Region Three farmers trained in vegetable grafting

By Ministry of Agriculture

The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Food Security and Rural Development in collaboration with World University Services of Canada (Caribbean) recently kicked off a series of training on the Role of Vegetable Grafting in Climate Smart Agriculture Strategies.

This intervention will facilitate a more reliable and consistent supply of produce to the market through building capacity of participants in grafting of vegetable seedlings. This technique can be utilized to produce disease resistant planting material. Region three farmers were presented with the benefits of growing grafted seedlings and got an opportunity to graft cucurbits; namely watermelon on to squash rootstock.

Participants were also exposed to the possibilities of utilizing locally available, disease resistant rootstock varieties in reducing the incidence of specific diseases which pose a challenge to manage. Head of Extension for Region three, Hyacinth Ford presented on the history of grafting techniques as a key driver for increasing agricultural production for several years. Johnny Smith, Crop Protection Officer, keenly highlighted ongoing research efforts in building the resilience of planting material using grafting techniques.