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RESEARCH PRODUCT

Dry years and their relationship to crop production in Sri Lanka

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description

Drought is a distinct agroclimatological hazard with far reaching consequences upon crop production. Among them, famines are regarded the most serious effects of climatological drought. Although there is no doubt about the principally valid relationship between drought and production losses it seems more problematic how this relationship can be proved statistically. In this paper annual rainfall data and production figures of the three major crops of Sri Lanka, rice (paddy), tea and rubber, are correlated, but only partially a true relationship between dry years and production losses could be observed. Reason for this may be the moderate degree of annual drought. From the results shown, the question arises how agricultural drought can be defined and how the climatic effects upon crop production can be studied satisfactorily.