Maizefarmer

Everything I read leaves me wondering if it'll do much good in Thailand at all - maybe down South and near the coasts, but inland and up North / North East, doesn't look like it'll do well at all.

All that character and personality bullshit and you never picked up on it over 3 years living together? Sooner you turn your back and walk away the better.

The Diesel Tree: Grow Your Own Oil

by Warren McLaren, Sydney 2.04.08

You'd have thought that with 20,000 stories in our archives we might've at least mentioned this in passing. But it seems not. Australian farmers in the wet tropical region of North Queensland have bought over 20,000 of these so-called diesel trees. The intention is that in 15 or so years they'll have their very own oil mine growing on their farmland. Because, the Brazilian Copaifera langsdorfii, to use its botanical name, can be tapped not unlike a rubber tree, but instead of yielding rubbery latex it gives up a natural diesel. According to the nurseryman selling the trees, one hectare will yield about 12,000 litres annually. *

Once filtered—no complex refining required, apparently—it can be placed straight into a diesel tractor or truck. We read that a single Copaifera langsdorfii will continue to produce fuel oil for an impressive 70 years, with the only negative being that its particular form of diesel needs to be used within three months of extraction.

Oddly this is not news. <a href="http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/duke_energy/Copaifera_langsdorfii.html">The Center for New Crops & Plant Products, at Purdue University reports that it was first reported to the western world as far back as 1625. They observe reports from 1979 saying "Natives ... drill a 5 centimeter hole into the 1-meter thick trunk and put a bung into it. Every 6 months or so, they remove the bung and collect 15 to 20 liters of the hydrocarbon." The UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation noted in a paper at the Eleventh world forestry congress back in 1997 on the topic of tree oil for cars that "... the potential of other alternatives such as the Amazon Copaifera langsdorfii need to be investigated."

Copaifera langsdorfii can grow trunks 30 metres tall and store the oil in their unusual capilliary structure. The above image is a transverse section of the tree's cells.

* I used to convert metric measurements in American imperial but when I discovered that the only countries that have failed to embrace metric are the USA, Liberia and Burma I stopped. However Purdue University record that "An acre of 100 mature trees might thus be able to produce 25 barrels of fuel per year."

Via ABC and Sydney Morning Herald

Source: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/04/th...our_own_oil.php

The comments after the article are interesting.

"drill a 5cm hole and put a cork in it - then come back 6months later for your 15 - 20 litres of diesel ......."

For Thailand change to:

"drill a 5cm hole and, then secure cork with a high security hasp & latch - then come back 6months later and hope someone hasn't drilled another hole......."

There was something written up on the Farming section a few years ago about a tree that produces fuel, but I don't recall it been anything like this sort of quantity. This warrants some looking into - 12 000litres per hectare! R u sure?? Wow - thats pretty good.

Of course the devil is in the detail, and while the yields here look pretty good, the big apparent advantage is that so little post harvest processing needs to be undertaken - hence little capital outlay is required for hardware. Something new worth reading up on.

SoHow long does this "organic bowser "take to grow before it starts producing?

aaaah .. have just read some of the posts above:

- 15 - 20 before you can start harvesting

- need lots of water - and thats going to equate to pretty high energy costs if you're growing in the North East (how much and how often)

This sounds like a high rainfall and humid enviroment crop - prehaps along the coastal regions of Thailand, but not inland.

Quite a few in China Town - the Thai rules are 12ft/lbs max without a license(same as Europe) - and you're going to get told by everyone you speak to "no can, no can" because youre a "farang". Get your other half to get it for you if you run into problems.

Most of the airguns sold in Thailand are cheap Far East knockoffs - no Day States or Theoben's and importing them legally more than doubles the Western retail prices when pruchased here.

Your best bet - buy back home, break it down into pieces and bring it back bit by bit.

You can buy my old Quackenbush Exile if you want(?)

I live on a dead end soi on the edge of a moo bahn in Bangkok. When I want to park my car in my driveway I pull up and reverse it in, but now I cannot do this because of the two old women living in the house oposite me have blocked there front with a large plant on a concrete pot.

They have placed this plant there to be awkward just because they fell out with my wife. The reason they fell out is because we heard from other people on our soi that these two women have been saying nasty things about my wife and her family who stay with us. Not sure what they were saying and I couldn't care less.

We were all friends at first but then we heard what they were saying and we just stopped speaking with them, I think my wife told them why we are no longer talking to them. And ever since they sold there car they have blocked this small area off with this plant. By the way, it is on the road and it's not there land. It's really anoying as now I have to do a ten point turn to get the car in. We have two cars and the other on is parked out the front of our house.

I have moved the pot only for them to put it further out in the middle of the soi. I am thinking of just smashing it up but I think that will just giveus more problems. Do you guys have any ideas that I could try?

Yer ... try speaking to them - its about communication.

Then again, you could just save the money and make use of Thai State/Gov hospitals. The main regional hospitals like Chula in Bangkok, Surat Thani (in Surat Thani), Korat, Loei, Chang Mai ect ect .... are good hospitals and although you may not have a flash room and European menu in English, the quality of the medical service is as good as it gets in the private hospitals - at a fraction of the price: a week (well 6,5 days to be exact) for me in IC at the Army hospital (Loei) a few years back - the total bill (and this was an IC bed - not a standard room/bed) was just under Baht 30 000 - doctors, emergency surgery, dressings, nurse (maybe I should rewrite that as "nursing care"), meals .... everything.

The IC ward was kitted out as good as it gets - all the equipment/gear was modern big brandname US and European gear. The doc's were great and nurses were awful nice. You will find as well that many of the specialist doc's and surgeons that work in private hospitals in Thailand are also contracted to work in government hospitals.

Nothign wrong with the Thai state hospitals - they are good.

Well well well .... so she was out to steal the property.......!!!

No - if your using drippers over that small size of area, then no its no good - you are going to have to use some kind of "positive" pressure system if thats the time frame.

Sorry - I didn;t realise this was all about drippers.

PS - any idea of the total volume you will be watering each time?

I posted this thread because there are WAY too many negative stories of Thai women on the take..it's sensationalism, and that sells. There are perhaps objective and valid reasons why so many farang get "burned" by their Thai ladies, but I'm not interested in getting flamed in the process of speculating why that is..most know, but its not nice to tell

Cognos

One can get "burned" by a partner from any cultural background - there is nothing exclusively "Thai" about it - such types of individuals and "demographic groups" exists in all cultures and national groups - that really is what lies behind your statement (and in that respect I agree with what you are saying), but the way it comes across from you suggests such incidents are more likely to happen in interaction with partners on a national group basis (?).

I don't believe that to be the case - such individuals and "demographic groups" exists in all cultures.

Can you see the difference I am pointing out (?) - it is not because the girls are Thai.

As I said in another posting, there are broader issues here:

We need to look at ourselves, and the differences we "act out" in relating to other groups of people, versus how we "act out" when interacting with groups from our own national and culturale backgrounds. Understanding this goes a long way to understanding the experiences we have and the attitudes we develope as a consequence towards and about other ethnic/social/national and culturale groups.

I suggest you read 2 or 3 books by a South African Professor - Jonathan D Jansen:

Diversity High: Colour, Character and Culture in a South African High School

Knowledge in the Blood: Confronting race and the apartheid past

Although written against a background of post apartheid South Africa, he explains very well how groups of people from different backgrounds establish perceptions about other groups of people - and how, instead of looking atthe differences in them (i.e. the other groups) we need to look at ourselves and the differences in how we deal with other groups versus those from our own backgrounds and cultures. Jansen is no-ones fool - the guy is recognised as one of the worlds foremost authorities on the subject.

Howto

Yes - most venturi type systems are hopelessly inaccurate (which is why I pointed out to you the system I have in place - actually, complete overkill for a 15 x 15 garden), but I don't think inaccuarcy is going to be a big deal or problem over a 15m x 15m sized garden.

It's my humble opinion that the Super Products VFI injector will be plenty suitable for your garden.

Tell me a bit about the soil type, whats growing on the land now (if anything) and the number of cows you wish to support (?)

A couple other questions

- this is not commercial - you just looking to keep the family livestock asset in good condition - is that correct?

- are you intending to keep the cattle on the same land as the grass is been cultivated, or do you have stalling/an alternative field/shed/barn or somewhere else to keep the livestock (keeping the cattle off the land will increase the feed potential of the land by as much as 60 - 75%).

- does this land become swampy in the rainy season, or does it drain off and just stay wet/damp?

- are you happy with irrigating, or would you prefer not to have to worry about sprinklers (keep in mind that in the dry season your grass growth - without sprinklers - is going to come to an almost standstill i.e. you will to have to buy in bailed forage and silage).

- 2 or 3 rai - you are okay in investing in a tractor owner to come plough it all up and prep the land for you before you re-seed?

Sorry - I had to make it complicated didn't I ... but better these points are understood now as opposed to presenting themselves as problems not prepeared for later.

Unbelieveable ........ is this something we should do with all girls, or is it exclusively with respect to Thai girls? Between you and Thai Happy Life my wife hasn't laughed so much about ex-pats - both yours and his (ThaiHappyLife's) "tests" are going to be posted up on KK and Chula Uni student websites over the next day or so.......

Tomorrow she is lecturing to a bunch of students in Korat - both posts are going to be read out in lecture - I shall be reporting back what they have to say.

What a great reaction from you and Ing.

Well done. Absolutely STELLA.

I can only imagine the dialog that follows. Can"t stop smiling.

Heres my point - if you were a Brit in the UK, a German in Germany, and Frenchman in France, and American in the USA, a Swede in Sweden ... etc etc .... would you write what the OP wrote in respect of how to "test" a potential partner in one of those countries .....?

No, you wouldn't

But understand this - this is not about one OP's posting - to blame this all on the OP is to miss the point, he is actually accurately reflecting attitudes and preconceptions that are very prevalent in Western thinking about Thai's. My interest in all this is not to rubbish the posting, but to try and understand where/how these attitudes come about.

I also don't believe such attitudes can be explained away or reduced down to only the experiences that a lot of ex-pats post up on the forum of relationships they have had with Thai girls. It's a part of it for sure - but I do not believe its the sum total. These attitudes go deeper, and challlenging them is to challenge a lot about ourselves and our attitudes towards other groups of people.

I have a pretty good idea what the reaction is going to be - they're youngsters from a cross section of Thai society, some from simple rural backgrounds, some from middle class upbringings in big urban centres, a couple from well to do families, and few of them with anything like the worldly experience or "streetwiseness" that most folk on this forum have. What they nearly all have in common with each other is limited to no experience of dealing with Westerners (on any level - other than other ex-pat Asian students on campus - of which there is a lot in Pak Chong - mostly Koreans and Taiwanese).

An oppurtunity for the other side to reply in kind ...........(?)

They are going to roar with laughter, but there should be some interesting comments as well.

I havent a clue what they are worth - if I am not mistaken Wiggle was looking for a hyde with fur on it - thats the impression i got, but I could be completly wrong, maybe he is looking for a so-called treated leather hyde.

I haven't a clue what they are worth in Thailand. Thailand by the way processes thousands of hydes every day. There is a huge hyde processing industry to support the footwear trade and its based mainly in the Samut Prakan area just outside Bangkok.

I have a sofa in the house covered with a piebold type cow skin that we purchased in Thailand many years ago, can;t remeber the price of that, but the cow skin rug we have on the floor cost about around Baht 600 (from Chatuchuk market about 15 years ago).

Sorry - dont know what they cost.

Also keep in mind the guy is located in Pak Chong - he's only looking for one hyde, so I don;t think he's going to be undertaking a long journey just to get a hyde.

Its a hel_l of a job treating a raw hyde at home to get it to come out all soft and in one piece. the chemicals are ugly, it process stinks like hel_l, and they never come out as well as the commericaly processed hydes.

Thai Visa is full of stories of farang getting "taken to the cleaners" financially by Thai women. These stories are popular, provocative and seem to provide a lot of impetus for the huge popularity of this site, and the concomitant advertising that accompanies a successful web site, hence lining the pockets of investors with cash. That is a good thing. If you fall in love with a single Thai lady, and you are on the other side of the world ( like I was ), you may have to work in your country and travel to LOS when you can. Assuming you will help her financially for (whatever reason) prior to marrying here, here is a way to do it without getting totally fleeced (keeping in mind there is no free lunch). 1.First of all, have a shopping list ( or checklist) for what type of Thai lady you want to meet in the first place. Although I was attracted to BG's, they were NOT on my list for reasons I will not get into here. My short list went something like this: college education, from a decent family, good heart, 10 to 15 years younger ( I was 49 at the time), decent job, attractive, more concerned with love than money,a non drinker and smoker. There are loads of Thai women as we speak that fit this category, but for example, if an attractive bg is all you require, then your list is short and simple. At any rate you may want to make SURE you have an idea BEFOREHAND what you are looking for. 2. Once you have visited her 2 or 3 times, and you feel she loves you and you are almost ready to spring the question, you may want to consider trying number...3. Send her a copy of your bank card and give her the same PIN number you use, so she can access your account. Western Union charges you 15% by the time its all said and done, so 10,000 baht in her hand will cost you about 11,500 Baht. Keep only what you can afford to lose in your account, and tell her to take what she needs. You will quickly find out if she is on the take or not. In my case, she took about 10,000 baht per month. You can see what she takes from your bank statements, and it costs in this case 100 baht per withdrawal, 1% instead of 15.This will NOT work for everybody, but it worked for me. To make a long story short, she ended up giving most of it back to me, as she did not need the money but was testing me. Flame away if you wish, but it worked for me. She is NOT a money grabber, I can assure you of that. In Canada now, she shops at discount stores for clothes, etc etc, and has prooven beyond a shadow of a doubt that my gamble paid off. Signed: did NOT get ripped off

Unbelieveable ........ is this something we should do with all girls, or is it exclusively with respect to Thai girls? Between you and Thai Happy Life my wife hasn't laughed so much about ex-pats - both yours and his (ThaiHappyLife's) "tests" are going to be posted up on KK and Chula Uni student websites over the next day or so.......

Tomorrow she is lecturing to a bunch of students in Korat - both posts are going to be read out in lecture - I shall be reporting back what they have to say.

Office girls with decent jobs or Univ grads are generally not interested in a Farang.

Sweeping generalisation. Come on put a little more into a2396.

a2396

There is another way of putting your statement: most social interaction between ex-pats and Thai females takes place in the bar/night life enviroment.

Now explain to me how this equates to Uni grads, office girls or girls with "decent jobs" been any more or less interested in ex-pats?

THANK YOU very much indeed, for this very helpful info.

By accident, I was just about asking the same question, as my wife received an offer to buy 4 rai for 140.000 THB (thus 35 k/rai - Amphur Surin)

The land is exactly behind the house of my mother in law, - so easy access and the neighbour, who is the owner, needs the money, because her son longs to get married soon.

NOW, with your help, I did learn, which questions I do have to ask (Chanote, SPG ...) and I realize that the price is not too far out of the normal range.

Once again ThaiVisa and its marvellous people helped me out.

God bless you !!!

... and out of curiosity. what type of land is it i.e. Chanote or Sor Por Gor?

HappyThai Life

Your comments boarder on, and could quite easily be construed as stereotyping - the type the majority of Thai's would find deeply offensive in the extreme, though, granted, I do not belive for one moment this was your intention.

Lets try move your observations or rather, this discussion, forward constructively. Let me ask you this.

If you have to adopt anywhere near a similar attitude towards a prospective partner back in your homeland, any young lady with a smittance of self diginity would be deeply offended and probably dismiss you in a flash. In fact, I would go so far as to say that if this topic was about European/American girls (Westernised girls - girls in your own home country), I do not believe you would be expressing this attitude.

So - the question is this: why do you feel that Thai girls are to be treated differently?

Thai girls are human ... and old TV hands will have heard me say this before: not withstanding culturale differences, their concepts of loyalty/dis-loyalty, good/bad, right-versus-wrong and honesty-versus-dishonesty, are no different to our understanding and appreciation of these concepts in the West, in Africa, in the Mid East ... Scandnavia .... and elswhere in the world. These are universal concepts that transcend culturale and ethnic boundaries.

With that in mind - back to your comments: my feeling is that say alot about your pre-conceptions about, and towards Thai girls.

They are the sort of comments we find so often associated with a very small section of Thai female/male society overall - a defensiveness against behaviour traits most (rightly or wrongly) would associate with that group of potential partners who work in the "bright lights" industry.

Let me share something with you about overwhelming majority of girls who work in the "bright lights" industry:

Unlike many of the girls, and the negative ideas and preconceptions that have grown up around "working girls" in the West, there is one major and very significant difference between them - as a generaalisation of 2 distinct groups: in the West many girls choose to be working girls by CHOICE. In Thailand (and elswhere in South East Asia) the motivation, by contrast, is CIRCUMSTANCE - the circumstance that arise from lack of oppurtunity & grinding poverty - which is characteristic of large parts of the North East of Thailand.

The point I am making is this: my feeling is that you are taking negative associations that stem (quite rightly perhaps) from the unacceptable behaviour of a small group of Thai girls - a group I think can rightly be associated with the "bright lights" industry - which quite possibly represents to sum extent your experience (or part of it) with Thai girls - taking those preconceptions/attitudes, and then painting all Thai females with them as a group.

While, yes - I can see situations in a limited number of relationships, where circumstances could lead one to adopting good old fashioned gum-shoe (private detetctive) work to solve an issue (i.e. "Testing" - to use your words), and which could serve as jolly good due-dilligence, I don't believe that as a generalisation your observations carry credit - and as said at the start, most Thai females would find it deeply offence & stereo-typical in type to be in a relationship that measured universally concepts like trust/distrust, loyalty/disloyalty, good/bad, right/wrong, honesty/dishonesty ..... against a background of "tests".

Ing (my wife) just shook her head ... arrogant, was one of the words that came to mind.

Okay - that all said, I am not wanting to bash you - I am "bashing" your idea - your approach, to building the relationship. I think it reflects your experience, pre-concpetions about Thai's that in a way have a racist undertone to them in that I don't belive it is an approach you'd take with a potential partner of your own ethnic/social background someone in your home country.

Thai girls are human - and the best way to develope and establish a relationship with a Thai girl you are interested in is to forget she is Thai - put it out of your head - grant her the courtesies & decensies, and treat her as you would treat a potential partner of your own background, social standing and similar culturale upbringing in your own home country. You may not realise it, but most Thai girls are very conscious (oh boy - they can keep a straight face) and aware when they are been treated as "Thai" versus been treated as a "person" - they pick up the the cues that ex-pats sub-conscoiusely "act out" in communication & inter-acting with them.

I'd be pleased if you would share with me a response to the comments I have made.

NB - I have used the "bright lights industry" analogy only because it's that group most ex-pats can identify the argument with, not that it's the only "group" that it can be associated with.

Hey Bow - can't you guys get planning permission to build cheap housing on it (raised/stilted timber frame type) ?

Even with the market as bad as it is (land market, that is) if the land has a Chanote title (i.e. your wife owns it lock stock and barrel - and been inherited suggests that there is no overhanging mortgage(?)), I would have thought you should be able to get somewhere around 30% from the bank (against the value of the land) to build cheap housing.

???

... my knowledge about rubber trees and tapping is limited (nope .... it's very limted) , and farming related subjects I have no experience with, I generally don't comment on, but I do know this: the manner/way in which you tap and re-tap a young tree over the first season or so of tapping, has a significant impact on the later developement (ie. growth of the tree), and the subsequent yield you can expect that tree to give you over it's productive life.

Agressive tapping over the first year or so does stunt later growth, and does reduce subsequent sap yield. This is well known, as is, the earlier one starts tapping a tree, the less it produces over its productive lifecycle: there is growing evidence(sorry about the pun) that for every year later a tree is left to mature over 6years before tapping is started, a farmer can expect to get an extra 18months (or thereabouts) over and above the average or around 15 prouctive years. I stand to be corrected on the 18month figure, I n fact I think it may be longer, but whatever it is, the nett additional years are more than the time the farmer waited over and above the 5,6 or 7 years that farmers traditonaly wait in Thailand before starting to tap. Sadly, few farmers are willing to wait the extra few years to get the benefits towards the end of the lifecycle. The economics of rubber tapping, the economics of land ownership are all factors that encourage farmers to start as soon as practically possible.

Other than that, I am sure their are members who can comment in greater detail - and as bad as the search facility is on the Thai Visa froum, if you type in the search box (bottom left hand side of the main Farming In Thailand threads page) the words "rubber tapping" you'll get a list of pretty much all the related threads and posts that guys have put up on the forum over the last few years.

Good luck

Thanks, shall go for a drive and a smell.

I have tanned fox skins and rabbits in me younger days, but never a cow skin.

I would be enthused to give it a go if you know what the ingrediants are for the tanning solution and if they are easily gathered here in Los.

Hey Wiggle .... sending you on another goose chase !!

I know the area so well because my other half goes there every Wednesday to lecture Asian students at the research station

Import duties .. and the cost of importing bulk nitrogen - you'll have a hard time competing on the local market

I just checked the CIF's on fertilser constituents - they range from around 35% (on urea) through to just over 60% on (nitrogen) ... not an easy market to get into.

Import duties .. and the cost of importing bulk nitrogen - you'll have a hard time competing on the local market

Fair comment .........

Sor Por Kor land comes under the jurisdiction of the Forestry Department as opposed to the Land Department. It is a true title deed and is fully surveyed and pegged. Sor Por Kor can not be bought, sold or rented but it can be given up and transferred to a new owner. This is done through the village headman. The previous owner signs a paper saying that they are giving up the Sor Por Kor and for a price (very small) the improvements on the property are being transferred to the new owner or new user of the land. They are, in effect, giving you the land for the price of the improvements. In many cases the land paper simply changes hands with the nod of the headman and remains in the name of the previous owner. A new Sor Por Kor can be issued in a new owner's name and the means for this vary between provinces and the price varies.

Sor Por Kor land can be developed and you can build a house on it. You would have a hard time building a housing development or a hotel but I have seen many small resorts on Sor Por Kor. You can also get a small mortgage from the Agricultural Bank for agricultural purposes. Sor Por Kor land is not necessarily agriculture land but the use is usually limited to agriculture or agriculture related. Sor Por Kor land was originally suppose to be forest land that was degraded but many people without land titles applied for this paper thinking that it would be changed over to a Chanote after a certain number of years. A lot of land that did not qualify as Sor Por Kor was issued Sor Por Kor paper.

The common misconception is that this land belongs to the government and that they might take it back at some time. The other common misconception is that this land can not change hands, thus the referral to not buying, selling or rental of the property.

Foreigners are afraid of Sor Por Kor, Thais are not. Sor Por Kor land is becoming more valuable as the price of land with a Chanote or NS3 becomes exorbitant.

The title can be converted to Chanote but this involves giving up the Sor Por Kor land deed to the Forestry Department and then applying for a new Chanote or NS3 be issued from the Land Department. A double whammy, timely and expensive.

A big problem with Sor Por Kor is that if you wanted to sell/transfer it to a new user it is difficult and takes time.

You should have paperwork showing that the owner of the land gave it up and the village headman had given his consent and you should not have the problem with a long lost relative coming to look for their inheritance.

There have been cases where a "sale" of the land was ruled not legal and the land returned to the original owner or their direct (close, not long lost) descendants. You can not buy Sor Por Kor. Getting a new Sor Por Kor in your wife's name would be a good idea and the latest quote in CM has been as high as 900,000 Baht from an attorney to 100,000 Baht from a guy in the local village that facilitates land transfers.

The Sor Por Kor is a true land title deed managed by the Forestry Department that is simply stamped on the back that it can not be sold, transferred or rented, except that it can be passed on to direct siblings.

I believe that the government of Thailand will have a windfall of land transfers and fees and a huge injection to their economy when they decide to stamp the back that it is OK to sell. No one knows or can speculate when this will happen. The law is clear on only one thing and that is that the law is not clear. Don't forget the grease. Always helps. And remember that foreigners might be subject to discrimination, particularly with land that was suppose to be for the landless peasants.

You make sound as if its worth the risk .......... the stats show that its a fraction of a fraction of a single percentage of SPG land that ever changes hands in any other but the correct legislated manner ..... for every Thai you can show me who is willing to dabble in SPG land, I'll show you a 100 who won't.

...... and as for a windfall in land tranfer fees: its exactly what Thaksin tried to push through parliment, didn't he now (and Lekpai .... and a few other PM's) - and who said, "no - SPG land cannot ever be allowed to be sold and bought"?? - the exact same people in parliment now. Samak (of all people) tired to get parliment to approve the rental of SPG land - he couldn't even get it past the first hearing.

Every few years, someone tries to push some or other amendment to SPG land through parliment, and what happens - every time when push comes to shove wiser heads prevail, it always gets thrown out. To loosen the reigns in any way on SPG land will see a free for all by the rich at the long term expense of the poor

It won't happen - certainly not on our lifetime.

Thank you for your practical and usefull answers (and I am not being sarcastic).

I have tried to check things out a bit. It seems that the main problem is the water supply. I think there is a some sort of irrigation pond close to the village, but the locals don't seem to use it. I'll try to find out what the catch is.

As for drilling a well, that could be done quite easily. The reason the locals don't drill wells all over the place is that people with that sort of capital invest their money in other things, not in farming

... and that is always the big issue in this climate we have in Thailand: water avalibility and irrigation costss; the issue with a well is how deep it has to go to produce the flow rate needed to support whatever type of farming is going to be undertaken i.e. cost - the deeper it is the more energy is required to lift the water and therefore the more is will cost and the less margin is left to make a profit on.

Remember, farming is a business like any other: it needs capital to set up, it needs a business plan, it needs labour and time ect ect etc ......... fail to factor in one part of the equation correctly and it fast costs more to run than it earns - very fast.

I'd say, if you want to give it a go on a "hobby" basis, go for it (something low maintenence e.g. mangoes, papapya or similar - something which can look aftr its self largely), but as a business venture I refer you to all the points in the above paragraph.