Rubber Plantation

[gardenubon]

Hi there, just joined this forum so that i can find out how much it will cost for fertilizer to do 10 rai here in ubon, i have a river to pump water so thats no problem. the farm currently is cashew nuts, but my father in law says i can do rubber if i like on 10 rai.

will this be big enough? i know nothing about farming but alot of people here are starting rubber in my area of ubon.

cheers

[jubby]

We have a few Rubber experts on here, so hopefully they will be along shortly to Answer your questions.

10 Rai - why not. There seems an awful lot of Rubber going in everywhere from what I can see. I'm all for it, better to see Hillsides of green trees than earth but Every man and his dog seems to want to plant rubber at the moment. I just hope theres a market for all off it.

[jamescollister]

Hi Gardenubon

Don't see why you would want to cut down Cashew nut trees to plant rubber. Rubber will not make a return for 7 years and will cost more than you think. Jim

[gardenubon]

Hi Gardenubon

Don't see why you would want to cut down Cashew nut trees to plant rubber. Rubber will not make a return for 7 years and will cost more than you think. Jim

yeah i like the cashews but everyone here is statring rubber and about 9 years ago the father in law did start 40 rai and then by advice of 1 friend cut them all down as this freind said you cant grow it here so he stupidly cut them all down and did cashews instead. now the 1st year here people are getting rubber and he feels stupid i guess.

yeah did a bit more reasearch and not sure about farming in general, we have land but im not sure if i want to invest cash as i dont think i will be working on the farm too much.

cashewnut trees are nice and not too much hard word as you get the shade although i hate the moot deang when they have a nest up the cashew with all that fruit!

thanks and the cashews will stay for the time being and dad in law has nearly 2000 cashew trees so its nearly time for harvest.

[TPI]

Hi Gardenubon

Don't see why you would want to cut down Cashew nut trees to plant rubber. Rubber will not make a return for 7 years and will cost more than you think. Jim

yeah i like the cashews but everyone here is statring rubber and about 9 years ago the father in law did start 40 rai and then by advice of 1 friend cut them all down as this freind said you cant grow it here so he stupidly cut them all down and did cashews instead. now the 1st year here people are getting rubber and he feels stupid i guess.

yeah did a bit more reasearch and not sure about farming in general, we have land but im not sure if i want to invest cash as i dont think i will be working on the farm too much.

cashewnut trees are nice and not too much hard word as you get the shade although i hate the moot deang when they have a nest up the cashew with all that fruit!

thanks and the cashews will stay for the time being and dad in law has nearly 2000 cashew trees so its nearly time for harvest.

If water is not a problem then why don't you try "glua koi"? Lady finger banana's are hot the trot for the export market getting 18-21 baht per kilo. You get a return in about one year, figure it out, 1600 plants to the rai @ 25 kilos per plant @ 18-21 baht per kilo = B720,000 - B840,000 per rai...the exporters say that 4 rai will provide enough for them to come from Chiang Mai and collect them.

[gardenubon]

Hi Gardenubon

Don't see why you would want to cut down Cashew nut trees to plant rubber. Rubber will not make a return for 7 years and will cost more than you think. Jim

yeah i like the cashews but everyone here is statring rubber and about 9 years ago the father in law did start 40 rai and then by advice of 1 friend cut them all down as this freind said you cant grow it here so he stupidly cut them all down and did cashews instead. now the 1st year here people are getting rubber and he feels stupid i guess.

yeah did a bit more reasearch and not sure about farming in general, we have land but im not sure if i want to invest cash as i dont think i will be working on the farm too much.

cashewnut trees are nice and not too much hard word as you get the shade although i hate the moot deang when they have a nest up the cashew with all that fruit!

thanks and the cashews will stay for the time being and dad in law has nearly 2000 cashew trees so its nearly time for harvest.

If water is not a problem then why don't you try "glua koi"? Lady finger banana's are hot the trot for the export market getting 18-21 baht per kilo. You get a return in about one year, figure it out, 1600 plants to the rai @ 25 kilos per plant @ 18-21 baht per kilo = B720,000 - B840,000 per rai...the exporters say that 4 rai will provide enough for them to come from Chiang Mai and collect them.

is this correct? 1600 plants to the rai? is that not alot? if this is true then that sounds amazing and im off right now to do a little reasearch as i know nothing about this. thanks tpi

[seanocasey]

Hi Gardenubon

Don't see why you would want to cut down Cashew nut trees to plant rubber. Rubber will not make a return for 7 years and will cost more than you think. Jim

yeah i like the cashews but everyone here is statring rubber and about 9 years ago the father in law did start 40 rai and then by advice of 1 friend cut them all down as this freind said you cant grow it here so he stupidly cut them all down and did cashews instead. now the 1st year here people are getting rubber and he feels stupid i guess.

yeah did a bit more reasearch and not sure about farming in general, we have land but im not sure if i want to invest cash as i dont think i will be working on the farm too much.

cashewnut trees are nice and not too much hard word as you get the shade although i hate the moot deang when they have a nest up the cashew with all that fruit!

thanks and the cashews will stay for the time being and dad in law has nearly 2000 cashew trees so its nearly time for harvest.

If water is not a problem then why don't you try "glua koi"? Lady finger banana's are hot the trot for the export market getting 18-21 baht per kilo. You get a return in about one year, figure it out, 1600 plants to the rai @ 25 kilos per plant @ 18-21 baht per kilo = B720,000 - B840,000 per rai...the exporters say that 4 rai will provide enough for them to come from Chiang Mai and collect them.

i'm thinking i must e dumb.

[gardenubon]

Hi Gardenubon

Don't see why you would want to cut down Cashew nut trees to plant rubber. Rubber will not make a return for 7 years and will cost more than you think. Jim

yeah i like the cashews but everyone here is statring rubber and about 9 years ago the father in law did start 40 rai and then by advice of 1 friend cut them all down as this freind said you cant grow it here so he stupidly cut them all down and did cashews instead. now the 1st year here people are getting rubber and he feels stupid i guess.

yeah did a bit more reasearch and not sure about farming in general, we have land but im not sure if i want to invest cash as i dont think i will be working on the farm too much.

cashewnut trees are nice and not too much hard word as you get the shade although i hate the moot deang when they have a nest up the cashew with all that fruit!

thanks and the cashews will stay for the time being and dad in law has nearly 2000 cashew trees so its nearly time for harvest.

If water is not a problem then why don't you try "glua koi"? Lady finger banana's are hot the trot for the export market getting 18-21 baht per kilo. You get a return in about one year, figure it out, 1600 plants to the rai @ 25 kilos per plant @ 18-21 baht per kilo = B720,000 - B840,000 per rai...the exporters say that 4 rai will provide enough for them to come from Chiang Mai and collect them.

how much does the outlay cost? that seems amazing money.done alittle research and the land we have has good drainage and some is on slopes. will this help as i just read growing on slopes is good for the drainage issue, but what i read is from qld australia. as much info as poss would be great! thanks

[gardenubon]

Hi Gardenubon

Don't see why you would want to cut down Cashew nut trees to plant rubber. Rubber will not make a return for 7 years and will cost more than you think. Jim

yeah i like the cashews but everyone here is statring rubber and about 9 years ago the father in law did start 40 rai and then by advice of 1 friend cut them all down as this freind said you cant grow it here so he stupidly cut them all down and did cashews instead. now the 1st year here people are getting rubber and he feels stupid i guess.

yeah did a bit more reasearch and not sure about farming in general, we have land but im not sure if i want to invest cash as i dont think i will be working on the farm too much.

cashewnut trees are nice and not too much hard word as you get the shade although i hate the moot deang when they have a nest up the cashew with all that fruit!

thanks and the cashews will stay for the time being and dad in law has nearly 2000 cashew trees so its nearly time for harvest.

If water is not a problem then why don't you try "glua koi"? Lady finger banana's are hot the trot for the export market getting 18-21 baht per kilo. You get a return in about one year, figure it out, 1600 plants to the rai @ 25 kilos per plant @ 18-21 baht per kilo = B720,000 - B840,000 per rai...the exporters say that 4 rai will provide enough for them to come from Chiang Mai and collect them.

i'm thinking i must e dumb.

why? what you mean?

[Mosha]

1600 trees/Rai or 1 tree/sq m . It's going to be a little crowded isn't it?

Edited February 18, 2010 by Mosha

[gardenubon]

1600 trees/Rai or 1 tree/sq m . It's going to be a little crowded isn't it?

how many trees can you get in 1 rai? i thought 1600 sounded alot. anyone grow bananas? my father in law did here and said its good but he never pumped water to irrigate in the dry season so didnt get fruit worth anything during dry period, but said he got a good crop in the rain season.

any pointer? like where can you get the right type of banana? and if this is really viable?

[Skint]

You should have a look on bananas.org a good site and even have some growers from Thailand

[chang35baht]

7.2millionBt-8.4 millionBt per 10 rai. If it sounds to good to be true????????

can you tell me roughly how much 1 Kilo of these "Lady Finger Bananas sell for in the western markets, where I presume they are destined for?

[Mosha]

If it sounds too good to be true, it usually is.

[jubby]

Gardenubon,

You do seem keen on starting some Farming Venture, as a lot of us where years ago. Nothing wrong with being Keen so its not a criticism. One thing I've observed about Thailand, and its not unique to Thailand but Thailand does seem to do this practice with a vengeance. Now I could be completely wrong here but have you noticed , the sheer abundance of Noodles Shops, Motorbike Shops, and just about every other business venture , mostly business models that just wouldn't work in Europe or the US. Just far too much competition, doesn't make any business sense. It works here because I suspect people are happy with a small return .

Farming seems to be the same. Lets assume your figures for Lady Finger banana's are correct, Great, your going to make a profit for just about as many years as it takes for all your neigbours, Man & Dog to copy your sucessful Business and ruin it by flooding the market with these Exotic ladies Fingers .

Rubber could be different because I'm often told there's a potential huge market outthere, what with China & the other developing countries. The successful ones will have put a tremendous amount of time, effort & money into the Venture, and I wish them well.

Now back to Cashew Nuts. I know about as much about them as I do Rubber. They are my favourite Nuts but I very rarely buy them as I find them a bit too expensive which would lead me to assume that the market isn't flooded with them. I don't know why, Are they difficult to produce ?

Maybe you'd be better trying to improve productivity of your Cashew Nuts.

Anyway, if you do decide to get rid of the cashew Nuts I'll swap you the cashew Nut trees for my hugely unsuccessful Lamyai Trees which I'm told make lovely Charcoal after there hugely unsuccessful production Life

[AGareth2]

I have been told that 30 rai is a minimum to be worthwhile

we profit share with the tappers

[chang35baht]

I have been told that 30 rai is a minimum to be worthwhile

we profit share with the tappers

Hi Gareth. As you seem to have some involvement with a rubber plantation, can you confirm that your statement is true?

[huskerpr]

Hello,

I myself live near Ubon and have 40 Rai of Rubber trees and looking for more. the price of Latex is ever rising especially as the price and demand for oil rises. I think latex is a profitable business. We plant 100 trees per rai, prunned down to about 80 by the 7th year. The market is about 150 baht a month per tree. inital investment seems large since its a 7 year wait before production but we are starting to see the benefits. We rely only on the rainy season for water, no other atering and we seem to be doing okay the trees are very rezealant and doing well. A little labor intense but its helping out the family alot. I really cannot see the over saturization of this market with oil supplies running out and demand going up.

[thunder30101]

There are only two kinds of rubber, synthetic and natural, as long as oil prices stay high there will be a good market for natural rubber. With the large amounts being planted these days I would only be worried about someone here in the future controlling the market as they do with rice

[rgs2001uk]

Hello,

I myself live near Ubon and have 40 Rai of Rubber trees and looking for more. the price of Latex is ever rising especially as the price and demand for oil rises. I think latex is a profitable business. We plant 100 trees per rai, prunned down to about 80 by the 7th year. The market is about 150 baht a month per tree. inital investment seems large since its a 7 year wait before production but we are starting to see the benefits. We rely only on the rainy season for water, no other atering and we seem to be doing okay the trees are very rezealant and doing well. A little labor intense but its helping out the family alot. I really cannot see the over saturization of this market with oil supplies running out and demand going up.

Being a non farmer I can only accept what you say as you are the one involved in rubber, however I am having difficulty getting my head round the above figures, may well be I am reading them wrongly.

80 x 150 x 12 x 40, or 80 trees per rai x 150 baht per month x 12 months of the year x 40 rai, this equals 5,760,000 baht per year.

Is my simple arithmetic correct or am I missing something here?

Last year the wife and I were looking at property in the Tha Mai area of Chanthaburi, land with rubber trees on was being sold for 300 000 baht per rai, so a 30 rai farm was being sold for 9 million baht, I have no idea of the age of these trees, however this sounds too good to be true.

Whats the life of a rubber tree after the initial 7 year wait?

[Boeing757]

Hello,

I myself live near Ubon and have 40 Rai of Rubber trees and looking for more. the price of Latex is ever rising especially as the price and demand for oil rises. I think latex is a profitable business. We plant 100 trees per rai, prunned down to about 80 by the 7th year. The market is about 150 baht a month per tree. inital investment seems large since its a 7 year wait before production but we are starting to see the benefits. We rely only on the rainy season for water, no other atering and we seem to be doing okay the trees are very rezealant and doing well. A little labor intense but its helping out the family alot. I really cannot see the over saturization of this market with oil supplies running out and demand going up.

Being a non farmer I can only accept what you say as you are the one involved in rubber, however I am having difficulty getting my head round the above figures, may well be I am reading them wrongly.

80 x 150 x 12 x 40, or 80 trees per rai x 150 baht per month x 12 months of the year x 40 rai, this equals 5,760,000 baht per year.

Is my simple arithmetic correct or am I missing something here?

Last year the wife and I were looking at property in the Tha Mai area of Chanthaburi, land with rubber trees on was being sold for 300 000 baht per rai, so a 30 rai farm was being sold for 9 million baht, I have no idea of the age of these trees, however this sounds too good to be true.

Whats the life of a rubber tree after the initial 7 year wait?

I too find it hard to assimilate these and other figures. It is not that I feel they are wrong, but it is like comparing apples with pears. We hear all sort of different statements from ml / tree / day, to baht / rai/ month.

I just have to get these into a number that my monkey brain will comprehend.

The Government produces the average production rate for the whole of the country. It is in Kg / rai / year. That figure is 289 kg / rai / year.

If it is good enough for the Government then it is good enough for me.

Using some very basic maths, 150 baht / month / tree equates to 1350 baht / year / tree ( if you assume 9 months tapping / year).

This in turn equates to 108000 baht / year / rai. (assuming 80 trees / rai).

And this will equal 900 baht / rai / year. (assuming the present price is 120 baht / kg ).

Compared to the average of 289, this certainly is very impressive and something I can only dream of in 5 years time when my first trees reach maturity.

For me, I am still hoping to reach the national average.

Clive

[klikster]

7.2millionBt-8.4 millionBt per 10 rai. If it sounds to good to be true????????

can you tell me roughly how much 1 Kilo of these "Lady Finger Bananas sell for in the western markets, where I presume they are destined for?

I'm a big fan of those small bananas prolific around Chumphon .. for eating. I can go through a '???' (section of a stalk) a day. I got them occasionally at the "km of bananas" market on Phetkasem Road (Rt 4) north of Chumphon.

At that time I lived in Ban Krut (Bangsaphan), less than 90 km from that market. I never could understand why I couldn't buy those little fellas locally. It seems that they won't grow .. or produce? .. around Bangsaphan.

Be careful .. they may not work in your area. Not sure if the ones I'm referring to are the same species.

BTW, the ones I like sell/sold for about Bt 25 per '???' at that market. Maybe being a middleman is a better way .. assuming you can get them through the western agricultural quarantines and to market before they spoil.

Also if you visit that market, some old frail woman may well educate you about '???' .. they don't do kilos!

[rgs2001uk]

Hello,

I myself live near Ubon and have 40 Rai of Rubber trees and looking for more. the price of Latex is ever rising especially as the price and demand for oil rises. I think latex is a profitable business. We plant 100 trees per rai, prunned down to about 80 by the 7th year. The market is about 150 baht a month per tree. inital investment seems large since its a 7 year wait before production but we are starting to see the benefits. We rely only on the rainy season for water, no other atering and we seem to be doing okay the trees are very rezealant and doing well. A little labor intense but its helping out the family alot. I really cannot see the over saturization of this market with oil supplies running out and demand going up.

Being a non farmer I can only accept what you say as you are the one involved in rubber, however I am having difficulty getting my head round the above figures, may well be I am reading them wrongly.

80 x 150 x 12 x 40, or 80 trees per rai x 150 baht per month x 12 months of the year x 40 rai, this equals 5,760,000 baht per year.

Is my simple arithmetic correct or am I missing something here?

Last year the wife and I were looking at property in the Tha Mai area of Chanthaburi, land with rubber trees on was being sold for 300 000 baht per rai, so a 30 rai farm was being sold for 9 million baht, I have no idea of the age of these trees, however this sounds too good to be true.

Whats the life of a rubber tree after the initial 7 year wait?

I too find it hard to assimilate these and other figures. It is not that I feel they are wrong, but it is like comparing apples with pears. We hear all sort of different statements from ml / tree / day, to baht / rai/ month.

I just have to get these into a number that my monkey brain will comprehend.

The Government produces the average production rate for the whole of the country. It is in Kg / rai / year. That figure is 289 kg / rai / year.

If it is good enough for the Government then it is good enough for me.

Using some very basic maths, 150 baht / month / tree equates to 1350 baht / year / tree ( if you assume 9 months tapping / year).

This in turn equates to 108000 baht / year / rai. (assuming 80 trees / rai).

And this will equal 900 baht / rai / year. (assuming the present price is 120 baht / kg ).

Compared to the average of 289, this certainly is very impressive and something I can only dream of in 5 years time when my first trees reach maturity.

For me, I am still hoping to reach the national average.

Clive

Clive,

thanks for taking the time to reply and giving your thoughts.

Like you I have trouble getting figures my peanut brain can compute.

However if I use your figures with a best case scenario thrown in, please bear with me,

400kg per rai/per year x price of 200 baht /kg = 80,000 baht per rai/per year.

Therefore 80,000 x 40 rai = 3.2 million baht per year, unless my peanut brain is having difficulty.

Or 250kg per rai/per year x 150 baht/kg = 37 500baht per rai/per year x 40 rai = 1.5 million.

Please tell me where I am going wrong.

[jamescollister]

Hello,

I myself live near Ubon and have 40 Rai of Rubber trees and looking for more. the price of Latex is ever rising especially as the price and demand for oil rises. I think latex is a profitable business. We plant 100 trees per rai, prunned down to about 80 by the 7th year. The market is about 150 baht a month per tree. inital investment seems large since its a 7 year wait before production but we are starting to see the benefits. We rely only on the rainy season for water, no other atering and we seem to be doing okay the trees are very rezealant and doing well. A little labor intense but its helping out the family alot. I really cannot see the over saturization of this market with oil supplies running out and demand going up.

Being a non farmer I can only accept what you say as you are the one involved in rubber, however I am having difficulty getting my head round the above figures, may well be I am reading them wrongly.

80 x 150 x 12 x 40, or 80 trees per rai x 150 baht per month x 12 months of the year x 40 rai, this equals 5,760,000 baht per year.

Is my simple arithmetic correct or am I missing something here?

Last year the wife and I were looking at property in the Tha Mai area of Chanthaburi, land with rubber trees on was being sold for 300 000 baht per rai, so a 30 rai farm was being sold for 9 million baht, I have no idea of the age of these trees, however this sounds too good to be true.

Whats the life of a rubber tree after the initial 7 year wait?

I too find it hard to assimilate these and other figures. It is not that I feel they are wrong, but it is like comparing apples with pears. We hear all sort of different statements from ml / tree / day, to baht / rai/ month.

I just have to get these into a number that my monkey brain will comprehend.

The Government produces the average production rate for the whole of the country. It is in Kg / rai / year. That figure is 289 kg / rai / year.

If it is good enough for the Government then it is good enough for me.

Using some very basic maths, 150 baht / month / tree equates to 1350 baht / year / tree ( if you assume 9 months tapping / year).

This in turn equates to 108000 baht / year / rai. (assuming 80 trees / rai).

And this will equal 900 baht / rai / year. (assuming the present price is 120 baht / kg ).

Compared to the average of 289, this certainly is very impressive and something I can only dream of in 5 years time when my first trees reach maturity.

For me, I am still hoping to reach the national average.

Clive

Clive,

thanks for taking the time to reply and giving your thoughts.

Like you I have trouble getting figures my peanut brain can compute.

However if I use your figures with a best case scenario thrown in, please bear with me,

400kg per rai/per year x price of 200 baht /kg = 80,000 baht per rai/per year.

Therefore 80,000 x 40 rai = 3.2 million baht per year, unless my peanut brain is having difficulty.

Or 250kg per rai/per year x 150 baht/kg = 37 500baht per rai/per year x 40 rai = 1.5 million.

Please tell me where I am going wrong.

I don't know where some of these numbers come from, but most seem to be pie in the sky, Trees start of slow and output rises over the years, then begins to decline in the later years. Add to this too much rain or too little, good tappers, bad tappers, hard tapping soft tapping and 1000 other things. The only way you will know how your trees are going is when you tally the years output. Jim

[Boeing757]

Thanks for your reply rgs2001uk.

I am sorry, but I will not let my optimism run away with me.

My maths will only contain the following figures until the time that my own production proves them wrong:

289 kg per Rai per Year.

100 baht per Kg.

40%-60% split with tappers and 10% "loss" for wastage (50% for me)

1 Bag of fertilizer per rai twice a year at 100 baht per bag.

Replant 10% of trees every year for first 5 years.

There are of course other costs like clearing weeds, pruning, watering, fencing etc, etc, but these are more difficult to cost.

This may not be the case for others, but for me, this is what i shall use for now.

Clive

[jamescollister]

Thanks for your reply rgs2001uk.

I am sorry, but I will not let my optimism run away with me.

My maths will only contain the following figures until the time that my own production proves them wrong:

289 kg per Rai per Year.

100 baht per Kg.

40%-60% split with tappers and 10% "loss" for wastage (50% for me)

1 Bag of fertilizer per rai twice a year at 100 baht per bag.

Replant 10% of trees every year for first 5 years.

There are of course other costs like clearing weeds, pruning, watering, fencing etc, etc, but these are more difficult to cost.

This may not be the case for others, but for me, this is what i shall use for now.

Clive

Think you left off a zero on the bag of fertiliser. Jim

[rgs2001uk]

Boeing757,

sorry I havent replied sooner, following the words of wisdom from member James Collister I did a forum search.

I bookmarked them and meant to post a reply, been too damned busy of late.

Anyway here we go, try the following links, they are very informative, a lot of pertinent information, and as JC mentioned before, a lot of

pie in the sky figures being bandied about, I fear some may well get their fingers burned.

Links,

The gist of these two threads basically sum up what you have just stated.

I am not a farmer and have no intention of being one, I was looking at it from a purely financial point of view on ROI.

I feel I can better returns elsewhere, stick to something I understand.

Best of luck to all you guys, for many its a labour of love, there are others jumping on the bandwagon, for whom I am sure there may well be dissapointment,

this isnt the get rich quick scheme than some think it is.

Thanks to all who contributed to the two linked posts above, they certainly opened my eyes to whats involved.

May be worth making a pinned thread and combining these threads for others that will surley follow.

[jamescollister]

Boeing757,

sorry I havent replied sooner, following the words of wisdom from member James Collister I did a forum search.

I bookmarked them and meant to post a reply, been too damned busy of late.

Anyway here we go, try the following links, they are very informative, a lot of pertinent information, and as JC mentioned before, a lot of

pie in the sky figures being bandied about, I fear some may well get their fingers burned.

Links,

The gist of these two threads basically sum up what you have just stated.

I am not a farmer and have no intention of being one, I was looking at it from a purely financial point of view on ROI.

I feel I can better returns elsewhere, stick to something I understand.

Best of luck to all you guys, for many its a labour of love, there are others jumping on the bandwagon, for whom I am sure there may well be dissapointment,

this isnt the get rich quick scheme than some think it is.

Thanks to all who contributed to the two linked posts above, they certainly opened my eyes to whats involved.

May be worth making a pinned thread and combining these threads for others that will surley follow.

Interesting post, after looking at the older posts it made me think of how many people over the years had posted and or written to me, that they had bought or planted rubber. Some in the 100s of Rai. Many of these people should be tapping now, yet I have not seen anyone writing about how successful they have been. Farangs have been coming to Thailand for ages and I can not believe that no one planted rubber 20 years ago, So where are they now.

I think the lack of reports of success should make one think twice before venturing down the rubber path. Jim

[chang35baht]

Boeing757,

sorry I havent replied sooner, following the words of wisdom from member James Collister I did a forum search.

I bookmarked them and meant to post a reply, been too damned busy of late.

Anyway here we go, try the following links, they are very informative, a lot of pertinent information, and as JC mentioned before, a lot of

pie in the sky figures being bandied about, I fear some may well get their fingers burned.

Links,

The gist of these two threads basically sum up what you have just stated.

I am not a farmer and have no intention of being one, I was looking at it from a purely financial point of view on ROI.

I feel I can better returns elsewhere, stick to something I understand.

Best of luck to all you guys, for many its a labour of love, there are others jumping on the bandwagon, for whom I am sure there may well be dissapointment,

this isnt the get rich quick scheme than some think it is.

Thanks to all who contributed to the two linked posts above, they certainly opened my eyes to whats involved.

May be worth making a pinned thread and combining these threads for others that will surley follow.

Interesting post, after looking at the older posts it made me think of how many people over the years had posted and or written to me, that they had bought or planted rubber. Some in the 100s of Rai. Many of these people should be tapping now, yet I have not seen anyone writing about how successful they have been. Farangs have been coming to Thailand for ages and I can not believe that no one planted rubber 20 years ago, So where are they now.

I think the lack of reports of success should make one think twice before venturing down the rubber path. Jim

It absolutely is not a get rich quick scheme.Those recent posters who have shown an interest in buying farms that are nearly ready for tapping don`t know what they are letting themselves in for.There is good money to be made from rubber but not without a substantial outlay/investment and hard work. Working the farm ourselves has given us good experience and has taught us who we can or cannot trust. Going into it blind , you`ll be leaving yourself wide open to get ripped off

I don`t for one minute think that I will end up bathing in baht, but look forward to a return on my outlay/ investment and hard work that i`ve put in over the last 6 years or so, when we start tapping next year.

Regards,

Chang35baht.

[Boeing757]

Thanks for your reply rgs2001uk.

I am sorry, but I will not let my optimism run away with me.

My maths will only contain the following figures until the time that my own production proves them wrong:

289 kg per Rai per Year.

100 baht per Kg.

40%-60% split with tappers and 10% "loss" for wastage (50% for me)

1 Bag of fertilizer per rai twice a year at 100 baht per bag.

Replant 10% of trees every year for first 5 years.

There are of course other costs like clearing weeds, pruning, watering, fencing etc, etc, but these are more difficult to cost.

This may not be the case for others, but for me, this is what i shall use for now.

Clive

Think you left off a zero on the bag of fertiliser. Jim

Thank you Jim.

Strange but true. I did indeed leave off a Zero.

Fertilizer = 1000 baht per 50 kg bag.

Clive