A training for 42 farmers identified from six eastern Dzongkhags who will be the lead farmers in farmer-to-farmer extension approach, demonstration and awareness for promotion of fruits, vegetables and cereal crops under CARLEP-Agriculture component begun at the Agriculture Research and Development Centre (ARDC)-Wengkhar.

Participants are introduced to the crops and management practices that they will be adopting under CARLEP led by ARDC-Wengkhar. It will be followed by the orchard layout and land preparation in the coming month. Participants will return in January to attend the second training session before taking planting materials to their sites to start implementing what is demonstrated and trained.

This batch will complete their training after attending a total of four sessions spread across 2016. The Dzongkhags will then involve the trainees as a resource person or a lead farmer to train other farmers to replicate similar activities in the geogs with support from CARLEP. The training is funded by ARDC-Wengkhar.

Meanwhile, the lead farmers from past trainings have been notified to Dzongkhags to begin this year’s farmer-to-farmer extension services.

Reported by Lhap Dorji, Program Director, ARDC-Wengkhar and Karma Wangmo, CARLEP