significantly (p<0.05) improved above-ground biomass and panicle weight were observed in At-362.Originality/value: This experiment depicts that rice yield could be further improved through introgression of canopy architectural features along with improved photosynthetic traits.
The study was carried out to find the factors affecting commercialization of vegetable that produced from the home garden and its average level of commercialization. A structured questionnaire and field observation techniques were used to collect data from 232 randomly selected home gardeners in the South East part of Sri Lanka. The Tobit regression model was applied to study the significant factors that influenced home garden vegetables' commercialisation. The present study found that the average home garden vegetable commercialization level was 32.3 per cent. Further, the commercialization significantly (p<0.05) had a negative impact on the farmer’s level of education, family income, size of the family, health consciousness of home gardener, and losses by the pest and disease whereas the marital status, the number of family labours involved in home gardening and institutional supports significantly increase the commercialization. The research recommends that public and private sector involvement is needed to support through the training program and advisory services to control pest and disease attack. Further, the study area needs to be appreciated and promoted via appropriate policy intervention strategies to develop a good structure value chain and market.
Coastal erosion is an environmental issue that has been aggravated by anthropogenic activities, leading to a worrying situation in the coastal zones of Sri Lanka in recent decades. The present study attempted to determine the community perception and awareness of coastal erosion in the South Eastern coastal region around Oluvil, Sri Lanka. 120 residents of Oluvil were selected following a random sampling method to conduct a survey using a structured questionnaire in 2020. The survey results revealed that 95% of the residents were aware of the coastal erosion while 50% were extremely concerned about it, particularly because it has worsened over the last 10 years. Awareness was significantly correlated with the level of education of the residents. About 77% of residents noted that coastal erosion in the last ten years had rapidly increased. Construction of the Oluvil fishery harbour was believed to be the major cause of coastal erosion in Oluvil, with 81% of respondents strongly agreeing in this regard. Further, 88% of residents believed that the existing conservation measures were not providing effective protection from coastal erosion. Many of the affected people had suggested permanent closure of the harbour as a measure to address coastal erosion. Knowledge and awareness about conservation measures to control coastal erosion were limited. It is suggested to provide adequate knowledge and awareness through training, workshops, and campaigns in future to protect their livelihoods and the local economy from the effects of coastal erosion. The findings of the study would be helpful to the responsible authorities and government to adopt appropriate measures to minimize the impacts of coastal erosion in Oluvil.
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