The Ministry of Agriculture, Food Production, Fisheries, Co-operatives and Rural Development from the Government of St. Lucia, in collaboration with Jamaica Drip Irrigation, hosted a greenhouse training program for the Youth Agri-Entrepreneurship Project (YAEP). This was held from Thursday, October 23rd to Friday October 24th,2014 at the National Skills Development Center (NSDC), Vieux-Fort, Saint Lucia.
This special training program was done conjointly to the St. Lucia Greenhouse Project, a turnkey operation, which highlights an exemplary example of initiative being taken in the Caribbean as an important step in response to matters of food security.
The comprehensive training program covered key topics:
- * Introduction to Hydroponics and Greenhouse Agriculture
- * Plant Production Systems (including soilless systems)
- * Drip Irrigation, Filtering & Control System
- * Protocol and Maintenance of Irrigation Systems
- * Hazera Seeds & Plastic Covers
- * Introduction to Bato Buckets/ Perlite Vine Crop Production
- – Seedling Production
- – Growth Phases
- – Nutrient Program Management
- * Plant Husbandry
- * Integration Pest Management
- – Record keeping
- * Greenhouse Construction
- – Layout
- – Construction Procedures
We acknowledge that food security is a critical, global matter and is attained through agricultural development, improving economic growth and food self-sufficiency. We hope to see more countries come on board by implementing programs and practices of a similar nature.
Photograph shows presenters Mr. Hopeton Singh (greenhouse specialist) and Mr. Avishay Lulav (V.P. Global Sales)