Local plant species sold on chosen rural markets in Sri Lanka

Ondřej Horák

Bachelor's thesis

Abstract:

Agricultural markets are important places in rural areas. Eight species of edible plants traded at local markets in Sri Lanka were selected for our study, i.e. Aegle marmelos (L.) Correa, Amorphophallus paeoniifolius (Dennst.) Nicolson, Centella asiatica (L.) Urb., Limonia acidissima L., Luffa acutangula (L.) Roxb., Murraya koenigii (L.) Spreng, Trichosanthes cucumerina var. anguina (L.) Haines, and Dialium ovoideum Thwaites. All species were of South Asian origin, contributing significantly to local tradition or cuisine and represented important market article. Thesis used inter-disciplinary approach consisting of market survey, ethnobotanical screening and value-chain to identify for what purposes are those species used. Bachelor thesis used data collected in Vavuniya city in the northern part of Sri Lanka by two master students in September 2010. Thesis provides and discusses available scientific literature dealing with selected species, while specific attention is given to Dialium ovoideum as the only selected species not cultivated in the farms but collected in the wild. However, value-chain of that species is not yet fully developed and unregulated collection might lead to decreasing population or even extinction of Dialium ovoideum in the study area. Own contribution is also in last chapters about promoting value chain and domestication, as one of tools for nature conservation and sustain biodiversity. Additionally, any domestication experiments were not documented. The theme shows a possible changes accompanied already mentioned domestication and it can serve as useful source of information about given tropical plants.

Keywords

local markets, underutilised species, tree domestication, value-chain, Sri Lanka, market survey

Jazyk práce: English

Datum vytvoření / odevzdání či podání práce: 15. 4. 2016

Obhajoba závěrečné práce

• Vedúci: Ing. Vladimír Verner, Ph.D.

Czech University of Life Sciences Prague

Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences

Bachelor programme / odbor:
Agricultural Specialization / Agriculture in Tropics and Subtropics