rice contract farming- cropping 1 report

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Rice Contract Farm- Cropping 1 January- July 2011

Cropping I Report

RICE CONTRACT FARMING

-

SYSTEM OF RICE

INTENSIFICATION

February - July 2011

Migrants’ initiative transforms

community through technology

and tri-people empowerment

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Table of Contents Rationale .......................................................................................................................................... 3 Agronomic Experiments ................................................................................................................ 4 Results ............................................................................................................................................... 6 Challenges ..................................................................................................................................... 12 Recommendations & Discussion .............................................................................................. 14 Financial Overview ...................................................................................................................... 18 Reflection ....................................................................................................................................... 18

Project Summary

Title SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

STRATEGY:

RICE CONTRACT FARMING- SRI

Duration February 2011- June 2011

Capital Php 260,000

Status Finished

Area Kanipaan, Palimbang SultanKudarat

Target

beneficiaries

5 farmers and their families

Management Data gathering/ Monitoring Mary Dawn C. Mantala

Finance Manager Marilyn N. Ty

Administrative officer Jofellini Shane Pulmano

Bookeeper Carol Santiago

Farm Manager Technician Nolhari Mulod

Farm Manager Assistant Bra Lumangka

Cashier and Secretary to technicians Mercy Hermosura

Objectives People, Profit, Planet:

PEOPLE

Develop and implement a land

redemption scheme to return lands back

to original owners:

Take-over family mortgages

Release farmer families from the

degradation of debt

Give families the temporary security of an

income while learning to apply SRI entirely

Give participating

household members salaries

Give families the opportunity to learn to

apply SRI as discipline and as business

Implement work standards

and involve employees in all

decisions as possible and

teach scheduling, work

patterns, company values

and expectations.

Challenge farmers to move from

dependent practitioner to independent

entrepreneur.

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Rationale The root causes of poverty in many rural areas like Palimbang lies in the crippling cycle

of debt in its culture beyond the armed conflict. Debt is incurred where land is used as

collateral upon borrowing a certain amount of cash from local traders or moneyed

landlords. While there is no interest in this customary practice – locally known as

‘sangla’- farmer households are obligated to till the land for the landlord and every

failed cropping spells disaster for the farmer household as all incurred debts will be

cumulatively added to the principal sum. A farmer family can only take back their

land upon paying the total amount of the mortgage. In most cases, families cease to

have the right to exploit their own land for their own families and is reduced to the

status of the tenant. There is no known story of a family able to redeem their land.

Helping farmers increase their production in a sustainable way is one thing, but not

enough to release from perpetual debt. As PASALI saw the need of debt liberalisation,

it developed the Rice Contract Farm with land redemption and business intertwined.

Challenge youth to farm: Give local youth

opportunities to train and manage SRI

production and connected organic

farming.

Hire youth.

Contribute to food security.

Experiment to find ways to

increase production.

Channel migrant and OFWs to invest in

environmentally sustainable food

production.

Document each step so

benefits and opportunities

are ready to pitch to

migrant families.

PROFIT

To make a step towards a viable rice

company.

Keeping sound financial

management.

Keeping costs low

To earn more than PHP 83,300 per hectare

to be able to return the investment

(calculation of direct and indirect costs)

Reach higher harvest quantities and profit

level while maintaining environmental

sustainability.

Study and experiment in

production methods.

PLANET

To contribute in climate change mitigation

by practicing low chemical and water

input farming.

Practice intermittent

irrigation (using less water)

Use less nitrogen fertilizer

(urea).

Minimal use of chemical

pesticides.

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Liberation: Land Redemption through System of Rice Intensification Contract Farming

PASALI’s definition of land redemption entails not only the return of the land to the

original family owners, but also the change of the farmer household from their

dependent position to the position of skilled agri-entrepreneur. The Rice Contract Farm

creates the environment through which the farmer household undergoes this process.1

In the first stage PASALI pays their mortgages and hires them to till their own lands

according to SRI principles under the supervision of PASALI farm technicians. PASALI

handles the entire production, the processing/milling and marketing the rice produce

per harvest. It is contract farming because PASALI acts as an agricultural contractor

who specifies produce and production. However, unlike the conventional contract

farming system, farmers are paid employees rather than being paid for harvest.

Expected one year after, the production of SRI is given to the farmer family and the

following division of income is applied: 50% of hectare’s annual income goes to their

land redemption (which PASALI receives as part of its ROI and re-used for new land

redemption cases), 35% goes to the family as personal income, 10% serves as farmer

family’s contribution to the “Investment for the Future” and is added on to the fund for

new land redemption cases, and 5% serves as compulsory savings.

Agronomic Experiments

SRI’s main standpoint is root care. Minimal spacing of 25 by 25 centimers, early

transplanting, dry field, 1 seedling per hill and regular weeding to aerate the soil, are

all principles of SRI aimed towards root growth. For, the larger and denser the roots,

the more tillers it produces, the longer the panicles, and larger and heavier the grains

are, the stronger the resistant to disease, and the higher the yield. For our practice we

maintained these base principles and experimented on the following variables:

Direct versus transplanted

A. We looked at the RCF’s yield versus the average SRI yield of Palimbang.

B. We looked at the yield of transplanted versus direct planting:

1. Direct planting called “Sabog” with an inbred 96-day maturity variety (RC-120)

2.

Transplant with an inbred 110-day maturity variety (RC-140)



3. Transplant with a native 75-day maturity variety(PBR-88)

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All transplant is at 9 – 20 days-old seedlings, with seedling per hill

C. We looked at the number of tillers according to date transplanted versus direct

planting. Tillers are important indicator of harvest volume. Since we were hit by a

multiple pest outbreak this cropping we cannot base conclusions only on the number

of sacks/kilos (as it may be too little).

D. We looked at the yield of 96 varieties in comparison with each other, and versus 75-

day native variety.

Weeding

We looked at the number of tillers per plant with single weeding versus criss-cross

weeding.

Spacing

We looked at the number of tillers in fields with the 20x20 cm versus 25 x 25 cm

spacing.

Footprint: water, fertilizer, pesticides

We also measured our use of water, fertilizers and pesticides:

- Intermittent flooding: at land preparation, before transplant, every 7 days

5 cm water

- Soil fertilization: organic fertilizer guano and commercial urea

- Pest control: organic, minimal use of chemicals

Table 1 shows the allocation of these experiments in the 5.5 hectare land selected for

the pilot. Seeds are planted in a nursery, and directly transplanted to the field

between 8 – 15 days. We have 8 day, 13 and 14 day transplants.

Family Size sqm Experiment Seed Variety

Rent Pasaporte 3, 492 Transplant PBR–88

/Hermosura

9,036.75 Direct RC-120

Hutalla 7,904.40 Direct RC-120

2,266 Transplant PBR-88

Mortgage Mulod 7500 Transplant RC-140

2500 Transplant RC-160

Lumangka(

lower)

10,000 Transplant RC-160

upper 10, 000 Transplant RC-158

Aman 2, 790 Transplant RC 158

2, 790 Transplant RC-160

Table 2.

Planting

experiments

per area

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Results

Wet harvest is the harvest direct from the threshing machine on the field. Rice is still in

husk. Dry harvest is after the rice has gone through the milling process and the husks

are removed. The plots of RCF land did not reach the average of SRI in the area for

reasons several we will explain in this report:

- We used higher number of kilos per seed for broadcast plots than the required

for SRI and no spacing was used. As a result plant roots would not expand and

had to be covered with a thin layer of water to prevent weeds.

- Our soil test after the harvest showed that the land has potassium deficiency

which we did not address (since we did not know). The lack of potassium leads

to poor flower development (small panicles, limited grain formation), low plant

resistance to pest and climate and poor harvest. All of which we experienced.

- The soil test also shows the land has high nitrogen content which we suspect is

responsible for attracting certain bugs and the rice blast.

- The soil test finally shows we also had too much phosphorus, the excess of

which leads to little plant growth and even planting shrinking.

- We had numerous pest attacks which did not end after spraying chemical

pesticides.

- The heavy downpour of rain throughout the season washed out any effect of

pesticides and accounts for high humidity which in turn caused the rice blast

and bacterial leaf infection.

See results Soil test and list of Recommendations.

Direct versus transplanted

RCF Area/

Farmer

Gross harvest

(wet)

Net

harvest

(dry)

Average harvest SRI

Palimbang per hectare

Sacks Kilos Sacks Sacks Kilos

Palimbang

average SRI

90-130 4500-6500

Pasaporte 59.5 2975 21

Hutalla 46.5 2325 16.25

Mulod 78.75 62.75

Lumangka-

lower

60 52.5

Lumangka-

upper

61.75 40

Aman 36.25 30

Table 3:

Harvest results

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1987.5 2325

987.5

3187.5

750

3000 3087.5

800 1012.5

0 500

1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500

Kilo

s

Area & Variety

Transplanted

Direct Planted

A. RCF yield versus average SRI yield in Palimbang

The total harvest (wet) in kilos is visible in graph 1. The average harvest per hectare of

SRI in Palimbang is 4 - 4.5 tons (80-90 sacks) and the past cropping SRI farmers in the

area have recorded 5.5 – 6.5 tons (110-130 sacks). Unfortunately due to challenges we

will further explain below, the maximum harvest for a hectare of RCF was 3.937 tons

(79 sacks), while the lowest harvest was 2.32 tons (46.5 sacks).

Graph 1. Harvest in kilos

B. 1-3 Direct versus transplant

Since every plot has different land area, we can compare the yield by multiplying the

harvest in less than one hectare plots to one hectare harvest and by computing

harvest in more than one hectare to only a hectare harvest. First, we calculate the

percentage of a plot’s land area to the whole area. For example, Pasaporte’s plot for

PBR 88 (3, 492 sqm) is only a 28% to the whole land area which is 12, 528.75 sqm. Since

Pasaporte’s land exceeds a hectare( about 125 %), we get only the 100% land area’s

harvest. We divided the PBR 88 yield which is19.75 sacks by 28%, then, multiply to 100

times (for one hectare only). Thus, if the area is maximized to a hectare, it can yield up

to 70.54 sacks.

The graph shows that if every rice variety is planted in a hectare, the transplanted

RC140 in Mulod’s area yields the highest. The lowest is Hutalla’s RC120 in direct

planting. Generally, transplant areas yields more than direct planting. However, it is

necessary to conduct another test of comparison for with the direct planting some SRI

principles were not applied.

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19.75 39.75

46.5

63.75 15

60 61.75

16 20.25

70.54 55.21

46.5

85 60 60

61.75 64

81

0 20 40 60 80 100

Pasaporte- PBR 88 Pasaporte-RC 120

Hutalla- RC 120 Hutalla- PBR 88

Mulod-RC 140 Mulod- RC 160

Lumangka- RC 160 Lumangka- RC 158

Aman- RC 158 Aman- RC 160

No. of sacks

Are

a &

Var

iety

Actual yield vs. Max yield Max Harvest ( if 1 hectare)

Actual Harvest

Graph 2. Actual yield (what we harvested) versus Maximum yield (if each plot reached 1

hectare). See table 1 for land sizes.

C. Tillers transplant versus direct

RC-120 on Hutalla’s land had the most tillers in any given time (39), however since the

area was densely planted – we used far more seed than required and did not apply

spacing – it could be said that the tillers counted were from multiple plants and not

one. The next to have the most tillers (34) is PBR-88 also on Hutalla’s land which was

transplanted with spacing of 25x25cm. Therefore it could be argued that the planting

mode with the most tillers is the transplant. For next cropping we devised a new form

of direct planting, still broadcasted but this time we will maintain the SRI spacing.

D. Inbred transplant versus native transplant

The lowest yield transplanted was RC160 on Lumanka’s land and the highest yield of

transplant was RC140 on Mulod’s land. The native 75-day transplant (PBR-88) had the

third highest yield. And the land with PBR-88 had water drainage problems in the

beginning and all lands had a potassium deficiency as we learned after a soil test,

Graph 2.

Actual

yield vs.

Maximum

yield

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1 1

13 14 15 15 14

20

11

24

16

39

34

15

9

23 23

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

Age sowed/transplanted( days old)

No. of tillers

23

11

Graph 3: Seedling age and mode of planting

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thus, we would need another test. But the inbreds manifested less disease resistance

compared to the native variety and other natives varieties we know of have recorded

higher yields in the past. In the next cropping we will plant native varieties on the

disease-prone areas and only a select number of inbreds to minimize pest.

Weeding: Single versus Crisscross weeding

Supposedly, weeding is done regularly every 7 days but from the vegetative stage

(after it starts tillering) to booting (grain formation), we switched to manual weeding

because during this period any disturbance to roots and plant might negatively affect

its growth. According to SRI literature, the more the soil is weeded, the higher the

number of tillers should be. Surprisingly, the most frequently weeded plot (see graph 3,

Lumangka’s area for RC 160) has the lowest tiller count, while the plot in his area that

was weeded for only 3 times (due to plant density and lack of spacing) produced

more tillers than the more frequently weeded ones. Hutalla’s RC120 produced the

most tillers after weeding three times, but as mentioned before, this may be due to

counting tillers of multiple plants. While RC-160 maybe not have produced many tillers,

we harvested more from these plots compared to other plots.

We have several thoughts on this:

1. The variety doesn’t produce many tillers.

2. The other varieties were hit by pest and rats therefore little harvest was left.

3. Multiple weeding is still key but the care, adjustment to soil conditions, and the

variety still affect the tillering.

Graph 3 Note: Tillers were counted on or day/days before the harvest date.

Transplanting with crisscross weeding produced more tillers in native variety PBR 88.

Single weeding produced more tillers in broadcasted RC 120 because plant density is

greater in single weeding than in crisscross. However, single weeding brings about

more problems than its fuel saving advantage for the weeder. The denser a plot is, the

harder it is to control black bugs that lurks on the base of the plant and Bungot-

bungot weeds. Also, it causes poor airflow and poor sunlight penetration that causes

rice blast.

3 4 4 3 3 5

3 2 2

24

16

39

34

15

9

23 23

11

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

freq

uen

cy o

f w

eed

ing/

No

. of

tilll

ers

Type of weeding/ Area/ Variety

Single

Crisscross

tillers

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Spacing

The fields with higher number of tillers are the ones with the 25x25 cm spacing (see

graph 4). In Pasaporte’s area where RC 120 was planted in 25x25 distance with

crisscross weeding, tiller count is only 12-16 during harvest time. So, much space

between plant remained when it is supposed to be used by the plant to expand its

tillers. On one hand, broadcasted RC 120 seeds in Hutalla’s farm with single weeding

has 39 tillers three days before harvest because a hill contains more seedling than

former with crisscross weeding. However, we cannot assume that 25x25 is the ultimate

standard. We can only conclude, that in these particular soils with their specific

nutrient count and with these varieties, the 25x25 does best.

Graph 4. Harvest comparison between plots with 25x25 and 25x20 cm spacing

Footprints: Water, Fertilizer, Pesticide

SRI intermittent irrigation uses 54% less water than conventional farming

Graph 6. Water volume in cubic meter

Depending on the type of planting (direct or transplant), every plot is watered and

drained every 3 or 7 days. The estimated cubic meters of water are calculated by

multiplying the square meter surface of the field with the height in meters (0.02 or 0.05

27.372

12.375 16

21

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

25x25 cm 25x 20 cm

No

. of

sack

s/ T

iller

s

spacing

Spacing vs. tiller

37.38

5058.8

2891.76

242.69

2400

1500

4587 4842

1059.87 809.1

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

Direct Planting

Transplant

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m) of water, assuming one-time water release into the field. After weeding the direct

planted plots 2-3 times, the roots and plants had grown so close to each other that

weeding would destroy their roots. In order to keep weeds away, we left 1-2 cm water

every 3 days to keep the weeds away. Next cropping, we will make sure spacing is

maintained whether it is transplanted or broadcasted.

A study in Thailand of water use in rice fields shows that intermittent irrigation as we

used saves 54% water compared to continous irrigation.2

Fertilizer

Conventional farming in the Palimbang area uses 1,5x more urea or other commercial

sources of nitrogen than the amounts we applied. Other than nitrogen urea has no

potassium or phosphorus, which we supplied with PASALI’s own organic guano mix.

Graph 7 shows that we applied more guano than urea in quantity.

The fields suffered from a surge of leafhoppers and rice blast (the disease in which

panicle turns white and dies before the seedling stage). These are indicators of

excessive nitrogen use. Nitrogen content of urea is at 47% and at 2,1% for guano. We

intend to have another lab test for guano during the next cropping since the previous

test was done in 2009 and the content may have changed. After this test, and with

calculations of nitrogen usage for conventional, we can project how much less

nitrogen we used in RCF compared to conventional farming. For now, studies in SRI

show that that SRI uses up to 13-33% less nitrogen than conventional farming.

Pesticide

Graph 8. Pesticide input in liters. Note: Pesticides are diluted in water.

This cropping, we used multiple chemical pesticides (Lannate, Baylucide, Bushwhack,

2 http://www.rid.go.th/thaicid/_6_activity/Technical-Session/SubTheme2/2.10-Susi_H-

Dewi_AA-Marasi_DJ-Soekrasno.pdf

336

944

528 608

190.4

512

9 0

200

400

600

800

1000

Chemical

Organic (salt sol'n/ freegrow)

225

450 450

175

450

250 150

250 200

100 200

100

0 100 200 300 400 500

Kilo

s

Area

Guano

Urea

Graph 7. Amount of Guano and urea applied (in sacks)

http://www.rid.go.th/thaicid/_6_activity/Technical-Session/SubTheme2/2.10-Susi_H-Dewi_AA-Marasi_DJ-Soekrasno.pdf

http://www.rid.go.th/thaicid/_6_activity/Technical-Session/SubTheme2/2.10-Susi_H-Dewi_AA-Marasi_DJ-Soekrasno.pdf

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Carat, Vindex) for multiple pest. Organic solution was tried though in small amounts

only. These solutions offered no resistance against the multiple pest outbreaks we

experienced. This is partly due to:

- the lack of monitoring by field workers, by the time we applied pesticides the

outbreak was too great.

- Rain, which put an temporary halt to spraying

- Apparent resistance of insects to these solutions

- Infestations from other fields easily enter our fields

We have found several recommendations from other agricultural practices, including

using different kinds of pesticides, organic to chemical, from one day to the next. This

surprises the pests and keeps them from eating off your produce.

Challenges

Pest management

The vegetative stage of the plants, showed promising growth but during the booting

stage pests like black bug, rice bug, million bug and leafhopper started to build up

until it stormed in the ripening stage. We failed to control it while they are small in

number and to read and act on signs of infestation like diminishing tiller count and leaf

discoloration. Many pesticides were sprayed already in different kinds and

combinations but these pests are not killed.

In the first two weeks, snails ate up many seedlings which forced us to replant. Before

next planting, we will implement organic measures to keep snails from entering and

surviving in the fields the first 3 weeks. After that plants are large enough and snails

become friends since they eat up weeds.

Earlier, during the booting stage, the area for RC 120 ( .675 ha) with 20x25 spacing was

attacked by rats. Supposedly, it should yield more harvest because it has bigger land

area. We are uncertain about the use of the Trap Barrier System recommended by the

International Rice Research Institute since that needs the collective efforts of farmers

in the area. Farmers in the area are hestitant if not against trying new things especially

if a budget is needed.

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On way to keep snails, pests and even rats away is to keep areas clean. However, if

our neighbor has bushy dikes and canals where rats, snails propagate, a solo effort

won’t have much impact. Keeping the area clean is major community challenge as

pest such as bugs and rats transfer from one area to another. In Kanippan, even

convincing other farmers for a community rat hunting remains a big challenge.

Rainy weather

The rainy season had tremendous effect on the production. We discovered simply

broadcasting seeds onto a moist field is not feasible since the rain washes away the

seeds to the canals. The next time around, we must first mark the fields, leave them to

dry a bit before broadcasting in the hills very thinly. Also, one of the reason pesticides

did not have much effect on pests because every afternoon, before or after spraying,

rain falls that washes it away. Rain also extends harvest dates and delays threshing, as

well as stimulate bacterial leaf blight, which was a major issue on two plots.

Harvest Problems

A hectare takes one day to finish harvesting by 8-10 persons. A group of harvesters we

contacted didn’t finish harvesting Palay because some of their members went home

ahead, leaving the work to 2 persons. The team approached the team leader for the

unfinished work but the farm technician agreed with the harvesters to resume the

work the following day. The ungathered freshly harvested Palay was left in the open

field overnight. A learning moment for the management is not to leave crucial

decisions on farm technicians.

There was also a plot that was harvested, gathered and covered with a construction

sheet but when a heavy rain fell overnight, rain still penetrated the sheet making the

Palay inside wet. The following day, upon opening the sheet, there were million bugs

all over the Palay. Next time, we should do the harvesting and threshing on the same

day as possible. Harvesters will be briefed of the work rules.

We also had problem on the threshing machine. Its blower runs too fast and one of

the blade deforms. Sometimes it is stopped to knock it up back to its original position.

Lenient Management or people issues

Many times, the management instructs the planters in the right way of planting but the

planters still don’t follow. The overseeing farm technician also fear to correct them as

they might not come back again or hold grudge against us. As a result, there were

many standards that was not followed because we did not ruled over our laborers.

Next cropping, the management will be strict about uprooting, planting, regular

monitoring, harvesting and threshing.

Harvest date extension

The maturity date of each plot was extended even up to 12 days after the given

maturity date. There was no difference in direct or transplant but we cannot make

conclusions based on the current practice of direct because it is subject to much

change still.

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We can only observe that maturity could be extended due to various factors that

caused stress, such as late transplant (14-15 days), heightened stress with uprooting

and perhaps improper planting, pest infestation, and the wrong application of fertilizer

(see Recommendations, Soil Test results).

Recommendations & Discussion

Soil Test Results & Fertilization

We relied primarily on local knowledge of soil conditioning during the first cropping. At

the start of the second cropping before the land preparation we had a soil test done.

The main results were:

1. most of our soils were potassium deficient

Potassium is responsible for height, tillers and multiplication of leaves as well as

resistance. This would account for the short plants and minimum tiller count of the

previous cropping.

2. most of our soils had too much nitrogen and phosphorus

We applied too much N and P. Phosphorus overdose stunts the growth of plants and

too much nitrogen attracts certain pests.

Farmer/Area Experiment Variety No. days

Advance

harvest

No. of days

Late Harvest

Pasaporte Transplant PBR–88 9

Direct RC-120 1

Hutalla Direct RC-120 9

Transplant PBR-88

Mulod Transplant RC-140 5

Transplant RC-160 12

Lumangka Transplant RC-160 12

Transplant RC-158 0 0

Aman Transplant RC 158 9

Transplant RC-160 13

Table 4:

Harvest

date

extension

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Therefore, we will recalculate the soil nutrients for the second cropping. We will not

follow the test’s recommendation which is based on conventional rice growing but

we will follow the total recommended kilos of NPK, calculating the right amount of the

kilos of NPK with a combination of our own guano which is the main source for

phosphorus, commercial Urea (46-0-0)and potassium (0-0-60).

We sought organic fertilizers but no trader in General Santos or Maitum is selling any at

the moment. We will however, make a vermicast box for vermiculture to apply which

has some nutrients. The commercial fertilizers annul the work of the organic

microorganisms but organic fertilizer still has its own NPK.

We will changed the order of application of fertilizers and amount at the same time,

according to our knowledge of the effects of NPK. Conventional fertilizer applications

Recommend applying the bulk of the nitrogen and the potassium last. But both are

needed for the tillering and the root growth as well as plant resistance, so it makes

more sense to apply as first application after transplant and ending with the organic

guano. Also, conventional fertilization recommends a first and second application

which means applying several bags of NPK at the same time. For the second

cropping, we decided to have a first, second and third, applying not more than one

bag of each nutrient per time with the space of several days in-between.

Applying the last of the organic fertilizer last will also minimize somewhat the killing

effect of the commercial fertilizers and allow the organic mechanisms to release

nutrients gradually, conditioning the soil naturally.

Palay Check

For the second crop we will intensify the agronomic monitoring to day 3 after seed

planting, then day 7, then finally weekly. We also will intensify all team members’

knowledge of the Rice Check method, as each team will be responsible for their own

monitoring. The monitoring member of the operational staff will be present as much as

possible and collect as soon as possible. This is to counter the events of the previous

cropping, that that person assigned for monitoring made many mistakes applying the

checking method.

Water & Weeds: Land Preparation

Palimbang has a high rain rate and is abundant in ground water. We thus had the too

much water issue for many plots. We plan to do several things:

- maintain the presence of the canal throughout the production cycle

- make the canals deeper

- intensify monitoring during land preparation to ensure that it is done thoroughly

- on the especially water- and weed-prone areas use not only the plainer and leveler

but also the tractor to deeply plough the soil.

- build mid-field canals

- maintain intermittent flooding: flash floods at land preparation, before transplant,

every 7 days 5 cm water

Also, we observed that RC 140 and RC 160 work better than the other varieties in wet

soil, so we will keep those. In our SRI practice we will keep searching and studying

which varieties do best in dry and which in wet soil conditions.

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Seed preparation

For the next cropping we will try the so-called dapog system, which is sowing the

seeds in a carrier. Our carriers are the opened up sack of meal (the seed is sprinkled

over it, and lifted at transplant from the seedbed) and the trunks of banana trees.

Planting and Spacing

In the direct ‘sabog’ field we sowed too much seed (the conventional 60 rather than

25 of recommended for SRI), this caused the plants to grow too close to each other

making weeding impossible. And it broke the SRI principle of 1 seedling per hill since

there was no marker.

For the next cropping we will apply the transplant system for the majority of the fields

to maintain the proper spacing. But on a smaller plot apply a new way of

broadcasting: mark the field as you would at a regular transplant, then rather than

broadcasting seed at random, sprinkle them thinly over the place where the lines

meet (and where at transplant you would plant one seedling). Once the seedlings

sprout, thin them out leaving only the seedling closest to the middle.

The marked field will keep the seeds from spreadings across the field like it did the first

cropping. Planting the seeds at the cross sections should theoretically ‘lock’ the seed.

If it rains and the lines overflow then the seed should hopefully only be dislodged

within in the lines.

Weeding

The next cropping we will attempt to intensify the weeding.

Varieties and tillers

We will plant the native PBR-88 again and add to this the native Texas variety. We will

also use a mixed selection of seeds, and keep only RC 140 and RC 160 since we

noticed they have shown signs of promise in adapting to wet soil conditions.

Pest Control

The next crop we will use preventive pest control methods, organic and native

methods, an experiment with coconut sweat as pest spray as well as the element of

surprise.

Preventive methods:

- plant another native variety since natives with SRI are known to be higher in pest

resistance

- higher the dike and keep the dike clean to minimize snail and insect movement

- sprinkle rice hulls to immobilize the snails in the first weeks after transplant when

seedling are prone to snail infestation

- plant bright colored flowers and plants known to be insect repellants like some

vegetables, lemongrass, etc.

- clean dikes and herbicide not the field but the dikes to keep them clean of insects

that might transfer to the field on a later stage

- adjust our fertilizer to lower the attraction of pests

17


- make a weekly batch of mild herb tea to spray over the field, as studies show the

neem juice and oil are effective pest control method. The idea is that every week a

different plant is used to make tea: neem tree leaves, ginger, pepper, madre de

cacao leaves, and the fermented juice. Spraying a mild concoction on a weekly

basis, we hope, will discourage pests to enter the field.

- As a means against rats, we will attempt to sprinkle goat manure over the field, as

traditional notions say rats dislike the scent.

We found that surprise could disarray pest and thus we will use different kinds of base

for spray rather than just one:

- coconut sweat (currently being developed and experimented on by PASALI)

- neem oil

- goat manure

- chemical-based pesticides

Challenged youth to farm

The pilot gave regular jobs to six youth 15 – 25 years old who previously had none and

approximately eight more as freelance labourers. Should this business venture

increase, then both the jobless educated and out-of-school youth (especially those

from the families who own the land) will be recruited for RCF operations. Their situation

is learn-on-the-job and the possibilities are equal for them as it is for their seniors. Giving

youth key roles in the production of the business opens up opportunities that were

previously non-existent. Some of the youth contribute to family expenses, while others

have become self-reliant, paying their own meals and making plans for their own

housing. This is the bare essence of self-determination: seizing opportunities for self-

sustenance and personal growth. By the time the venture expands, these youth will be

the technicians in the new teams. This means the youth directly contribute to local

economy with their income and to the circulation of knowledge for future

generations.

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Financial Overview Expenses

Direct expenses: farm

inputs

185, 539.50

Indirect expenses:

Personnel allowance 75, 000

Medical Assistance, Bonus 3, 850

Admin Cost 25, 106.50

Total expenses: Php 260,000

2nd Cropping Budget

Direct expenses: Farm inputs 99, 720.00

Indirect expenses:

Personnel allowance 78,000

Admin Cost 8,000

Contingency 10% 18, 572

Total expenses: 206, 292

Reflection Our experience with the first cropping shows that in Palimbang we have much more

to learn in adapting SRI to the local conditions. SRI literature worldwide has had

tremendous success in dry areas but in wet areas such as Palimbang where it rains

heavily regardless of the season, optimal SRI is yet to be discovered. Knowledge and

adaptation of SRI through trial and experiment is one factor to success.

The other is managing people. In our initial goal setting, we stated that we will take

the farmer through a process in which they learn to apply SRI in a higher level and

learn to manage a business so that they might become their own agri-preneurs. In

Palimbang there is a very strong ‘laisse faire’ attitude, or the fatalistic attitude of ‘we

will lose money anyways so why bother’, which halts motivation to apply and study

SRI. This attitude and the consequent lack of monitoring and work on the fields is one

of the main challenge to reaching our goal of seeing the farmers completely

independent. But everyone has their carrot. The challenge is to find that what the

households really want, connect that with operations. Next year (that is after next

cropping) the finance flows will change to: of the net income 50% goes to the

farmer’s pay-back for land redemption, 35% goes to their monthly income, 10% goes

to the land redemption fund, and 5% is the farmer’s forced saving.

The Rice Contract Farm isn’t a project. We must make profit to survive. But to survive

doesn’t only mean economic sustainability but also the portal for the farmers to regain

the land that is theirs and keep it.

Table 4:

Expenses

versus Net Sales

Table 5:

Budget 2nd

Cropping 2011

rice contract farming- cropping 1 report

Documents

rice intensification

rice contract farming

farmer family

families management

degradation of debt

sangla farmer households

land redemption scheme

tripeople empowerment