Sri Lanka cultivates maize and rice as its two main crops and two growing periods are rotated in one year for every kind of crop. The main season (Maha) covers October to March while the rest belongs to the second season, Yala. The reporting period covers the late Yala growth and harvest of rice and maize, and early sowing season of Maha rice and maize.

According to the CropWatch monitoring results, crop condition was generally below average for the whole period.

The country experienced a period of abundant precipitation with rainfall (RAIN) 48% above average, while temperature (TEMP) and radiation (RADPAR) were lower by 0.4℃ and 5%, respectively. The fraction of cropped arable land (CALF) remained comparable to the recent average. BIOMSS slightly decreased (down 2%) due to reduces sunshine which affected Yala crops. The NDVI development graph displays stable crop condition throughout the period but slightly below the 5YA. Similar crop conditions also occurred in three AEZs as described below. The relatively poor performance of crops may result from the effect of continuous rainfall. The maximum VCI value for the whole country was 0.93.

As shown by NDVI clusters map and profiles, spatial heterogeneity of crop condition was significant throughout the country’s cropland. 32.3% area of cropland displayed above-average crop condition for the whole period, including eastern coastal areas, south of Badulla and the area between Puttalam, Kurunegala and Anuradhapura. 13.8% area of cropland located in western Hambantota showed fair crop condition during the entire period except for late September. Other cropland was consistently below average and distributed mainly in eastern and north-Central Provinces. The VCIx map confirms NDVI clusters with high values in the West-Northern Province and relatively low values in the North-Central Province.

Regional analysis

Based on the cropping system, climatic zones and topographic conditions, three sub-national agro-ecological regions can be distinguished for Sri Lanka. They are the Dry zone, the Wet zone, and the Intermediate zone.

The Dry zone experienced its rainy season from September. The recorded RAIN (919mm) was 67% above average and amounts to over 7 mm per day. TEMP was down 0.5°C below average with RADPAR down as well, by -5%; BIOMASS and CALF were average. The cropping intensity was 180% (near double cropping), which is 44% above the 5YA. The maximum VCIx for the zone was 0.9. Overall, crop condition was below the recent 5YA.

The rainy season in the Intermediate zone started from September with RAIN reaching 2752 mm, 31% above average. More than 20 mm precipitation per day is adequate for any crop. TEMP,  RADPAR and BIOMASS were all below average by 0.1°C, 4% and 4%, respectively. The region was a mixture of single and double cropping, with cropping the intensity at 135%, slightly above 5YA. The maximum VCIx value for the zone was 0.98. Condition of crop was better than the other two sub-national regions but nevertheless below its 5YA.

The Wet zone is the one with potential for the largest diversity of crops. RAIN was 1703 mm (over 14 mm/day) and 62% up compared to average. However, TEMP and RADPAR both decreased by 0.5°C and 7%, leading to 6% drop in BIOMSS. The cropping intensity of the region is akin to the Intermediate zone and 27% up compared to 5YA. The maximum VCIx value for the zone was 0.95. Crop condition for the zone was the least favorable among the three sub-national regions.

Figure 3.21. Sri Lanka crop condition, July 2019 - November 2019

(a) Phenology of major crops

(b) Crop condition development graph based on NDVI

(c) Rainfall profile

(d) Temperature profile

(e) Maximum VCI

(f) Spatial NDVI patterns compared to 5YA  (g) NDVI profiles

(h) Crop condition development graph based on NDVI(Dry zone (left) and Wet zone (right))

(i) Crop condition development graph based on NDVI (Intermediate zone)

Table 3.50. Sri Lanka agroclimatic indicators by sub-national regions, current season's values and departure from15YA, July 2019 - November 2019

Table 3.51. Sri Lanka agronomic indicators by sub-national regions, current season's values and departure from5YA, July 2019 - November 2019