Model Urban Home Garden
With increase in population size and urbanization, land available for cultivation is progressively diminishing around the urban areas in Sri Lanka. The model urban home garden project was initiated, emphasizing strategic alternatives to cultivate in small land areas upgrading the concept of home gardens to contribute to the current nutritional requirements securing household food security; alternatively creating opportunity for people with small garden spaces to engage in organic home gardening techniques.
The model urban garden is constructed by the National Food Promotion Board, Ministry of Agriculture at No. 45, Kirimandala Road, Narahenpita, Colombo 5; in collaboration with the BFN project. The model garden is constructed adjacent to a plant nursery, which makes it an ideal place for
dissemination of information regarding strategic land usage and cultivation in minimized spaces to framers, entrepreneurs and home garden growers purchasing planting material from the nursery. School children visit the model garden as part of their field visits, inculcating knowledge and emphasizing the importance of home gardening and its added benefits. At present the garden has a diversity of crops ranging from local tuber crops, herbs, vegetables and leafy vegetables.
The garden is aided by special racks and aerial planting systems to make maximum use of the space available. Architecture for some racks and aerial planting systems utilized in the urban garden are shown below.