Research Divisions
Agronomy
Biometry
Crop Protection
Genetics & Plant Breeding
Plant Physiology
Processing Research
Soils and Plant Nutrition
Tissue Culture
Technology Transfer
Genetics & Plant Breeding Division
| Head/Principal Geneticist/P. Breeder | Dr. A A F L K Perera, B Sc (Agric), PhD |
| Sr. Geneticist/P. Breeder | Dr. (Miss) S A C N Perera, BSc (Agric) , PhD |
| Geneticist/P. Breeder | Mr M G M K Meegahakumbura, BSc. ( India ) MSc (Biotech) (Period) |
| Geneticist/P. Breeder | Miss H D M A C Dissanayaka, Bsc. (Agric), MSc |
The mission of the Genetics and Plant Breeding Division is to develop and supply coconut growers with cultivars capable of producing higher yields with greater tolerance to environmental fluctuations, promote use of improved planting material for replacement of senile plantations, and stimulate growers to adopt under-planting or new planting systematically.
Current Research Programs in the Division
- Develop improved coconut cultivars/hybrids and multi-location testing of them in research and farmer fields
- Mass production of improved cultivars/hybrids via establishment of seed gardens
- Selection of mother palms to meet the excess demand for improved seednuts
- Establishment of farmer field demonstration to stimulate growers to plant improved materials
- Collections, Conservation & evaluation of coconut Genetic Resources (local & Exotic)
- Use of novel DNA techniques for characterization of coconut genetic resources, mapping of the coconut genome, identifications of marker-trait association for marker assisted selection