Browsing by Author "Fonseka, D. L. C. K"

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    Analysing the Processing Ability of Cinnamon Stems Under Different Planting Systems
    (Faculty of Humanities and Sciences,SLIIT, 2021-09-25) Aluthgamage, H. N; Fonseka, D. L. C. K; Benaragama, C. K
    Cinnamon contributes largely to the country’s economy, being one of the major agricultural export crops in Sri Lanka. But shortage of skilled cinnamon peelers is one of the major problems. Therefore, enhancement of the efficiency of processing procedure is crucial. Hence, the study was conducted to optimize the processing ability of common stems based on spatial pattern, type of planting material and harvesting interval to enhance the efficiency of cinnamon processing. Seedlings and vegetatively propagated plants (VP) of cinnamon; variety Sri Gemunu were planted under three spatial patterns as (A) 1.2×0.6 m with three plants per hill, (B) 1.2×0.4 m with two plants per hill and (C) 1.2×0.2 m with one plant per hill at the Faculty of Agriculture, University of Ruhuna. Stems were harvested in two planting intervals as 6 and 8 months. The study was conducted after four years from field establishment. Harvested cinnamon stems were processed with the support of a skilled cinnamon peeler. Scraping ability, rubbing ability, peeling ability and overall processing ability were recorded based on a scoring scale as, Bad-1, Normal-2, Good- 3 and Best- 4. The results revealed that, only the impact of planting material was significant ( p < 0.05) for Scraping ability, rubbing ability, peeling ability as well as overall processing ability of the cinnamon stems. Seedlings were observed to have better ability of processing than vegetatively propagated plants. Current findings can be used for further studies on efficiency enhancement of cinnamon processing.
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    An Efficient Root Induction Protocol for Mass Propagation of Jasminum sambac L.: (Madurai Jasmine)
    (Faculty of Humanities and Sciences,SLIIT, 2021-09-25) Sandamali, B. N; Kaushalya, L. M. N. M; Fonseka, D. L. C. K
    Jasminum sambac L is an ornamental plant that produces white flowers with a very pleasant fragrance, extensively used in perfumery and religious purposes. Flowers and flower buds are used for making garlands, bouquets, hair adornments and religious offerings. Moreover flower oil used in cosmetics industry and the plant has a medicinal value. Since this plant is poorly set seeds and not respond well to other vegetative propagation methods developing a reliable propagation method for commercial production is timely important. Hence the present study was conducted to find out an efficient method for vegetative propagation of J. sambac using different concentrations (5-25 ppm ) of plant growth regulator; Indole Acetic Acid (IAA) and distilled water as control. Semi hard wood cuttings of J. sambac were used for propagation in a hydrorooting system. The experiment was arranged as a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with nine replicates. The highest number of roots was observed in 25 ppm IAA but 15 and 20 ppm IAA did not show significant difference from 25 ppm. In all IAA treated cuttings, root initiation was observed 2 weeks after immersing in the solution where it was taken 8 weeks to initiate roots in control. The 25 ppm IAA showed the highest root length which was significantly higher than that of all other concentrations. In conclusion, 15, 20 and 25 ppm IAA concentrations were effective in inducing roots and 25 ppm IAA was effective in obtaining highest root length in semi hard wood cutting of J. sambac within 2 weeks in a hydro rooting system.