Mekong Sustainable Farming Forum
Mekong Sustainable Farming Forum
- July Newsletter -
Thailand Permaculture Convergence Web Site
Open Visit at K. Prince’s urban farm
Noam Chomsky and other experts discuss Agriculture in a Changing World
Laos National Demonstration Site a bountiful source of food, water
30 Year Old Trial Finds Organic Farming Outperforms Conventional Agriculture
So That's It!
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Chris's blog
This will be my last blog on this site as we have decided to join the new web site set up by the working group at this year’s Thailand permaculture convergence. The group set up a small working group of individuals, experienced in this area and resident in SE Asia. I sat in on the processes and believe that offering membership of the new web site to all our existing membership is the best way to increase the interest in food quality. I will still be available to answer any questions any members may have.
David will tell you how to sign yourself up for the new web page. It is not our intention to block move the membership, as some may not wish to join.
The rains have started to be more settled so the ground is much looser and easier to plant. The sugar that we planted has not done well for a couple of reasons. We bought the cane to cut into strips to plant before we had prepared the planting area. The ground was hard as it is not that fertile, so it took way too long to plant, so much of the root stock died. So the lesson s learnt are:-
1 Wait till the ground moisture is good, so digging is not hard work.
2 Buy the plant material after the ground is ready, not before.
We have since dug up and moved the plants that survived, so that we could open the area for cattle grazing.
Another project which is ongoing, is to use beans, (which are fast growing) to help to stabilise bank erosion. So far so good and the black might that attacked the plant when we planted it as a food crop have not appeared so far.
We are also
building a new enclosure to increase space for the birds and improve the number
of eggs laid by our duck and chicken mums. We should be getting about 0.8 eggs
per bird per day, but we are getting less than half that. So we are going to
try separating the mums from the juveniles. We are also building an egg
incubator which we are building ourselves. Based on an electronic controller,
the system will turn the 2x40 watt bulbs on and off to maintain a constant 40c.
With a simple dish of water for humidity
and a small fan for air circulation, we should be as efficient as the mums at
hatching out the eggs.
We have
also done some experimentation with cucumber plants to see what difference shade
cloth makes. Treated the same way in regard to watering, the shade cloth
covered area grew at twice the speed of the plants not covered.
As we are about 7 months into the project I have done a review of the mistakes made. So here in no particular order are some hard learnt lessons.
1 Site plan.
We have done extra work a few times because I was too flexible on my master plan.
2 Irrigation
We have set up a bit of an irrigation scheme, but it is not complete. So we waste a lot of time and energy dragging hoses around to water the plants.
3 Resources
Make sure you have on hand the money, time, and enthusiasm to handle the setbacks that you did not expect.
4 Planting
season
Planting during the dry season is a lot more hard work than the rainy season. The ground is hard and the seeds tend not to germinate without constant watering.
And finally animal feed. If you are looking to sell animals as income there are considerable differences in the price you get , depending on the time of year that you sell. Also make sure you know the cost and availability of feed on a monthly basis. We use a combination of our dried cassava chips and rice bran for the birds and older pigs. The cassava is a Thia variety, so cannot be eaten fresh by animals, due to the cyanide content. It is our plan to include banana trunks in the pig’s diet as soon as they are large enough.
Well that is it for this month. I will be posting from time to time on the new web page. It won’t be monthly, but will include all the issues for our farm. I have enjoyed posting, the progress of our farm, and hope that as many as are interested continue their interest in appropriate farming methods.
Chris
Thailand Permaculture Convergence Web Site
Dear all,
Agriculture is the oldest industry on the planet, but it’s also one of the most dangerous. The way we are doing it is clearly not sustainable, and if we don’t start making changes today, we’re going to be in trouble down the line. http://www.nextworldtv.com/page/28261.html
*National Demonstration Site a bountiful source of food, water *
*Vientiane Times, **June *12* , 2015*
The National Demonstration Site (NDS) in Vangvieng district, Vientiane province, aims to become a source of sustainable biodiversity that provides a secure food source for local people.
The NDS is closely linked to water resource management and was established in 2011. It is located at the Nam Por reservoir (a branch of the Nam Xong reservoir). The site lies about 10km to the northeast of Vangvieng district.
*The National Demonstration Site in Vientiane province provides sufficient water for local villagers' smallholdings and household use. *
The site covers 829 hectares and is situated alongside Phong and Bannoy mountains. It borders on the six villages of Nakhae, Naduang, Phonpheng, Pakpor, Phoudindaeng and Sa-ngao.
The site is hilly and contains seven streams - the Huaythany, Huaypakkoud, Huaypaxeuam, Huaynampoung, Huaymaksan, Huaypadouk and Huaykiewkhanath.
Its location and water resources make it an ideal place for local people to forage for food, such as bamboo shoots, mushrooms and medicinal plants, which they can either eat or sell.
Director General of the Water Resource Department of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, Mr Chanthaneth Boualapha, explained that the streams are important water sources for villagers' farming activities.
To ensure sustainable food sources, villagers are advised to establish a specific zone to monitor water resources and test water quality. This includes monitoring biodiversity in the Nam Por reservoir and the construction of a dyke at this reservoir to slow water flow, which will reduce flooding.
With the abundance of water at the site, the Water Resource Department in collaboration with the Natural Resources and Environment Department of Vientiane province and other government bodies has installed a gravity-fed water system for the villagers' daily use.
Mr Chanthaneth said the government bodies involved in the project want to promote the site as a tourist destination by creating public awareness among local people about the value of the natural resources it contains.
Water use for development purposes is increasing every year. Energy development from water is a huge opportunity for Laos and the country will be well placed to supply electricity to the region in the future. In
addition, irrigation is a priority for food security and increased agricultural production.
“The NDS is closely related to water resource management. It is an important step in the implementation, training, study and lesson exchange on water resource management in Laos,” Mr Chanthaneth said.
“We hope that this site will become a model area that other provinces will emulate in the years to come.”
Is organic farming more resilient, higher yielding, more energy efficient and more profitable? The Rodale Institute's latest report of a 30 year trial says it is. Read the full report free here.
So That's It!
This will be the last monthly newsletter from the Mekong Sustainable Farming Forum.
I will continue to forward interesting permaculture articles to those on my "old' list.
If you would like to join please write to me at dgw...@gmail.com
I am sure there is a very exciting future for
Permaculture and Sustainable farming in the Mekong region, and I am sure
we will meet again
Kind regards and thank you for your interest
David