Growing Cassava In Thailand

[Issangeorge]

"There are two figures in there that call for some simple arithmetic:

(1) It takes 6.5kg of fresh roots to produce 1L of ethanol.

(2) If all petrol cars were to switch to E85 (which they will eventually have to do if oil prices continue to go up), then 17 millions liter of ethanol would be needed per day."

I have read elsewhere that it takes 5 to 5.4 kilograms of cassava for one litre of ethanol, that's about 20% less than the above figures. As far as increasing the amount of cassava grown, there is a new method of growing it now, that is suppose to get a yield of up to 30 tonnes per rai, compared to the present 3 to 5 tonnes, that means that if everybody went to that method, without increasing the land used for cassava growth there would be still lots of surplus cassava that maybe could be used to make ethanol to ship to the States. Issangeorge

[billd766]

"There are two figures in there that call for some simple arithmetic:

(1) It takes 6.5kg of fresh roots to produce 1L of ethanol.

(2) If all petrol cars were to switch to E85 (which they will eventually have to do if oil prices continue to go up), then 17 millions liter of ethanol would be needed per day."

I have read elsewhere that it takes 5 to 5.4 kilograms of cassava for one litre of ethanol, that's about 20% less than the above figures. As far as increasing the amount of cassava grown, there is a new method of growing it now, that is suppose to get a yield of up to 30 tonnes per rai, compared to the present 3 to 5 tonnes, that means that if everybody went to that method, without increasing the land used for cassava growth there would be still lots of surplus cassava that maybe could be used to make ethanol to ship to the States. Issangeorge

I am hoping to start growing more cassava next year if my 5 year plan comes off.

This year, get a job.

Start in NZ this month.

Year 2 buy 80 rai more land and plant

Year 3 harvest and re invest

Year 4 as year 3

Year 5 as year 4 but buy a tractor

Mind this was last years 5 year plan and it crashed at year 1 but this year at least I am off to a start

:D

The other thing is I personally don't think that Thais will convert all the petrol cars to E85 as most of them will not be able to afford it and the car manufacturers will not make kits for cars over a few years old anyway.

[Khonwan]

Interesting article, thanks.

There are two figures in there that call for some simple arithmetic:

(1) It takes 6.5kg of fresh roots to produce 1L of ethanol.

(2) If all petrol cars were to switch to E85 (which they will eventually have to do if oil prices continue to go up), then 17 millions liter of ethanol would be needed per day.

17 millions liters ethanol per day means 7300 millions liters per year. To produce that quantity from cassava, we would need 7300 x 6.5 = 47450 millions kg = 47.45 millions tons of fresh roots per year.

Whereas, the current production of cassava roots is around 25 millions tons per year (maybe 30 millions tons next year).

What I want to point out is that in the medium term Thailand will need to grow a lot more cassava and sugar cane than it does today, if it is to meet its internal demand for petrol and continue its exports of cassava and sugar cane-based products. Thailand may be in a position to do so, by increasing productivity and dedicating more land to cassava & sugar cane. Other countries with higher consumption or less agricultural land available may not be so lucky, for example all the corn in the US couldn't cover their current petrol consumption.

What I find very clear from this is that aside from its negative effect on food prices, bio-ethanol will not even be enough to cover energy needs for transportation worldwide. We will need to find another source of energy (probably a combination of different sources), and/or reduce the use of personal cars.

Hi pete_r

Bio-fuel is only one part of the energy solution, which also incorporates solar, tidal, wind, wave, and bacteria-farming components. In the case of ethanol, the Thai government is trying to improve yields by developing better varieties and improving crop management rather than having farmers devoting more land to this and therefore away from food production.

Rgds

Khonwan

[Khonwan]

Thats a good post above, lets hope the goverment keep their promise! a lot of farmers around here have signed up to the guaranteed 3bht a kilo deal, looks like they will be stuck with that if it goes to 5bht whatever,

Moving on, the cassava waiting to be planted has stood on the farm 2 months now, mrs tells me it was cut a month before, so thats 3 months, the stems on inspection are fairly moist, the growth at the top equals the lenght of the stems, when i done some stick replacement 10 days ago, it looks like 80% of these have taken, even without the rooting powder,

Pics are of the 2 month old cassava, yes, they did take some wind and storm damage, leaning over and resting on the next row, but so did the smaller plants on other parts of the farm, some were uprooted,

1st pic is the root of a 2month old plant in the tamarind orchard, 2nd pic is of an insect [root boorer?] that stopped the original stick growing in the old papaya plantation, do these need an insecticide spray too,

Thanks Lickey.

Hi Lickey

1st pic: tuber development looks good. 2nd pic: insecticide is available but I doubt if you'll have a problem that merits it - check to see if it is just the very odd tree that has been attacked or whether it is more general (I should think the former).

"...guaranteed 3bht a kilo deal..." - Where do you get this from? The price HAD been guaranteed at Bt1.50, and I read something, somewhere, a couple of weeks ago that suggested it had been raised to Bt1.70 (I'm not sure about this though). Bt3 guaranteed seems far too good to be true. In fact, when I read statements like, "Retail prices of E85 fuel would be 15 to 20 baht a litre lower than for premium gasoline in order to encourage motorists to shift from petrol vehicles to flexible-fuel vehicles (FFV), according to Prasert Bunsumpun, the president and CEO of PTT Plc" (published by Bangkok Post), I'm inclined to think the price of fresh cassava may be capped at around Bt2.50.

Rgds

Khonwan

[Khonwan]

"There are two figures in there that call for some simple arithmetic:

(1) It takes 6.5kg of fresh roots to produce 1L of ethanol.

(2) If all petrol cars were to switch to E85 (which they will eventually have to do if oil prices continue to go up), then 17 millions liter of ethanol would be needed per day."

I have read elsewhere that it takes 5 to 5.4 kilograms of cassava for one litre of ethanol, that's about 20% less than the above figures. As far as increasing the amount of cassava grown, there is a new method of growing it now, that is suppose to get a yield of up to 30 tonnes per rai, compared to the present 3 to 5 tonnes, that means that if everybody went to that method, without increasing the land used for cassava growth there would be still lots of surplus cassava that maybe could be used to make ethanol to ship to the States. Issangeorge

All reports I have read indicate that 6-7kg of fresh cassava tubers are required per litre of ethanol.

Perhaps 30 tonne per rai may be achievable in a perfect, and small, environment managed by researchers with nothing else to do, but I do not believe it will be replicated in the real world, and certainly not by farmers trying to do so on 50 rai or so. I find it interesting that, to date, I've found zero research on this being published on the Net (English or Thai language). I have a Thai neighbour who is trying it on one rai, though I don't think he's doing it properly. Another Thai neighbour told me a few days ago that he watched an agriculture program on TV about it - he described it to me as extremely labour intensive.

Rgds

Khonwan

[Lickey]

Hi Khonwan,

Concerning gauranteed goverment prices,

I was having a phone chat with Khonwan when SIL came into the salon, they had a chat [thai] and then Khonwan explained to me what she meant, it seems the local cassava factories are guaranteeing this, not the goverment,

Im sorry for mis-leading other farmers, lost in translation comes to mind.

Apoligies, Lickey..

[Khonwan]

Hi Khonwan,

Concerning gauranteed goverment prices,

I was having a phone chat with Khonwan when SIL came into the salon, they had a chat [thai] and then Khonwan explained to me what she meant, it seems the local cassava factories are guaranteeing this, not the goverment,

Im sorry for mis-leading other farmers, lost in translation comes to mind.

Apoligies, Lickey..

Hi Lickey

If I may just clarify what your SiL said: it appears that it was not quite a guarantee (in the legal sense) - it was just your tapioca processor and others in your area proclaiming that the price next year was bound to reach Bt3/kg. Really just an expectation on their part. I hear the same thing in my area.

A government minister recently indicated he believed the price would reach this also, then indicated that some analysts think it could even reach Bt4/kg.

Rgds

Khonwan

[pete_r]

"There are two figures in there that call for some simple arithmetic:

(1) It takes 6.5kg of fresh roots to produce 1L of ethanol.

(2) If all petrol cars were to switch to E85 (which they will eventually have to do if oil prices continue to go up), then 17 millions liter of ethanol would be needed per day."

I have read elsewhere that it takes 5 to 5.4 kilograms of cassava for one litre of ethanol, that's about 20% less than the above figures. As far as increasing the amount of cassava grown, there is a new method of growing it now, that is suppose to get a yield of up to 30 tonnes per rai, compared to the present 3 to 5 tonnes, that means that if everybody went to that method, without increasing the land used for cassava growth there would be still lots of surplus cassava that maybe could be used to make ethanol to ship to the States. Issangeorge

All reports I have read indicate that 6-7kg of fresh cassava tubers are required per litre of ethanol.

Perhaps 30 tonne per rai may be achievable in a perfect, and small, environment managed by researchers with nothing else to do, but I do not believe it will be replicated in the real world, and certainly not by farmers trying to do so on 50 rai or so. I find it interesting that, to date, I've found zero research on this being published on the Net (English or Thai language). I have a Thai neighbour who is trying it on one rai, though I don't think he's doing it properly. Another Thai neighbour told me a few days ago that he watched an agriculture program on TV about it - he described it to me as extremely labour intensive.

Rgds

Khonwan

Regarding the 30 tons per rai: I've seen 20-30t/rai done experimentally in the breeding center that develops the Huay Bong varieties. The key thing according to the team is irrigation (drip feeding), and they readily agree that it is not feasible for the typical cassava farm.

Since last year there is another team that has been promoting high yields too, apparently from the Kampaengphet province. The explanations I've seen talk about a scoring system with inoculation of a cocktail of micro-organisms, resulting in 3 levels of starchy roots. Fertilizer and irrigation requirements seem to be quite high as well. Like Khonwan, I have searched for scientific papers on this method and haven't found anything (only a project proposal in Thai).

[pete_r]

Hi pete_r

Bio-fuel is only one part of the energy solution, which also incorporates solar, tidal, wind, wave, and bacteria-farming components. In the case of ethanol, the Thai government is trying to improve yields by developing better varieties and improving crop management rather than having farmers devoting more land to this and therefore away from food production.

Rgds

Khonwan

Hi Khonwan,

I fully agree that bio-ethanol should be seen as a part in a combination of solutions. What I'm grumbling on is that it's not the way it has been promoted. One solution I'm optimistic about is ethanol made from the digestion of cellulose instead of starch (also called second-generation bio-ethanol). This technology would use fibrous agricultural residues available in large quantities every year (as well as crops rich in cellulose specifically grown for bio-ethanol purposes), so would not compete with food crops. But there are still some hurdles to pass, such as breaking the fibers enough to make the cellulose accessible for enzyme digestion, and putting together a combination of enzymes able to digest cellulose efficiently.

While we're talking consumption figures, I might as well mention diesel, for which I also wonder where the solution will come from. Current consumption in Thailand is roughly 18,000 millions liters per year, 2.5 times more than gasoline consumption. We've seen that cassava and sugar cane can just about meet the demand for gasoline in Thailand, but I can't see (yet?) where to find similar amounts of palm oil (or other renewable energy sources) to meet the coming demand for bio-diesel.

Source for diesel consumption from the Nation: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2006/09/19...es_30014012.php

Regards,

Pete_r

[Khonwan]

Hi Khonwan,

I fully agree that bio-ethanol should be seen as a part in a combination of solutions. What I'm grumbling on is that it's not the way it has been promoted. One solution I'm optimistic about is ethanol made from the digestion of cellulose instead of starch (also called second-generation bio-ethanol). This technology would use fibrous agricultural residues available in large quantities every year (as well as crops rich in cellulose specifically grown for bio-ethanol purposes), so would not compete with food crops. But there are still some hurdles to pass, such as breaking the fibers enough to make the cellulose accessible for enzyme digestion, and putting together a combination of enzymes able to digest cellulose efficiently.

While we're talking consumption figures, I might as well mention diesel, for which I also wonder where the solution will come from. Current consumption in Thailand is roughly 18,000 millions liters per year, 2.5 times more than gasoline consumption. We've seen that cassava and sugar cane can just about meet the demand for gasoline in Thailand, but I can't see (yet?) where to find similar amounts of palm oil (or other renewable energy sources) to meet the coming demand for bio-diesel.

Source for diesel consumption from the Nation: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2006/09/19...es_30014012.php

Regards,

Pete_r

Hi Pete_r

I too agree that the government (indeed, all governments) should be applying themselves equally as hard to the other parts of the solution rather than seemingly concentrating their efforts on bio-fuels.

Rgds

Khonwan

[Khonwan]

... In fact, when I read statements like, "Retail prices of E85 fuel would be 15 to 20 baht a litre lower than for premium gasoline in order to encourage motorists to shift from petrol vehicles to flexible-fuel vehicles (FFV), according to Prasert Bunsumpun, the president and CEO of PTT Plc" (published by Bangkok Post), I'm inclined to think the price of fresh cassava may be capped at around Bt2.50.

Rgds

Khonwan

I’ve just been reading up on consumption comparisons between petrol and E85. It appears that E85 is only around 70% as efficient as petrol. The PTT CEO’s statement above therefore looks realistic to me, though I believe that a 15 baht reduction would be adequate in terms of offering the motorist value for money. Against the current price of petrol, I therefore believe the fresh cassava price is sustainable at Bt3.00/kg (maximum) should E85 be retailed at Bt15/ltr lower than premium gasoline.

Khonwan

[Issangeorge]

Khonwan, below is a quote lifted from http://www.americanenergyindependence.com/ethanol.html

It suggests that if engines are designed for using ethanol they can achieve the same mileage as gasoline engins.

"E85 may have less energy content (BTU) than gasoline but Alcohol has a much higher octane. A flex-fuel engine designed to take advantage of ethanol's high octane (through higher compression ratio and optimal fuel-air mixture) will deliver improved fuel economy when using E85. For example, a high compression engine with Direct Port Injection* running on E85, can achieve Miles Per (liquid) Gallon similar to gasoline fuel economy.

Flex-fuel vehicles are optimized to run on gasoline, which prevents them from taking advantage of the higher compression ratio and superior fuel-air mixture that is possible with ethanol. It is the engine design, not the fuel that causes flex-fuel vehicles to experience a 25% drop in fuel economy when running on E85.

Engines can be optimized for ethanol, substantially eliminating the mileage penalty. The 25% mileage penalty only occurs when a gasoline optimized engine is run with E85. The drop in mileage can be prevented by designing the engine for ethanol use. Alcohol fuels (ethanol or methanol) can tolerate compression ratios up to 15:1 or higher (like diesel which generally uses compression ratios of around 13:1 and gets higher mileage as a result). Gasoline is restricted to compression ratios below 10:1.

Gasoline engines throw off most of their power in heat losses. Ethanol’s higher octane offers engine manufacturers an opportunity to significantly improve engine efficiency with higher compression ratios that will convert more power into force that can turn the wheels, and reduce the heat losses."

Issangeorge

[DaveD]

Dave, ok, so you are not here full-time to keep an eye on things, i am, but even then things go bad, 2 days ago, we bought fertilizer for the cassava, took it to the farm neighbour who we employ sometimes for spraying and odd jobs ect,

Normally i go to the farm on my 1200 Yamaha about 2/3 in the afternoon, this governs my work hours to about 2.5/3 hours because of lower back problems, anyway, yesterday, it was a bright morning and no rain, first time for a week i think, so we went to farm on mrs wave, only to see farm neighbour spreading OUR fertilizer on HIS cassava, [had i been on my bike, he would have heard it a K away] now, ive seen my mrs angry before, but never like this, her face was red and the man was crouched down with his head in his hands, im sure he was willing to pick up all the grains and re-bag them and put on our cassava. [my first thought was to put 5litres of diesel in his fish pond] but 1 retaliation can cause another,

I intervened because i felt sorry for this poor man, {mrs] i told him, ok, use this fertilizer and pay us 920bht when you harvest cassava, and if you want help again, ask me.and we bought another bag which he will spread free today.[no wages]

Its certainly a risky venture, farming from overseas, not one i would undertake, its possible you will recieve calls/e-mails saying Need more money for vitamin,weedkiller,labour,ect. I would need a pic and and a local landmark to verfy pic before i sent more money.

Sorry this is a bit of the dark side of the moon reply, and i hope all goes well with your crops, Rgds Lickey.

Thanks Khonwan,

Im pleased to say that planting is finished.Iwas impressed the way a gang of 27 arrived and got stuck in at 7;30am .They were well organised with women cutting sticks and guys caryying and planting .the whole 27 rai was finished by 2pm at a cist of 20 baht per rai.

The following night and day we got rain,so i guess a bit of luck also.

the next task will be to organise weeding and then fertilizer.The same gang have said they will carry out weeding with kubotas at 130 baht per rai.

the big problem is organising the fertilizer ,because of the high cost ,and the way it can dissapear!!!

regrds

Dave

[Khonwan]

Khonwan, below is a quote lifted from http://www.americanenergyindependence.com/ethanol.html

...

Issangeorge

Thanks, Issangeorge – I found the article very interesting.

Rgds

Khonwan

[jonny48]

Hi DaveD

I agree with Lickey - farming from afar is frought with danger. I fear Lickey's experience would tend to be the norm rather than the exception.

Rgds

Khonwan

hi khonwan my wife has just planted cassava on 15 rai. we were charged 15000 bhat to plough it but it was more or less jungle, was that price ok. also we have 15 rai of 4year old rubber trees, and shes planted it inbetween them, what do you think ?i,m in the uk at the momenttill mid july, so i cant realy do much from here. what sort of return do you think we can expect for this amount

thanks in advance

[somo]

Hi DaveD

I agree with Lickey - farming from afar is frought with danger. I fear Lickey's experience would tend to be the norm rather than the exception.

Rgds

Khonwan

hi khonwan my wife has just planted cassava on 15 rai. we were charged 15000 bhat to plough it but it was more or less jungle, was that price ok. also we have 15 rai of 4year old rubber trees, and shes planted it inbetween them, what do you think ?i,m in the uk at the momenttill mid july, so i cant realy do much from here. what sort of return do you think we can expect for this amount

thanks in advance

1000 Baht/rai seems pricey to me unless it was done twice . I pay 350 Baht/rai but that may go up soon as fuel prices have gone up a lot.

[Khonwan]

hi khonwan my wife has just planted cassava on 15 rai. we were charged 15000 bhat to plough it but it was more or less jungle, was that price ok. also we have 15 rai of 4year old rubber trees, and shes planted it inbetween them, what do you think ?i,m in the uk at the momenttill mid july, so i cant realy do much from here. what sort of return do you think we can expect for this amount

thanks in advance

Hi jonny48

Bt1,000/rai is expensive, even if ploughed with 3-disk then harrowed with 7-disc; but then again, depends on how much of a jungle it was.

The rubber trees shall reduce the yield of the cassava a little but you should still obtain 4 tonne per calculated rai being cultivated (ie, deducting the strips of land not planted with cassava due to the rubber trees) if you apply 100kg 15-7-18 fertiliser.

Rgds

Khonwan

[DaveD]

Dave, ok, so you are not here full-time to keep an eye on things, i am, but even then things go bad, 2 days ago, we bought fertilizer for the cassava, took it to the farm neighbour who we employ sometimes for spraying and odd jobs ect,

Normally i go to the farm on my 1200 Yamaha about 2/3 in the afternoon, this governs my work hours to about 2.5/3 hours because of lower back problems, anyway, yesterday, it was a bright morning and no rain, first time for a week i think, so we went to farm on mrs wave, only to see farm neighbour spreading OUR fertilizer on HIS cassava, [had i been on my bike, he would have heard it a K away] now, ive seen my mrs angry before, but never like this, her face was red and the man was crouched down with his head in his hands, im sure he was willing to pick up all the grains and re-bag them and put on our cassava. [my first thought was to put 5litres of diesel in his fish pond] but 1 retaliation can cause another,

I intervened because i felt sorry for this poor man, {mrs] i told him, ok, use this fertilizer and pay us 920bht when you harvest cassava, and if you want help again, ask me.and we bought another bag which he will spread free today.[no wages]

Its certainly a risky venture, farming from overseas, not one i would undertake, its possible you will recieve calls/e-mails saying Need more money for vitamin,weedkiller,labour,ect. I would need a pic and and a local landmark to verfy pic before i sent more money.

Sorry this is a bit of the dark side of the moon reply, and i hope all goes well with your crops, Rgds Lickey.

Thanks Khonwan,

Im pleased to say that planting is finished.Iwas impressed the way a gang of 27 arrived and got stuck in at 7;30am .They were well organised with women cutting sticks and guys caryying and planting .the whole 27 rai was finished by 2pm at a cist of 20 baht per rai.

The following night and day we got rain,so i guess a bit of luck also.

the next task will be to organise weeding and then fertilizer.The same gang have said they will carry out weeding with kubotas at 130 baht per rai.

the big problem is organising the fertilizer ,because of the high cost ,and the way it can dissapear!!!

regrds

Dave

sorry 200 baht per rai

[somo]

200 baht/rai for planting is good. I paid 250 recently and the next time it will be 300 as labour rates are creeping up. That does however include spreading 2 bags of chicken shit/rai as well as planting.

I have been told that in our area the best strain is simply called #72 followed by CMR. I have no idea what these are so if anyone can shed some light on what they are that would be helpful.

Steve

[Khonwan]

.......

I have been told that in our area the best strain is simply called #72 followed by CMR. I have no idea what these are so if anyone can shed some light on what they are that would be helpful.

Steve

Hi Steve

I don’t know what the letters “CMR” actually stand for but understand they mean “cross pollinated”. I’m sure the cassava variety you refer to is Rayong 72 (commemorating the King's 72nd birthday), which is also called CMR 33-57-81 by the boffins. It is a cross between Rayong 1 and Rayong 5.

Rgds

Khonwan

[pete_r]

I have been told that in our area the best strain is simply called #72 followed by CMR. I have no idea what these are so if anyone can shed some light on what they are that would be helpful.

Steve

That particular CMR could be CMR35-22-196, a variety released in 2006 or 2007.

There's a leaflet with short descriptions of Thai varieties at this address (post 44):

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?sh...eties&st=40

[IsaanAussie]

Khonwan and all,

I am interested in cassava as a feed for pigs. It is cut into slices and sun dried, stored and then ground for incorporation in the feed. At the costs per kilo discussed here it would be viable as a feed. I have not got enough land on which to grow it currently anyway.

I believe it is also sliced prior to ethanol processing. It there any source of buying cassava sliced and dried?

Isaanaussie

[Khonwan]

Khonwan and all,

I am interested in cassava as a feed for pigs. It is cut into slices and sun dried, stored and then ground for incorporation in the feed. At the costs per kilo discussed here it would be viable as a feed. I have not got enough land on which to grow it currently anyway.

I believe it is also sliced prior to ethanol processing. It there any source of buying cassava sliced and dried?

Isaanaussie

Hi Isaanaussie

You ought to be able to find local farmers drying out chopped cassava. They will happily sell to you direct. Find out how much the local cassava processors are paying for dried cassava (usually just over double the fresh tuber price). Offer the farmer the same price - he'll be keen to sell to you at the same price since he avoids the transport costs (assuming you collect yourself).

Try to get cassava chips (mansen) that are drying on concrete rather than compacted soil since it will obviously contain less soil.

Cassava root is very high in energy but very low in protein (no more than 2%). Chop and sun-dry (2-3 days to remove cyanide) the tree part of the plant for an excellent high protein for your pigs. The leaves are typically 25% protein, petioles 20%, stems 17%. You will probably be able to collect these for free after cassava farmers harvest their trees (the branches, petioles and leaves are just left in the fields) though a wiser farmer would charge you since this waste should be ploughed in to return nutrients to the soil.

Rgds

Khonwan

[IsaanAussie]

Khonwan and all,

I am interested in cassava as a feed for pigs. It is cut into slices and sun dried, stored and then ground for incorporation in the feed. At the costs per kilo discussed here it would be viable as a feed. I have not got enough land on which to grow it currently anyway.

I believe it is also sliced prior to ethanol processing. It there any source of buying cassava sliced and dried?

Isaanaussie

Hi Isaanaussie

You ought to be able to find local farmers drying out chopped cassava. They will happily sell to you direct. Find out how much the local cassava processors are paying for dried cassava (usually just over double the fresh tuber price). Offer the farmer the same price - he'll be keen to sell to you at the same price since he avoids the transport costs (assuming you collect yourself).

Try to get cassava chips (mansen) that are drying on concrete rather than compacted soil since it will obviously contain less soil.

Cassava root is very high in energy but very low in protein (no more than 2%). Chop and sun-dry (2-3 days to remove cyanide) the tree part of the plant for an excellent high protein for your pigs. The leaves are typically 25% protein, petioles 20%, stems 17%. You will probably be able to collect these for free after cassava farmers harvest their trees (the branches, petioles and leaves are just left in the fields) though a wiser farmer would charge you since this waste should be ploughed in to return nutrients to the soil.

Rgds

Khonwan

As always a valuable response thanks very much. As you point out it is the energy and not the protein I am chasing. Must admit that buying raw tubers is still attractive and I had not considered the stover component especially the leaves.

Isaanaussie

[Lickey]

This link is a bit old now, but an interesting read, http://209.85.175.104/search?q=cache:oYQoJ...t=clnk&cd=4

Blimey, thats some site address, but worth a look, Cheers, Lickey.

[sokmeister]

Hello All!

I've made a post introducing myself in the new topic forum....but here goes in this one, which is very interesting i might add.

Quick history:

Cambodian american, born in batambang province, immigrated to US during civil war. Seeked refuge in chun buri refugee camp in the early eighties. Oldest brother lives in Batambang.

Currently an application engineer and supplier for Daimler Trucks North America out of Portland, Oregon.

Bought 50 hectres 10-15 clicks south of Aranyaprathet(spelling), now in the plowing stages, 4 days worth so far, to grow/plant Eucalyptus to sell to oill extractors.

future goal to purchase more land for foodstuff and renewable energy production.

this topic/post is very interesting! You guys are great!

Thanks!

Sokhena

[jongkolkhoo]

Hi all, i am in southern part (nakorn Si Thammarat) we are mainly rubber & palm oil planters.

A company from malaysia (transturbo) set up 6 power plant (JV) in thailand and they are encouraging farmers to plant giant mimosa .

2 years to harvesting and they will buy back the wood to fuel the power plant. This tree don't need fertilizer and is a useless tree which grows very fast. commercialy useless and is used as burning wood. it is only viable to plant in areas with is not fertile, rain or little rain,etc. in other words, if the land is useless for planting crops, you can try planting giant mimosa. after chopping down the tree (2 years from planting) , the leftover will continue to grow again. (this is a pest tree ) you only plant these trees at places that is not suitable for planting any other crop.

[Foreigner]

Hi,

New member on this site. We are very surprised to read all this info.

We live in Nahkon Ratchasima (Korat) and are in the middele of making our preparations for a start growing 50 rai Cassava in Nahkon Sawan. About one month ago we followed a two day-training for a new way of natural fertilization and method which should give a harvesting of 20-30 tonne per rai. Of course we have become very enthusiastic but as far as we are informed there is almost no experience with this method. We know that this new method has a high risk of dying plants caused by too hot soil. In the meantime we have met a man from the Ubon area who has done about 900 rai (?) with results of 18-20 ton per rai in the last two years. Our new contact works with a different fertilization and method with no additional risk of dying plants. An agriculture program on TV described about it and also the Prime Minister spoke in his weekly talk on Sundaymorning about Government promotion for the use of natural fertilization.

First step is to straw chicken shit and fertiliser on the soi before using a 3-disc plough. After plough wait about one week to kill the weeds and than use a 7-disc plough. The sterns need to be cut from fresh cassava trees into pieces measuring approximately 40-50cm. Spacing is recommended to 100 cm in a diagonal. One month after planting removing the weeds and straw natural fertiliser around the sterns again. An other month later spray fertilizer and repeat this every ten days in the next 2 months. To keep the crop weed-free during the first 3 months is very important. Theo whole proces takes about 9-10 months.

We try now to make an appointment with the farmer in the Ubon area to learn more. We like to have contact with farmers who work in the same area in Nahkon Sawan or try to do in the same way.

[Issangeorge]

Here is a picture of cassava that was planted just two months ago. The guy who planyed it says he expects 10 kilograms per plant. Issangeorge.

[somo]

Hi,

New member on this site. We are very surprised to read all this info.

We live in Nahkon Ratchasima (Korat) and are in the middele of making our preparations for a start growing 50 rai Cassava in Nahkon Sawan. About one month ago we followed a two day-training for a new way of natural fertilization and method which should give a harvesting of 20-30 tonne per rai. Of course we have become very enthusiastic but as far as we are informed there is almost no experience with this method. We know that this new method has a high risk of dying plants caused by too hot soil. In the meantime we have met a man from the Ubon area who has done about 900 rai (?) with results of 18-20 ton per rai in the last two years. Our new contact works with a different fertilization and method with no additional risk of dying plants. An agriculture program on TV described about it and also the Prime Minister spoke in his weekly talk on Sundaymorning about Government promotion for the use of natural fertilization.

First step is to straw chicken shit and fertiliser on the soi before using a 3-disc plough. After plough wait about one week to kill the weeds and than use a 7-disc plough. The sterns need to be cut from fresh cassava trees into pieces measuring approximately 40-50cm. Spacing is recommended to 100 cm in a diagonal. One month after planting removing the weeds and straw natural fertiliser around the sterns again. An other month later spray fertilizer and repeat this every ten days in the next 2 months. To keep the crop weed-free during the first 3 months is very important. Theo whole proces takes about 9-10 months.

We try now to make an appointment with the farmer in the Ubon area to learn more. We like to have contact with farmers who work in the same area in Nahkon Sawan or try to do in the same way.

I find claims of 20+ tons/rai pretty difficult to believe although would love to think it was possible. Khonwan gets about 4tons/rai and the best I have heard of in my area is 8 tons although I have not witnessed it first hand. The guy getting that said he uses a 2:1 mix of 13, 13, 21 fertilzer with urea 16-20 (don't ask what these numbers mean as I have no idea). He only uses 25 kilos of the mix/rai and doesn't bother placing at the bottom of the stems but just sprinkles it around. Before planting the land had 50 boxes/rai natural chicken shit ploughed in. I am following his advice so will let you know next year how it goes