farmer & seeds
TRANSCRIPT
FARMERS and SEEDS:The Farmer Breeders inIndramayu District, West Java,Indonesia
FIELD IndonesiaFARMERS’ INITIATIVES FOR ECOLOGICAL LIVELIHOODS AND DEMOCRACY
FARMERS and SEEDS:The Farmer Breeders inIndramayu District, West Java,Indonesia
FIELD IndonesiaFARMERS’ INITIATIVES FOR ECOLOGICAL LIVELIHOODS AND DEMOCRACY
Citation
Engkus Kuswara, Lardian Isfandri, and Nugroho Wienarto. FARMERS and
SEEDS: The Farmer Breeders in Indramayu District, West Java, Indonesia.
2009. FIELD Indonesia. 32 pp.
This publication was carried out with support from PEDIGREA (Participatory
Enhancement of Diversity of Genetic Resources in Asia) and Biodiversity
Fund, The Netherlands (Hivos and OXFAM-NOVIB)
FIELD (Farmers' Initiatives for Ecological Livelihoods and Democracy)
Jalan Teluk Jakarta 1, Rawa Bambu Pasar Minggu, Jakarta 12520,
Indonesia
Tel./Fax (62-21) 7803470; 33101515
Email: [email protected]
www.pedigrea.org; www.field-indonesia.org; www.alivefp3.org;
www.theFieldAlliance.org
Production in-charge: Nugroho Wienarto, Triyanto Purnama Adi, and
Engkus Kuswara
Editors: Ines Vivian Domingo and Arma R. Bertuso
Cover and Layout Design: Triyanto Purnama Adi
Photographs: Triyanto Purnama Adi, Engkus Kuswara, Lardian Isfandri,
Rendra Kusuma Wijaya, Wiwik Sriyanti, Setyo Untoro
Copyright-free publication. Readers are encourage to quote, reproduce,
disseminate and translate materials for their own use. Due
acknowledgment, with full reference to the article's authors and source
book is requested.
A catalogue record of this book is available from the Indonesian Library
ISBN 979-98088-4-2
ii
Acknowledgments
We are deeply grateful for the farmer trainers, farmer breeders and
farmer communities of the Farmer Field School on Participatory Plant
Breeding in rice and vegetables and FFS on Goat Improvement. Without
their determination and commitment these series of publications would
not be a reality.
Acknowledgment is also due to the support extended by the Local
Government of Indramayu, West Java. Highly recognizable too is the
appreciation and support of the Indonesian IPM Farmer Associations,
village level governments and communities of Indramayu to the
implementation of PEDIGREA.
We are also grateful to FIELD's Advisory Board for their support and
guidance in the implementation of the program.
Our heartfelt gratitude to Ms. Ines Vivian Domingo for her perseverance in
editing these papers despite the short notice and making this readable to
a broader audience.
We also express our appreciation to the support and encouragement given
by PEDIGREA (Participatory Enhancement of Diversity of Genetic Resources
in Asia) Coordinators, Ms. Elenita C. Dano and Ms. Arma R. Bertuso, also to
the project partners, SRER Khmer in Cambodia, PPRDI in Philippines and
Center of Genetic Resources of the Netherlands.
We gratefully acknowledge Biodiversity Fund of the Netherlands (HIVOS
and OXFAM-NOVIB), Center of Genetic Resources of the Netherlands, and
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations for without their
support both financial and technical to FIELD these series of publications
including FARMERS and SEEDS: The Farmer Breeders in Indramayu District,
West Java, Indonesia won't be made possible.
FIELD Management Staff
25 March 2009
Pasar Minggu, Jakarta
iii
iv
1
Background
Since the introduction of the Green Revolution in the 1970s, farmers became
dependent on agricultural companies for agricultural inputs like fertilizers,
pesticides, including seeds. However, many of the existing commercial seeds from
these companies are not suitable to the local conditions and farmers' needs.
Moreover, this caused loss of farmers' local knowledge about plant breeding and high
genetic erosion of agrobiodiversity.
With this, the Participatory Enhancement of Diversity of Genetic Resources
(PEDIGREA) project was started in 2002 to address this situation. PEDIGREA is one of
the several programs implemented by FIELD Indonesia. It is implemented in the
Indramayu district of West Java. Indramayu is the country's biggest rice bowl
district. It is largely lowland, located 160 km east of Jakarta and was the main
target area of the government's Green Revolution program in the 1970s.
The program activities of PEDIGREA include the following:
? Farmer Field School (FFS) on participatory plant breeding (PPB) on rice and
vegetables.
? FFS on participatory animal improvement (PAI) on goats
? Participatory market development (PMD)
The main approach used in the PEDIGREA project is the Farmer Field School. Some
of the project results are as follows:
FARMERS and SEEDS:The Farmer Breeders inIndramayu District, West Java,Indonesia
1 2 3By: Engkus Kuswara , Lardian Isfandri , and Nugroho Wienarto
1 Program manager, PPB Project of FIELD Indonesia
2 Field staff, FIELD Indonesia
3 Executive Director, FIELD Indonesia
? The project activities have spread to cover 11 sub-districts of Indramayu,
namely: Sukra, Bongas, Gabus Wetan, Kroya, Bangodua-Malangsari,
Widasari-Kalensari, LeleaNunuk, Kertasmaya-Jengkok, Kedokan Bunder-
Cangkingan, Segeran Kidul, and Sliyeg-Sliyeg Lor.
? There are a total of 60 farmer facilitators/breeders for the PPB: 34 for rice
and 26 for vegetables.
? There are 264 graduates of FFS on rice (212 men and 52 women) and 257
graduates of FFS on local vegetables (233 men and 52 women) from 2007 up
to Dec 2008.
? FFS-PAI graduates on goats number 35 persons (20 men and 15 women).
? The farmers have been continuously conducting field enhancement studies
since 2003. By December 2008, the farmer breeders were working with a
total of 211 lines of rice: F3 (7 lines), F4 (12 lines), F5 (37 lines), F6 (19
lines), F7 (16 lines), F8 (25 lines), F9 (28 lines), F10 (18 lines), F11 (12
lines), F12 (8 lines), and F13 (29 lines).
? On the other hand, advanced breeding lines of local vegetables include the
following: bitter gourd in F6 (6 lines) and F7 (9 lines); sponge gourd in F6 (10
lines) and F7 (29 lines); and squash in F7 (8 lines).
? There are also popular rice breeding lines from crosses made by the farmer
breeders. For example in Jengkok village, an F8 (Kebo x Longong) has
became widely popular among the farmers in the community. Named
“Bongong”, the line was already stable in 2008 and planted by 203 farmers
in Jengkok village over a total land area of 100 hectares.
? Other similar cases can be found in the villages of Bangodua, Gabus Wetan,
Kalensari and Nunuk. In Bangodua, the breeding line is in F8 (Kebo x
Project Site in Indonesia
IndramayuDistrict
West JavaProvince
Jakarta
2
Ciherang). Named “Rambo”, it is planted by 105 farmers in around 50
hectares in the said village.
? In Sliyeg Lor village, the farmers' group was able to get a successful cross in
sponge gourd. The breeding line is in F7 from a cross of Sliyeg x Kalensari,
both of which are local varieties. The new variety is very popular in Silyeg,
Majasi and Longok communities. During the June-October 2008 cropping
season, it was planted in 65 hectates by 320 farmers.
? The project supported farmers to learn about impact of climate change. For
them to fully understand the concept and be able to address it, farmers
from the village of Jengkok conducted an enhancement study on screening
breeding lines for drought tolerance. Twenty-five (25) breeding lines and 12
local rice varieties were tested under drought condition.
The results showed that the breeding lines of Bongong (crosses by Joharifin) and
Gading Suryaman (crosses by Muhamad Suryaman) emerged as drought tolerant. On
the other hand, the local varieties Gundil merah, Gundil putih, Jalawara merah,
Jalawara putih, Longong and Bali Mansur were likewise found to be tolerant to
drought. The farmers concluded that these are good parent materials for breeding
objectives on drought tolerance and to address climate change.
Furthermore, farmers involved in the
PPB have increased their knowledge and
skills on conservation and breeding;
these include the skills on field
observation and documentation of
breeding lines and selections. Farmer
breeders' and FFS graduates' morale and
motivation are very strong, and the
farming communities provide
encouraging support to the project.
The following are selected stories of
Indramayu farmer breeders their
efforts, successes, and some of their
difficulties in breeding new varieties.
3
Profil of Farmer Breeders
1. Mr. Taryana: Breeding a sponge gourd variety
Mr. Taryana, 65 years old, is a farmer
breeder of local vegetables especially
sponge gourd. He is also the leader of
the Arumsari Farmers' Group in Sliyeg
Lor village, Sliyeg sub-district where he
lives. He has been involved in the
PEDIGREA program in his village since
January 2004. Mr. Taryana and other
members of the group were successful
in breeding new sponge gourd varieties
after three years. One of them resulted
in the new Sliyeg variety, of which Mr.
Taryana shared the following
information:
In Sliyeg Lor village, the farmers' group
got good results with vegetables
especially on sponge gourd. The
breeding line is in F7 which is a cross of
two local varieties (Sliyeg x Kalensari). The line is popular in Sliyeg Lor and in the
communities of Majasi and Longok. As of the June-October 2008 cropping season,
the stable variety was planted by 320 farmers in about 65 hectares in these three
communities. The average production is 5 tons/ha in one season. For the last season
mentioned, an estimated 780 tons of the new Sliyeg sponge gourd was sold to the
local market of Jatibarang (15km), the big vegetable market in Bekasi (around
150km), and Bandung (around 180km).
The Arumsari Farmers' Group was formed in 20 December 1998 with 80 members. In
the beginning, the group was assisted by the district Office of Agriculture and was
focused on mango with sponge gourd, squash, and string beans as secondary crops
planted in between the rows of mangoes.
In 2004, the group joined the PEDIGREA project by participating in the FFS on local
vegetables (January- May 2004). Twenty-five (25) members (8 of them were women
and 17 were men) participated in the FFS mentioned.
The FFS specifically focused on developing local vegetables such as sponge gourd
and squash. However, the group was principally interested in sponge gourd because
majority of the farmers in the village planted this vegetable which is their main
4
source of income. The Sliyeg community has three main sources of livelihood: mango
(once a year), rice (once during the rainy season) and sponge gourd (daily).
According to Mr. Taryana and the members of the group, before they joined the FFS,
their only knowledge on sponge gourd was limited to the planting, growing and
selling of this vegetable. With the FFS, their knowledge expanded to include analysis
of vegetable activities, year-to-year analysis of the vegetable enterprise, parental
evaluation of vegetables under development, framework of vegetable breeding,
establishing breeding objectives, setting up of field trials, discussion on cells, genes,
and characteristics, plant growth stages, plant morphology, breeding techniques,
recording and documentation, taste test of the vegetables, and many others.
The farmers observed that Sliyeg, which is widely planted in the village because it is
drought resistant and high yielding, had a rough texture and was considered too long
(40-50cm) thus it gets easily broken during packaging which resulted in lower price.
Thus to enhance the sponge gourd quality, the farmers came up with their breeding
objectives such as: medium length (20-25 cm) so it does not easily break when
packed, with soft texture, high yielding, and a bit sweet.
Based on these objectives, Mr. Taryana and the farmers' group evaluated different
varieties as possible parents for their crosses. They settled on Sliyeg and Kalensari,
another local variety with shorter fruit (10-15 cm), soft texture, and sweet taste.
The crossing process of Sliyeg x Kalensari was performed in April 2004.
After crossing, the farmers conducted the enhancement study to select from the
segregating materials those that will fit the criteria they have set. The enhancement
study was done twice a year and when it reached F5 in 2006, the line has shown
good results thus many farmers in the village planted the variety.
The new Sliyeg sponge gourd
Male flower ofthe new Sliyegsponge gourd
Female flower ofthe new Sliyegsponge gourd
Fruit of the newSliyeg sponge gourd
5
Because of their success with the
Sliyeg variety, the members of the
Arumsari Farmers' Group have
become well known as farmer
breeders; many farmers come to
them to exchange their sponge
gourd seeds. The members also
continue to strengthen their
organization and increase their
knowledge in breeding so every
season, they conduct meetings to
discuss about their breeding,
selection, and growing of
vegetables. They also pursue their
enhancement studies so that other
members can further study and
practice selection of varieties as
well as produce stable lines, and
exchange seeds among
themselves. The farmers also use
the enhancement studies to ensure
that the Sliyeg variety remains pure. Sponge gourd is a cross pollinated crop, so it is
prone to accidental crossing with other varieties.
With this accomplishment, Mr Taryana and his group have not stopped but rather
keep continuing with their breeding activities to produce more new varieties. They
also expanded their activities to develop a community seed bank which will be
maintained by the youth and women in the community. They are also working on
their marketing strategy for the Sliyeg variety.
2. Mr. Joharifin: A farmer breeder of a new popular local rice
variety
Mr. Joharifin, 31 years old, is a farmer breeder and leader of Karya Peduli Tani
Farmers' Group. He uses a third of his one-hectare land for growing the selections
from his own cross breeding. He lives in Jengkok village, a farming community
Where rice is the main crop. Mr. Joharifin got interested in the PEDIGREA program
because he realized that farmers are becoming dependent on companies for their
seeds and other farm inputs, and there is loss of local knowledge and biodiversity. He
participated in the training of trainers (ToT), then the FFS PPB on rice.
Taryana
Sliyeg Lor village, Sliyeg sub-district
New Sliyeg sponge gourd
F7 (stable)
Sliyeg
Kalensari
35 days
25 cm
30 times in 3 months
2 kg
Good taste, sweet and soft texture
3 times (April, August and November)
Resistant to fruit fly
Name of Breeder:
Place of breeding:
Variety name:
Status:
Father variety:
Mother variety:
Maturity:
Length of fruit:
Number of harvesting:
Production/hill:
Taste:
Number of plantings in one year:
Other traits:
Description and characteristics ofthe new Sliyeg sponge gourd
6
In the FFS, Mr. Joharifin learned how to
conduct evaluation of varieties for
parent materials in breeding work,
emasculation and pollination, and
selection methods for segregating lines.
During the FFS, he evaluated local
varieties such as Longong, Gundil putih,
Gundil kuning, Jalawara putih, Jalawara
merah, Sri putih, ketan bulu, ketan
kuning, ketan putih and Kebo. After this,
he made three crosses, namely: Kebo x
Longong (8 May 2004); Cibadak x IR 64 (7
July 2004); and Cibadak x Ciherang (7
July 2004). From these crosses, one
variety which resulted from Kebo x
Longong became popular among
farmers; Mr. Joharifin named it
“Bongong”, derived from the names of
the parent varieties. The breeder used
the bulk and pedigree selection methods, but he also innovated to create a modified
version that became known among his fellow farmers as the “Johar selection
method”.
During the F5 stage of Bongong, other farmers become interested in it. At the same
time, Joharifin has limited land so he cannot pursue more selections in his own
field. There were discussions within the farmers' group; it was later decided that
other farmers could plant Bongong with some conditions. First, that they must join
Karya Peduli Tani Farmers' Group. Second, they must use the Johar selection
method. Third, they have to document and give back the information on their
observations on the variety's development. And fourth, is for them not to give the
seeds to other non-member farmers.
Today, Bongong is in F8 and is widely grown in Jengkok and other nearby villages.
Mr. Joharifin related that Bongong became stable faster compared to other crosses
because of the selection process that he developed. His “Johar method” involves
choosing the best one rice hill based on the breeding objective's criteria and next,
from one cluster he chose 3 panicles. And from these 3 panicles, the selection
continues. This showed quicker results, as by F5, Bongong had already became
stable.
7
The Bongong breeding line
Bongong breeding linein the vegetative
Bongong breedingline panicle
Bongong breeding lineduring harvesting time
Bongong breedingline seeds (in cm)
Name of Breeder:
Place of breeding:
Name of breeding line:
Status:
Mother variety:
Father variety:
Maturity:
Plant height:
Productive tillers:
Flag leaf:
Grain form:
Number of grains/panicle:
Rice texture:
Yield potential:
Other traits:
JOHARIFIN
Jengkok village, Kertasmaya sub-district
Bongong
F 8 (stable)
Kebo
Longong
115 days after trans planting (DAT)
105 cm
25-35 tillers
Erect
Long and slender
300-360 grains
Good
9-12 tons/ha
Resistant to Brown Plant Hopper (BPH) and to lodging
Description and characteristics of Bongong breeding line
8
During the 2008-2009 wet season (October-March), around 300 farmers planted
Bongong in 250 hectares. The variety is planted in the villages of Jengkok, Cikedung,
Nunuk, Tegal Wirangron, Sukadana, Jagapura, Jambe, Cangkingan, Gua Lor Bedeng,
and Klewed.
Despite this relative success, Mr. Joharifin related the constraints he faced in his
breeding activities. For example, after harvest, many of the farmers who planted
the Bongong breeding line gave back some of their rice samples to him. However, he
lacks the equipment to store the seeds and maintain the good quality of the variety.
He said that because the farmer-bred seeds are distributed to many farmers and
throughout many areas, there is a need to ensure the supply of good quality seeds.
To solve the problem, Mr. Joharifin and his group are planning to establish a seed
bank.
3. Mr. Warsiyah: Farmer-breeder and steward of local rice varieties
Mr. Warsiyah, 51 years old, is from
Kalensari village, Widasari sub-district.
He has good experiences in rice
breeding and has been successful in
crossing local varieties. At present, he
already has 6 stable breeding lines. He
has been conserving 25 local varieties
of rice since 2002.
Mr.Warsiyah is one of the pioneer
farmer trainors when PEDIGREA started
in 2002 in Indonesia. Aside from being
a farmer breeder and a facilitator in
FFS PPB in the district, he is also a
resource person in various trainings in
agriculture and integrated pest
management (IPM).
His interest in PPB, Mr. Warsiyah
explained, is because before the 1970s
the local rice has high diversity. During that time, farmers did not have to buy the
seeds they needed, but simply collected them from their own rice fields; they did
their selection before harvest to be able to get good seeds. But with the
introduction of modern varieties as part of the Green Revolution program, the
situation changed. Now, the cost of rice cultivation keeps increasing, and farmers
9
rely more and more on external inputs, including seeds. These problems made
farmers realize the need to come together and create a program on seeds. With
FIELD Indonesia, they were able to join the PEDIGREA project.
Since his involvement in the project, he already has 25 kinds of local rice varieties
which he plants every season, and screens as possible parent lines. He also has 102
lines in various stages of breeding (F5 up to F 12). Of six advanced breeding lines,
two are already stable, with their characteristics described below:
The 01.2B Aromatic breeding line
01.2Bbreeding line during
harvesting time
01.2Bbreeding line panicle
01.2Bbreeding line seeds
(in cm)
Name of Breeder:
Place of breeding:
Plant name:
Status:
Mother variety:
Father variety:
Maturity:
Plant height:
Productive tillers:
Flag leaf:
Grain form:
Number of grains/panicle:
Eating quality:
Yield potential:
Other traits:
Description and characteristics of 01.2B Aromatic breeding line
Warsiyah
Kalensari village, Widasari sub-district
01.2B Aromatic
F 11
Kebo
Pandan Wangi
110 DAT
110 cm
27-37 tillers
Erect
Long and round
250 grains
Good and aromatic
7-9 tons/ha
Resistant to Bacteria Leaf Blight (BLB), suceptible to lodging
10
The 01.2A breeding line
With his experience in rice and vegetable breeding, Mr. Warsiyah has become quite
popular in his community and in Indramayu for his efforts in PPB. He hopes that his
breeding work will help in regaining the high agro-biodiversity in his district for
future generations.
01.2Abreeding line during
harvesting time
01.2Abreeding line panicle
01.2Abreeding line seeds
(in cm)
Name of Breeder:
Place of breeding:
Plant name:
Status:
Mother variety:
Father variety:
Maturity:
Plant height:
Productive tillers:
Flag leaf:
Number of grains/panicle:
Eating quality:
Yield potential:
Other traits:
Description and characteristics of 01.2A breeding line
Warsiyah
Kalensari village, Widasari sub-district
01.2A Aromatic
F 11
Kebo
Pandan Wangi
105-115 DAT
115-130 cm
22-30 tillers
Erect
253 grains
Good
7 tons/ha
Suceptible to BLB, moderately lodging
11
4. Mr. Muhamad Suryaman: breeding for his family and for other
farmers
Mr. Muhamad Suryaman, 27 years old,
lives in Jengkok village of Kertasmaya
sub-district. He is a member of Karya
Peduli Tani Farmers' Group. He became a
breeder after he graduated from the FFS
PPB on rice in 2004. After the FFS and
on his own, he crossed several rice
varieties. These were: Way Apo Buru x
Longong (27 Feb 2005); Way Apo Buru x
Cibadak (27 Feb 2005); Cibadak x Way
Apo Buru (reciprocal cross*, 27 Feb
2005); and Ciherang x Sabo (11 May
2005).
Out of these four crosses, the last one
became successful. Mr. Suryaman named
it “Gading Surya”, and is currently in F8
and stable. He bred it using the bulk and
pedigree selection methods. In 2008,
Gading Surya was planted in Bangodua village by 27 farmers in around 25 hectares.
The Gading Surya breeding line
Gading Surya breedingline during panicle
inititive
Gading Surya breedingline panicle
Gading Surya breedingline seeds
(in cm)
* Example: Way Apo Buru (mother) x Cibadak (father); the reciprocal cross would be Way Apo Buru (father) x Cibadak (mother)
12
Mr. Suryaman commented on his participation in the PPB, “I have learned about rice
breeding from the PEDIGRA program. This knowledge I will own for a long time. I
also learned about farmer relationships and how I can better work with my fellow
farmers. I was able to increase my skills and abilities in agriculture so that now I
have more self confidence and I am really proud that I have succesfully developed a
new rice variety. This will be useful for my family and other farmers to increase
their rice production. I hope the other farmers will continue to plant the Gading
Surya variety”.
5. Mr. Darmin: A prolific breeder for organic farming
Mr Darmin, 51 years old, lives in Sekarmulya village, Gabus Wetan sub-district. He
started farming in 1985 with a rented 3,500 m2 piece of land. After ten years, he
was able to increase his rented land to 2 hectares, and to own 1 hectare. In 1996,
he became a leader of the Sri Asih Farmers' Group. His interest in agriculture is also
supported by his participation in various trainings. In 2003, he attended the System
of Rice Intensification (SRI) training held in Bandung, West Java. This was organized
by the water irrigation system services of the Public Works Department of West Java
province. He practices SRI to produce organic rice. Organic rice has a higher price
than chemically-grown rice, of which he can sell about 500 kg/month.
He attended the FFS PPB on local rice varieties in 2004. After the FFS, he crossed
several local varieties:
Name of Breeder:
Place of breeding:
Name of breeding line:
Status:
Mother variety:
Father variety:
Maturity:
Plant height:
Productive tillers:
Flag leaf:
Grain form:
Number of grains/panicle:
Eating quality:
Yield potential:
Other traits:
Description and characteristics of Gading Surya breeding line
Muhamad Suryaman
Jengkok village, Kertasmaya sub-district
Gading Surya
F 8 (stable)
Ciherang
Sabo
95 DAT
95 cm
25-35 tillers
Quiet dropping
Oval
200-250 grains
Good
8 tons/ha
Resistant to BPH but suceptible to BLB
13
1. Randa kuningan x M Wasman
2. Gundil putih x Fatmawati
3. Gundil putih x Rajawali
4. Gundil Putih x Ciherang
5. Gundil putih x Goyang Dombret
6. Ciherang x Fatmawati
7. Ciherang x Gundil putih
8. Ciherang x Layung
9. Ciherang x Jalawara
10. Ciherang x Situ Patenggang
11. Ciherang x Bubuway
12. Ciherang x Seke
These crosses resulted in 35 breeding lines, now in their F7 to F10. Out of these 35,
two became promising breeding lines, and are almost stable already.
Rangbo Pak Darmin or 06.01.A breeding line
06.01.Abreeding line during
harvesting time
06.01.Abreeding line panicle
06.01.Abreeding line seeds
(in cm)
14
The Rangbo Pak Darmin or 06.01.C
Name of Breeder:
Place of breeding:
Name of breeding line:
Status:
Mother variety:
Father variety:
Maturity:
Plant height:
Productive tillers:
Flag leaf:
Number of grains/panicle:
Eating quality:
Yield potential:
Other traits:
Description and characteristics of Rangbo Pak Darmin or 06.01.Abreeding line
Darmin
Sekarmulya village, Gabus Wetan sub-district
Rangbo Pak Darmin or 06.01.A
F 10
Ciherang
Kebo
113 DAT
107-115 cm
25-30 tillers
Erect
320 grains
Good
7-9 tons/ha
Resistant to BPH and lodging, better if planted in the dry season
06.01.Cbreeding line during
harvesting time
06.01.Cbreeding line panicle
06.01.Cbreeding line seeds
(in cm)
Description and characteristics of Rangbo Pak Darmin or 06.01.Cbreeding line
Name of Breeder:
Place of breeding:
Name of breeding line:
Status:
Mother variety:
Father variety:
Darmin
Karangmulya village, Gabus Wetan sub-district
06.01.C
F 9
Ciherang
Pandan Wangi
15
Mr. Darmin stated, “What I have learned from this program is that each rice variety
has a specific set of characteristics. I learned about and now practice rice breeding
so I can contribute to increasing biodiversity. I also learned from farmers from
another country when I joined a cross-visit to the PEDIGREA partner in the
Philippines. I became proud that I can use my knowledge to share with other
farmers. I hope to continue my work in breeding and organic farming.”
6. Mr. Yusuf: Breeding as an opportunity to learn and become an
expert
Mr. Yusuf, 38 years old, lives in Mulyasari
village, Bangodua sub-district. He is a
member of the Karyabakti Farmers'
Group in his village. He joined the
PEDIGREA program in 2003.
Mr. Yusuf said he was interested in the
program because previously, he and his
family had to buy seeds for planting
every season, and the seeds that they
bought in the market needed more
fertilizers and pesticides so they had to
spend a lot of money for their farming.
With the PEDIGREA program, he realized
that farmers try to use the local rice
varieties which are already well adapted
to the local ecosystem. However, there
is a need to improve these materials to
Maturity:
Plant height:
Productive tillers:
Flag leaf:
Grain form:
Number of grains/panicle:
Eating quality:
Yield potential:
Other traits:
110 DAT
64 cm
39 tillers
Erect
Long and rounded
150-250 grains
Good
9.4 tons/ha
Not yet tested for pest and disease resistance
16
get better yields and improve their characteristics, thus he became interested in
breeding. With PPB, he was able to explore and use the potential of local varieties
to develop a new variety.
Mr. Yusuf attended the FFS PPB on rice in 2003. After the FFS, he set his rice
breeding objectives, which were: requires less fertilizer, tolerant to pests and
diseases, tolerant to drought, short maturity, high yielding, and of good eating
quality. He screened different local varieties that fit his breeding criteria. He
crossed different varieties, such as: Kebo x Ciherang, Ciherang x Kebo (reciprocal
cross), Kebo x Ciherang, and Dombret x Ciherang.
Out of these crosses, one from Kebo x Ciherang showed good potential and fits Mr.
Yusuf's breeding objectives. He used the bulk and pedigree selection methods; the
breeding line is now in F10 and stable. He gave it the name “Borang”, a combination
of the names of the parent varieties. In 2008, Borang was planted in 50 hectares by
27 farmers in Bangodua.
The Borang breeding line
Borang breeding lineduring harvesting time
Borang breedingline panicle
Borang breedingline seeds (in cm)
Description and characteristics of the Borang breeding line
Name of Breeder:
Place of breeding:
Name of breeding line:
Status:
Mother variety:
Father variety:
Maturity:
Yusuf
Mulyasari village, Bangodua sub-district
Borang Bangodua
F 10 (stable)
Kebo
Ciherang
110 DAT
17
Mr Yusuf commented on the most important learning he gained from his PPB work,
“We have to change our minds about farmers; if we are given a chance to learn, we
can be experts, and be able to improve our own rice farming”. He also said that
before he joined PEDIGREA, he had no chance to share his knowledge with other
farmers But now, he not only shares his knowledge to others, but also the new
varieties as well.
7. Mr. Nurkilah: Breeding and helping other farmers learn
Mr Nurkilah, 35 years old, lives in Nunuk
village, Lelea sub-district. He is a
member of the Lamaran Farmers' Group.
He was one of the pioneer farmer
trainers in PPB since 2002 when
PEDIGREA started its program in
Indonesia.
He became very interested in the
program because Indramayu is the
biggest rice bowl in Indonesia. As a
result of the Green Revolution however,
he noticed a lot of problems in
agriculture such as lack of rice diversity,
loss of local varieties, and high cost of
rice production. He was sad about this
situation.
Mr. Nurkilah tried to apply what he
learned in PPB in his own field. He
Plant height:
Productive tillers:
Flag leaf:
Grain form:
Number of grains/panicle:
Eating quality:
Yield potential:
Other traits:
105 cm
36 tillers
Erect
Long and rounded
200-300 grains
Good
8 tons/ha
Tolerant to BLB and to lodging, grains do not separate easily from the panicle during threshing
18
crossed several local rice varieties, and was fortunate to get good result of one of
his crosses the F7BP x Ciherang. He used the bulk and pedigree selection methods;
the breeding line is now in F10 and is quite stable. He named the new variety
“Tambak Emas”.
The Tambak Emas breeding line
Tambak Emasbreeding line during
harvesting time
Tambak Emasbreeding line panicle
Tambak Emasbreeding line seeds
(in cm)
Description and characteristics of Tambak Emas breeding line
Name of Breeder:
Place of breeding:
Name of breeding line:
Status:
Mother variety:
Father variety:
Maturity:
Plant height:
Productive tillers:
Flag leaf:
Number of grains/panicle:
Eating quality:
Yield potential:
Other traits:
Nurkilah
Nunuk village, Lelea sub-district
Tambak Emas
F 10 (stable)
F7BP
Ciherang
110 DAT
90 cm
25-30 tillers
Quite drooping
215-250 grains
Good
7-8 tons/ha
Resistant to lodging, resistant to BPH and BLB, grains do not separate easily from the panicle during threshing
19
As of 2008, Tambak Emas is planted by 20 farmers in an area covering 5 hectares in
Nunuk village and in another 5 hectares in Jambak village.
Mr. Nurkilah reflected that after seven years in the PEDIGREA program, he learned a
lot about helping solve the lack local rice diversity through cross breeding. He also
learned about the importance of observation through the Genotype by Environment
Analysis (GEAN) so with this knowledge, he was able to cross and come up with a
new local variety. He learned about patience in conducting selection every season
until he got a new breeding line. With this, his knowledge increased so that in 2005,
he became a resource person and facilitator in the ToT and FFS PPB in Indramayu
and in other districts. He also had a chance to share his experiences in the
international workshop on PPB in 2004 held in Laos.
8. Mrs. Tarilah: Breeding rice and hoping for more women to
become breeders
Mrs. Tarilah, 28 years old, lives in Nunuk
village, Lelea sub-district. She is a
member of the Lamaran Farmers' Group.
Out of the 50 members of the farmers'
group, 33 are women. She joined the
FFS PPB on rice conducted in her village
in April-July 2002. After this, she
became active in PEDIGREA and joined
other activities such as:
? ToT on FFS PBB (March 2003)
? FFS on local vegetables (March
2004)
? Enhancement study on rice and
local vegetables (March 2005- up
to the present)
? International farmers' sharing
among PEDIGREA program
participants (Cambodia, January
2008).
20
Aside from her active participation in group activities, she also pursued breeding on
her own. In 2002, she made two crosses Kebo x Ciherang and Dombret x Ciherang.
However, due to her busy schedule and lack of land to pursue further selections, she
was constrained to stop planting her breeding lines in F4.
Nevertheless, Mrs. Tarilah said that her experience in the FFS PPB on rice taught her
to analyze local rice diversity, looking for materials for cross breeding, being
observant when doing selection, and gaining skills to be able to do cross breeding
and selection of segregating materials.
In the future, she will continue to extend and share her knowledge in breeding to
other farmers who want to have the knowledge and skills in rice breeding especially
to women farmers so there will be more of them involved in PPB.
9. Mr. Raspan Darpan: Breeding and increasing one's self-
confidence
Mr. Raspan, 50 years old, lives in
Mulyasari village, Bangodua sub-district.
He is a member of the Karyabakti
Farmers' Group in his village. The group
has 25 members (17 men and 8 women).
Mr. Raspan, together with members of
his farmers' group, joined the FFS PPB
on rice in 2004. He related that the first
time he attended the PEDIGREA program
in Mulyasari, he felt no interest in plant
breeding because he thought the job
was too difficult for farmers, but after
joining the FFS PPB, his views changed.
The FFS helped him become more aware
that farmers have the knowledge and
capacity to solve thie own problems.
On his own, he made several crosses:
Jonggol x Ciherang, Dombret x Mira,
Mira x Dombret (reciprocal cross) and Way Apo Buru x Sri putih. Out of these crosses,
one had shown good potential; this is the cross from Way Apo Buru x Sri putih. For
the last cross mentioned, the breeding line is now in F7. He used the bulk and
21
pedigree methods in his selection process. In 2008, the line was already stable and
it was planted by 15 farmers in Bangodua village.
The Way Sri breeding line
Description and characteristics of the Borang breeding line
Name of Breeder:
Place of breeding:
Name of breeding line:
Status:
Mother variety:
Father variety:
Maturity:
Plant height:
Productive tillers:
Flag leaf:
Grain form:
Number of grains/panicle:
Eating quality:
Yield potential:
Other traits:
Raspan
Mulyasari village, Bangodua sub-district
Way Sri
F 7 (stable)
Way Apo Buru
Sri putih
90 DAT
75 cm
20-25 tillers
Upright
Slender and long
400 grains
Good
8 tons/ha
Resistant to BLB and to lodging
22
Tambak breeding lineduring harvesting time
Tambak breeding linepanicle
Tambak breeding lineseeds (in cm)
23
The stories of farmer breeders featured in this document are indicators of the
success of indicator PPB program in Indramayu,West Java, Indonesia. Many more
farmers in the district have achieve similar accomplishments. However due to some
limitations, we were not able to include all their experiences in this collection.
One of very important lesson stood out from documenting the activities and
achievements of these farmer breeders -- that if provided with the opportunity to
learn through participatory approaches, farmers cn develop their creativity to
analyze and solve their own problems.
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FIELD
FIELD Indonesia Foundation (Farmer Initiatives for
Ecological Livelihoods and Democracy) is an organization
that supports people in marginal communities through
education for empowerment. FIELD Indonesia was
established on 1 June 2001. FIELD key staffs are former
members of the FAO Regional Program on Community IPM
in Asia (www.CommunityIPM.org) in 1998-2002 and were
part of the team that provided technical assistance over
12 years to the National IPM (Integrated Pest Management) Program, local
farmer organizations and the Indonesian IPM Farmers Associations. FIELD
activities make use of a variety learning approaches including the Farmer
Field Schools & Studies, Community Action Research, Sustainable
Livelihoods Framework, and Farmer Advocacy.
FIELD's vision is that marginal communities in Indonesia re-claim and re-
manage their public domains and improve their livelihoods. And its missions
are to facilitate marginal communities to be able to:
? Analyze and understand the conditions of the ecosystems that form
the basis of their livelihoods in technical, social and political
aspects.
? Organize themselves to conduct actions to enhance their
livelihoods in a manner that is both ecologically sound (just and in
harmony with the nature) and democratic (just and in harmony
with other people).
Specifically, FIELD as a partner of PEDIGREA is doing the conservation and
utilization of genetic resources by farmers on rice, local vegetables (sponge
gourd, bitter gourd and pumpkin) and animal (goat), participatory market
development, and policy advocacy within the framework of Farmers' Rights
and Ecological Agriculture in Indramayu District, West Java Province.
Currently, FIELD is also working in other programs, such as Sustaining Local
Food Systems and Agro-biodiversity, Community Action Research for
Advocacy Education and Local Policy Reform, Environment Services Program
Field Schools, Community Biodiversity and Livelihoods Field Schools, Home
garden Vegetable and Nutrition Field Schools as a part of Household Food
Security Program, Ecological Agriculture and Organic Farming, Ecological
IPM in vegetables, and System of Rice Intensification (SRI).
PEDIGREA
The Participatory Enhancement of Diversity of
Genetic Resources in Asia (PEDIGREA) is a project
that aims to strengthen the capability of farming
communities to manage their genetic resources as
part of local agro-biodiversity. The project
focuses on:
? participatory plant breeding aimed at the broadening of the
genetic base of rice in intensive production systems,
? participatory crop improvement of local and traditional vegetables
(i.e. pumpkin, sponge gourd, wax gourd, bitter gourd, eggplant,
string beans),
? participatory animal improvement aimed at enhancing the genetic
base of farm animals (i.e. pig and goat), and
? participatory market development aimed at creating and improving
market opportunities for local and regional farm products.
The purpose of PEDIGREA is to contribute to food sovereignty and to
strengthen farmers' genetic diversity and knowledge systems in the rice
based farming systems of Southeast Asia. It works on participatory
methodologies developed in the Farmer Field School (FFS) approach with
the partner farming communities. At the same time, the project build on
the comparative advantages of all key actors in the management of
genetic resources including those from the public sector.
PEDIGREA project is implemented in three countries, namely: Cambodia,
Indonesia and the Philippines.
PEDIGREA project partners are SRER KHMER in Cambodia, FIELD in
Indonesia and PPRDI in the Philippines, and the CGN, the Netherlands. The
project is coordinated by the PEDIGREA Foundation.
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FARMERS and SEEDS:The Farmer Breeders in
Indramayu District,West Java, Indonesia
ISBN 979-98088-4-2