Soil Constraints on Sustainable Plant Production in Sri Lanka

Tropical agriculture research series : proceedings of a symposium on tropical agriculture researches
ISSN 03889386
NII recode ID (NCID) AA00870529
Full text
Sri Lanka is an island located at the southern tip of India. The land- area covers 65,685 km2. Fourteen major soil types have been identified within the country. Main soil constraints that have adversely affected agricultural production in the island are poor aeration due to waterlogging, sea water intrusion, low base status, acid sulphate conditions and acidity, salinity, high leaching losses, soil degradation due to erosion, low range of available soil moisture and several other constraints associated with poor soil physical properties. These constraints are mainly due to the topographical, climatological, geological and mineralogical conditions and to poor land and crop management practices. Researchers have already conducted studies to identify most of these constraints in order to overcome them. Measures including breeding of tolerant varieties, development of better land, water, crop management and soil rehabilitation practices have already been implemented while further studies are being currently conducted. Although many activities have been initiated to alleviate soil constraints, the pressure for land associated with the population expansion has further aggravated the degradation of the land.
Date of issued
Creator L. A. Wickramasinghe
Publisher Japan International Research Center for Agricultural Sciences
Volume 24
spage 12
epage 29
Language eng

Related Publication