Pesticide usage pattern of vegetable cultivation in Nuwara Eliya divisional secretariat division, Sri Lanka

Abstract

In Sri Lanka, Nuwara-Eliya District is most popular for upcountry vegetable cultivation in Sri Lanka. Potato, carrot, leeks, beetroot, and cabbage are the most important vegetable crops cultivated in the Nuwara Eliya area. The study was conducted to determine the types of pesticides that are frequently used by farmers, to estimate the usage pattern of pesticides, to find out determinants of pesticides used by farmers, and to estimate knowledge about safety measures used by farmers. Structured questionnaires were designed to gather the required information. 10% of farmers who engaged in vegetable cultivation were selected through random sampling from various Grama Niladari Divisions, and they were interviewed at their doorsteps, and field observations were also made. The survey stated that most of the respondent farmers were male (84.5%), within 41-50 years of age bracket (33.6%), and had achieved a secondary education (20.9%). Maximum of respondents (30.9%) had 11-20 years of experience in farming. The study stated that the chemical control method was the prime method adopted by all farmers in controlling the pest and diseases. It was noted from the survey that 60.4% of farmers applied the pesticides mixed with some other pesticides. The frequently (16 times) used insecticides were Profenofos, Carbosulfan, Chlorantraniliprole and Spinosad and fungicide was Mancozeb. The analysis stated that 91.8% of farmers in the study area used high dosages, where potato farmers applied more than 20 times per season. The results showed a significant positive correlation between age, experience, and mixing pesticides, whereas a significant negative correlation between education and mixing pesticides. The survey exhibited that 63.6% of farmers store pesticide bottles on a safe location, which is inaccessible to children. Ninety percentages of the farmers are throwing or dumping the empty pesticide bottles in bush areas adjacent to cultivation fields. It was concluded that Sri Lankan farmers are using hazardous pesticides with an increased frequency of applications and mixing different pesticides to fight against pest resistance.