Eucalyptus Trees

[Spaniel]

Recently my wifes father, who lives in a small village a short distance north of Kabinburi, distributed 500 rai of land to his daughters. My wife received 50 rai. The family now intends to plant eucalyptus trees on this land and my wifes share of the expense for her 50 rai will be about B 100,000. This price will include the purchase of the trees (I think 3 bhat each) and the planting and maintenance of the trees until the first cutting in about 3 years. One sister still lives in the village and she will take care of getting the trees and the hiring of some local villagers to plant and maintain them. The expected sale price after the first cutting is estimated to be around B700,000 and a lesser amount from the second cutting two years later. This seems to be a pretty good return on our initial investment of only B 100,000 and involves very little work on our part. I know their is always the possibility of something going wrong like a fire or disease but still seems like a reasonable investment. Has anyone had any experience with eucalyptus tree farming in Thailand?

[Chonburiram]

100.000 for a 5-year project means: First paying for the trees and the remaining sum is equally divided to 5 years?

How do they know the prices for fertilizer,labor, herbicides in 3,4,5 years or the price for Euca in 3-5 years?

Why not let them rent, let's say, 200฿/Rai/Year payable upfront for 5 years?

Cash in 50.000 and nothing to think about...

[gotlost]

Over in our part of the world, Surin, eucalyptus seedlings go for 50 satang each (half a baht). 3 year eucalyptus growth is about 10,000 baht a rai. Over 3 years that an avg. of 3.33k baht a rai. Rice is yielding on avg. 4k baht a rai.I thank your figures are way off and somebody smells farang.

[Nio]

There are allot of these trees growing on highway 33 on the way to Cambodia? I never see much labor going on there. I am sure the main thing to worry about is all the hidden costs that seem to arise when you are not the one watching the farm.

You might get nickeled and dimed right out of all the profit.

Chonburiram makes some good points.

[ozzydom]

Tread carefully friend, in this case ,the old adage "If it sounds to good to be true ,it usually is " is appropriate.

Any offer of 200% per annum return on investment in a Thai farming venture should be enough to set the alarms ringing.

[zzaa09]

Eucalyptus. Fine, if that's your mind. Remember, Eucs have a reputation for sucking moisture and natural nutrients out of already depleted soil. If, in the nearby future, one wishes to do something else with that area - it takes work and time to replenish the soil for most everything. Just a cautionary thought.

[xerostar]

500 Rai of Eucalyptus - That's a lot of wood!

You may be sponsoring a large proportion of the total investment in the 500 Rai

but only getting a return on the 50 Rai.

Harvesting all at once? That could flood the local market.

Is there a market for so much wood in the area?

Maybe you would have to factor in the cost of transporting it to distant markets?

I heard the price of that type of wood is fairly miserable since it's only used by

poor people, for making charcoal and stakes for building. Not sure of other uses.

There is another post on this forum from a Falung who has had first hand experience

with wood farming. He didn't sound too happy with the result. i.e. A lot of work for little profit.

I'd do a lot more research before throwing my money on the table.

Just my 2 cents worth ..

[slapout]

If you your wife only got 50 rai out of 500 it must be a large family. If 100,000 is required investment for the 50 rai I guess the rest of the family are putting up about 800,000 to get their part of the total land area in this project. Price for seedlings has been pointed out as suspect, as well as other points raised by respondents to you question. Ozzydom is a pertty astute fellow on this forum and his counsel appears spot on.

[soundman]

Sign a contract with a major buyer before doing anything else.

Otherwise the 1000B per ton today will turn into 250B per ton at harvest time.

Realistic input cost is 6500 - 12500 Baht per rai depending on earth preperation, planting density, yearly maintenance such weed control, fertiliser etc, cutting and transporting.

Realistic return in 4 - 5 years (3 year cyle will only produce sticks - much of it under size from what the pulp mill wants) - 18 - 28 tons per rai.

Median profit/loss 50 Rai based on achieving 800Baht per ton over a 5 year crop.

Cost 9500B x 50 Rai = 475,000 Baht

Proceeds 23 tons x 800 Baht x 50 Rai. = 920,000 Baht

Profit = 1780B per Rai per year. (920,000 - 475,000 = 445,000 / 50 = 8900 / 5 = 1780)

Note: Last years contracts with Double A using strain K62, K58 - 1450B guaranteed price floor. Current price for non-specific, or K7 Eucalypt from a wood buying agent in Prachinburi - I heard figures two months ago of around 350B per ton.

[Spaniel]

Sign a contract with a major buyer before doing anything else.

Otherwise the 1000B per ton today will turn into 250B per ton at harvest time.

Realistic input cost is 6500 - 12500 Baht per rai depending on earth preperation, planting density, yearly maintenance such weed control, fertiliser etc, cutting and transporting.

Realistic return in 4 - 5 years (3 year cyle will only produce sticks - much of it under size from what the pulp mill wants) - 18 - 28 tons per rai.

Median profit/loss 50 Rai based on achieving 800Baht per ton over a 5 year crop.

Cost 9500B x 50 Rai = 475,000 Baht

Proceeds 23 tons x 800 Baht x 50 Rai. = 920,000 Baht

Profit = 1780B per Rai per year. (920,000 - 475,000 = 445,000 / 50 = 8900 / 5 = 1780)

Note: Last years contracts with Double A using strain K62, K58 - 1450B guaranteed price floor. Current price for non-specific, or K7 Eucalypt from a wood buying agent in Prachinburi - I heard figures two months ago of around 350B per ton.

Thanks soundman for your input as well as all the other posters. Sounds like you are in the eucalyptus business yourself. My wife's family is from that area, Kabinburi, and have been involved with eucalyptus etc for quite some time as well as other business As one poster cautioned I might be subsidizing payment for the entire 500 rai. I dont think so but thanks for the warning. My wife will actually be paying the 100,000 or so bhat so I'm sure she will keep a close eye on things. I'll report back in 5 years and let you know how things turned out!

[soundman]

Thanks soundman for your input as well as all the other posters. Sounds like you are in the eucalyptus business yourself. My wife's family is from that area, Kabinburi, and have been involved with eucalyptus etc for quite some time as well as other business As one poster cautioned I might be subsidizing payment for the entire 500 rai. I dont think so but thanks for the warning. My wife will actually be paying the 100,000 or so bhat so I'm sure she will keep a close eye on things. I'll report back in 5 years and let you know how things turned out!

Since you are in Kabinburi, why not visit the Double A sales office... Its in the small cluster of shophouses on the main road about 500m before entering the Kabinburi Amphur admnistration offices going in the Chachoengsao direction.

[Maxxamum]

Sign a contract with a major buyer before doing anything else.

Otherwise the 1000B per ton today will turn into 250B per ton at harvest time.

Realistic input cost is 6500 - 12500 Baht per rai depending on earth preperation, planting density, yearly maintenance such weed control, fertiliser etc, cutting and transporting.

Realistic return in 4 - 5 years (3 year cyle will only produce sticks - much of it under size from what the pulp mill wants) - 18 - 28 tons per rai.

Median profit/loss 50 Rai based on achieving 800Baht per ton over a 5 year crop.

Cost 9500B x 50 Rai = 475,000 Baht

Proceeds 23 tons x 800 Baht x 50 Rai. = 920,000 Baht

Profit = 1780B per Rai per year. (920,000 - 475,000 = 445,000 / 50 = 8900 / 5 = 1780)

Note: Last years contracts with Double A using strain K62, K58 - 1450B guaranteed price floor. Current price for non-specific, or K7 Eucalypt from a wood buying agent in Prachinburi - I heard figures two months ago of around 350B per ton.

Since you sound like someone with experience, perhaps you can share more information with me. My Thai wife and I have about 120 Rai over several parcels in Udon. We have about 80 Rai already planted in Euc's, about 25 Rai in sugar cane, and the rest is an old Euc planting that must all be cleared and replanted. Recently we did a test cut on one parcel and after 3 years of growth we got 1 ton per tree. This was an old chicken farm and the soil was very good, moist most of the year and shaded with surrounding trees. I think the soil condition provided the greatest contribution. Trees were planted 2 meters apart down the run and 3 meters apart between the rows.

I am looking for suggestions on how to condition the soil with mulch or other affordable nutrients before the first planting to enrich the soil to increase the yield. I have thought about leaving the land idle for a year after purchase meanwhile do a mulching operation there collecting all the plant material I can from other farmers etc, trucking it in and grinding it up finally tilling this into the soil before planting. Not much is discussed about this. Mostly I guess farmers plant in whatever soil they have then add fertilizer to energize growth. Rather than just dump Urea on the soil, I'd rather wait a year to plant and add plant-based material to improve the soil hopefully for an overall improvement in yield. Any help is appreciated or any direction to other related websites is also welcome.

[jandtaa]

Hi Maxxamum

Sounds like on that sort of scale a rotation of green manure would fit the bill, for more info have a read of this thread in the organic sub-forum. You'll also find threads on mulching and other soil enhancers/conditioners.

cover crops, green manures and nitrogen fixing trees

cheers for now J

[sunsamourai]

just to remind you guys that this thread is (was ?) about hemp, NOT those eucalyptuses.

I've seen enough on these in this forum

[jandtaa]

"Recently my wifes father, who lives in a small village a short distance north of Kabinburi, distributed 500 rai of land to his daughters. My wife received 50 rai. The family now intends to plant eucalyptus trees on this land and my wifes share of the expense for her 50 rai will be about B 100,000. This price will include the purchase of the trees (I think 3 bhat each) and the planting and maintenance of the trees until the first cutting in about 3 years. One sister still lives in the village and she will take care of getting the trees and the hiring of some local villagers to plant and maintain them. The expected sale price after the first cutting is estimated to be around B700,000 and a lesser amount from the second cutting two years later. This seems to be a pretty good return on our initial investment of only B 100,000 and involves very little work on our part. I know their is always the possibility of something going wrong like a fire or disease but still seems like a reasonable investment. Has anyone had any experience with eucalyptus tree farming in Thailand?"

To quote the OP  ie. post #1 in a thread entitled "EUCALYPTUS TREES" so I'm guessing this is what we are discussing. Not quite sure where you got lost along the ways maybe you couldn't see the wood for the trees or should that be the "hemp"  .

J

[Spaniel]

Yes, to reconfirm my post is about eucalyptus trees, not hemp. Thanks for all the replies/advice. We just went ahead and paid the initial B15,000 to get started.