How many kilos of rice can produce one rai of land?

[khwaibah]

To the guy who said his relatives are getting 800 kilos of rice per rai with organic fertilizers. I hope you know that is an incredible amount, most organic farmers average between 300 to 500 kilos. So please share more information about the location of the farm and the techniques he is using. I might want to come up and conduct a related study.

However, the amount depends on many natural factors regardless of the type of fertilizers used. Higher yield are typically attained in Central Thailand where soil is best and rainfall most plentiful.

600 kilo per rai with no irrigation and organic fertilizer,aka chicken shyt.

[MikeN]

Long ago I used to work for the Dept of Agriculture in Australia, in a rice growing district, the average yield there was 8.6 tonnes per hectare, sometimes a lot higher in a good year.

Apparently there are 6.25 rai/hectare, so that works out at 1,376 kg/rai ?

That's on a fully irrigated, large scale farm so not really a direct comparison but would suggest that there is quite a bit of improvement possible for Thai farmers ( although we all know how much notice they would take from farangs when it comes to growing rice !)

My ex was amazed at the size of the rice "paddies", and the machinery used.

[khwaibah]

Long ago I used to work for the Dept of Agriculture in Australia, in a rice growing district, the average yield there was 8.6 tonnes per hectare, sometimes a lot higher in a good year.

Apparently there are 6.25 rai/hectare, so that works out at 1,376 kg/rai ?

That's on a fully irrigated, large scale farm so not really a direct comparison but would suggest that there is quite a bit of improvement possible for Thai farmers ( although we all know how much notice they would take from farangs when it comes to growing rice !)

My ex was amazed at the size of the rice "paddies", and the machinery used.

Its called water. Whose going to pay for it ??

[MikeN]

^ Water ? are you saying they don't have any in Thailand, especially during the rainy season ?

[khwaibah]

^ Water ? are you saying they don't have any in Thailand, especially during the rainy season ?

Let me rephrase Its called faring with deep pockets. They are not going to lay out the money in issan by the individual farmer or by the government.

[cardinalblue]

I will give you my experience from our lands...planted by nursery/hand and not by throwing

1010 kgs per rai - sticky rice

920 per rai - jasmine rice

CB

[thongsuknork]

_{OHO i owns an 11 rai land it was never same every year it depends on Rain and water and every year the yeild becomes varied 750 to 800 kgs per rai but last year only 527 kgs per rai due ti deficient rain so farmer never gets his proper share it is strictly on rain and water u have we are dependent on rain only}

[maoro2013]

We get over 400kg every year and more than that on 2 farms producing 2 crops per annum

[Hannuman]

My padiland in Mae Sai produces 700 kg per rai of the rainy season crop and 1,000 kg per rai for the non-rainy season crop. However the yield varies depending on the industriousness of your in-laws working the fields. Do they put fertilizer in adequate amount at least three times as the rice grows? Do they do weeding as weeds do take up the fertilizer meant for the rice? Do they place snail poison to prevent the multitude of snails gobbling up the young rice plants? Do they regulate the water level in the padi-fields as rain can cause inundation to kill the plants?

In the extensively irrigated padis of central Thailand, specifically in the northern part of Suphanburi province a little to the south of Chai Nat, the farmers claim that a a good yield would be 1 metric tonne per rai.

This is an area where the land is force-fed in order to produce 5 crops in two years,approximately a 140 day cycle .The intensive use of pesticides, insecticides, weedkiller, cyanide/arsenic snailkiller and other chemicals of dubious efficacy makes the product a far from organic ... and perhaps even a hazardous one.

Seldom can the crop be called a good one and in recent years the government has called upon the farmers on several occasions to permit their fields to lie fallow for a month or two .

The last harvest in May was a disaster, most of the ears of grain being hollow and empty due to the unusually cold spell in January which stifled development of the rice grain. Many farmers ploughed the entire crop back into the ground rather than going to the expense of harvesting a worthless crop .Some brave farmers in the Bueng Chawak area harvested their crop but reaped no reward .. garnering roughly one tonne of unsaleable rice from an eighteen rai plot whereas in a good season they would have harvested 18 tonnes.

[khunPer]

Some up-to-date numbers from todays' article: Thai farmers poorest in ASEAN

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/745047-thai-farmers-poorest-in-asean/

»It said production cost/ton of rice paid by Thai farmers is 9,763.40 baht while rice harvest yields 450 kilogrammes per rai.

They obtained 11,319.37 baht/ton from rice sale. After cost deduction Thai farmers earned just 1,555.97 baht as net profit from a ton of rice sold or 28,035.50 baht earning per year, or 51.08% less than Vietnamese farmers.«

[Tex916]

An average production of 2500 kg per hectare.  To convert this to rai, multiply 2500 by 0.16 hectares per rai = 400 kg per rai.

[Tex916]

On 7/22/2014 at 11:10 PM, khunPer said:

They obtained 11,319.37 baht/ton from rice sale. After cost deduction Thai farmers earned just 1,555.97 baht as net profit from a ton of rice sold or 28,035.50 baht earning per year, or 51.08% less than Vietnamese farmers.«--- So this works out to sales of 18.081 tonnes.  If we figure 450 kg per rai the impled average farm is 40 rai.

 

 

[djayz]

On 21/07/2014 at 8:44 AM, Khun Loong said:

I have often wondered this myself. Of course common sense will tell you that it would vary according to many conditions. But I would have thought that rice farmers would have a ball park idea........BUT.....surprise, surprise, of the maybe 10 farmers I have asked in Issan, not one had any idea!

If the farmers here are anything like the farmers back home, then they more than likely know how much rice per rai they get on average BUT due to their secretive nature, won't divulge this information. 

[cooked]

On 21/07/2014 at 6:30 PM, khwaibah said:

Let me rephrase Its called faring with deep pockets. They are not going to lay out the money in issan by the individual farmer or by the government.

Willy - bloody nilly, the smaller farmers are gradually being squeezed out of business due to one reason or another.

This is happening all over the world and subsistence farming is only carried out by people with no other choice.

MY SIL works very hard, has probably the best quality rice in the village, and after all the worry, hard work and annoyances hardly makes more than ฿20 000.- a year from it. He has vegetable plots and a few cows and chickens to get him through, frogs appear on his menu quite often.

By hook or by crook, crook mostly, smaller farms are being taken over by the local merchants with sufficient machines and water at their disposal. These of course are the same guys that lend money at outrageous interests or other terms, I have seen a few family tragedies around here due to almost illiterate Thais signing bits of paper.

[sirquest007]

Rice harvest...
i've been reading this to know a little more what to expect, with only 2 years, i'm a "newbie"

Last year "0", the little there was, was for the chickens.
yes, it was a dry season, and i don't know why father decides to plant so late, but... he's "the boss"

This year, we have harvest... if it's worth calling it harvest.
12 rai, 17 bags.
about 30kgs a bag....

It is a lot better then last year.
one of the tings that changed was the 2 x 100 meter water hose i bought for father, and gave from time to time gasoline for the pump during the year.

AU!! 500 kgs....
40 kgs per RAI.

Even the workers who got the rice from the field costs more money then to buy......
Most expensive rice ever....
land lease, tractor, rice for seed, fertilizer, irrigation/ gasoline (some parts), workers for harvest, combine to get the rice out the straw....
i'm afraid 25.000 - 30.000 THB for 500 kgs

It is difficult to keep my big mouth shot. especially as i can see that land close to us have healthy harvest..

this year no fire, the land is plowed.
i'll take some soil samples and adjust the fertilizer to that what the soil really needs...
That is, if my wife can convince him to use different product.

thickheaded... especially when it comes to farming he has been doing it many many years
(and is poor about the same period)

AU!! 500 kgs....
40 kgs per RAI.

that is really bad!!

????????

[IsaanAussie]

3 minutes ago, sirquest007 said:

Rice harvest...
i've been reading this to know a little more what to expect, with only 2 years, i'm a "newbie"

Last year "0", the little there was, was for the chickens.
yes, it was a dry season, and i don't know why father decides to plant so late, but... he's "the boss"

This year, we have harvest... if it's worth calling it harvest.
12 rai, 17 bags.
about 30kgs a bag....

It is a lot better then last year.
one of the tings that changed was the 2 x 100 meter water hose i bought for father, and gave from time to time gasoline for the pump during the year.

AU!! 500 kgs....
40 kgs per RAI.

Even the workers who got the rice from the field costs more money then to buy......
Most expensive rice ever....
land lease, tractor, rice for seed, fertilizer, irrigation/ gasoline (some parts), workers for harvest, combine to get the rice out the straw....
i'm afraid 25.000 - 30.000 THB for 500 kgs

It is difficult to keep my big mouth shot. especially as i can see that land close to us have healthy harvest..

this year no fire, the land is plowed.
i'll take some soil samples and adjust the fertilizer to that what the soil really needs...
That is, if my wife can convince him to use different product.

thickheaded... especially when it comes to farming he has been doing it many many years
(and is poor about the same period)

AU!! 500 kgs....
40 kgs per RAI.

that is really bad!!

????????

From my experience previously here, a low yield is 200 kg per rai. The best I have achieved is 750kg per rai

[Grumpy John]

We haven't grown rice for 3 years. The one 20 rai block is rented and the other 20 is unused. The first year we had it good and got average 650kg per rai.  I was shocked! I was expecting 900kg or more. ???? Had to pay for soil prep,  labour on several days and machine to harvest. Still we made enough to have a go next year.....which wasn't so good.  4 rai at the West end didn't get enough water as the dam dried up and yield suffered.  Still made money but not enough to do it again.   We made a bit more on corn each year and we only planted 14 rai.   Not enough water for more corn.  And there is a shortage of farm labour here.  And the average age of the workers is 50's something.   Moving 3" hoses around in the corn almost killed the both of us!  Looking after mango trees is a snap in comparison.....but,  not highly profitable. 

[thoongfoned]

2 hours ago, Grumpy John said:

We haven't grown rice for 3 years. The one 20 rai block is rented and the other 20 is unused. The first year we had it good and got average 650kg per rai.  I was shocked! I was expecting 900kg or more. ???? Had to pay for soil prep,  labour on several days and machine to harvest. Still we made enough to have a go next year.....which wasn't so good.  4 rai at the West end didn't get enough water as the dam dried up and yield suffered.  Still made money but not enough to do it again.   We made a bit more on corn each year and we only planted 14 rai.   Not enough water for more corn.  And there is a shortage of farm labour here.  And the average age of the workers is 50's something.   Moving 3" hoses around in the corn almost killed the both of us!  Looking after mango trees is a snap in comparison.....but,  not highly profitable. 

where we are the land is not that good,loads of stone(large under land) plus clay.... wife rents some land out, if they can get 17/20 bags (500 ish kg) per rai this is good, only rain fed, hand planted and small vits added. sister inlaw has some good land for rice, maybe  600/700 kg per rai, she lives abroad so the  wife/family handles this, keeps father in law in 3 diggit lotto numbers for a short while at least..... in the past i have messed about with the tractor making large land locks, added loads of pig poo, put still never improved the yeild... now most of this land is going for home builds....

[IsaanAussie]

Today we harvested a 1 rai plot. 150kg at best of crappy rice. Fall army worm, water stressed and rice blast.

[khwaibah]

This photo

 

 

Have about 4000 cat fish in the rice.

 

those rice paddies are next to a certain pond with another 6000 fish.

 

 

the pond is to the left.

 

Me boss has about 2.5 rai of this rice that has had only grade A cow pies from her project. NO chemicals of any kind. Tomorrow there is going to be a major fish round up and transfer of the fish over into her pond and that 2.5 rai will be hand cut. The other 12 rai of rice you see in the back ground is her moms and no chemical but comerical fertilizer. That rice will be machine harvested. Those paddies average about 500 kilo per rai. BTW me boss has HER organic rice sold. This is Kap Choeng Surin about 2km from Surin Immigration. No army worm, water stressed or rice blast.

 

[farmerjo]

What is the main purpose of the catfish?

 

[Dumbastheycome]

Just  completed  annual  harvest off  6  rai. Rough estimate   for this  year  is 4.5> 5.0 tonne. A surprise  because  it was  only   sufficient  late rain  that  saved  the crop. There was  a point where  we  had resigned  ourselves to  get  nothing.We  even escaped  the  effect  of  rice  blast  which  hammered  the  neighbors  crop. So we   got lucky...this  year. 

After  two  years  of  strange  rainfall patterns I have  no expectation  of  such  luck  continuing.

 

 

 

[khwaibah]

9 hours ago, farmerjo said:

What is the main purpose of the catfish?

 

TO EAT.???????????? All the fish were bought by the fl from the Surin Inland Fisheries...https://www.fisheries.go.th/if-surin/pan.php There are other breeds and over 10,000 with more to come. They will be sold on the local market market and bookings are brisk. Today there is a major gathering for the fish round up/transfer and the cow pie rice harvest. ????

[thoongfoned]

13 hours ago, IsaanAussie said:

Today we harvested a 1 rai plot. 150kg at best of crappy rice. Fall army worm, water stressed and rice blast.

the wife has been saying that around here the rice yields are lower this year, most people are well into the harvest now,alot of the wifes friends have had the machine in to cut, 600 baht per rai so im told. 

this is the first year i can remember not selling out of the bags (from the pigs feed) still got afew hundred in the "shed" we have been selling @ 3.2/3.5 per bag if buy at least 1000 or 4 baht for smaller orders.

[Grumpy John]

12 hours ago, khwaibah said:

This photo

 

 

Have about 4000 cat fish in the rice.

 

those rice paddies are next to a certain pond with another 6000 fish.

 

 

the pond is to the left.

 

Me boss has about 2.5 rai of this rice that has had only grade A cow pies from her project. NO chemicals of any kind. Tomorrow there is going to be a major fish round up and transfer of the fish over into her pond and that 2.5 rai will be hand cut. The other 12 rai of rice you see in the back ground is her moms and no chemical but comerical fertilizer. That rice will be machine harvested. Those paddies average about 500 kilo per rai. BTW me boss has HER organic rice sold. This is Kap Choeng Surin about 2km from Surin Immigration. No army worm, water stressed or rice blast.

 

Interesting! Exactly how do you have a fish round-up?  The Thai way would be to have a bus load of people come in with gunny sacks and catch the fish by hand.....tel me there is a better way?

[farmerjo]

13 minutes ago, thoongfoned said:

the wife has been saying that around here the rice yields are lower this year, most people are well into the harvest now,alot of the wifes friends have had the machine in to cut, 600 baht per rai so im told. 

this is the first year i can remember not selling out of the bags (from the pigs feed) still got afew hundred in the "shed" we have been selling @ 3.2/3.5 per bag if buy at least 1000 or 4 baht for smaller orders.

The Mrs asked me this morning whether i was getting the harvester out of the shed for the rice or papa do with his friends.

She was quite accepting when i said papa and friends.

I've spent more than enough on it this year and even if he pays his friends and a threshing machine he is still way in front as that will be his only costs and walks away with the rice.

I set up 3 rai for him,the one rai i managed to level properly is a bumper crop,the other two he was impatient and land not prepared well.He walked away from them with poor seasonal rain(nada and loss of seed).Next year he gets the one rai.

[khwaibah]

32 minutes ago, Grumpy John said:

Interesting! Exactly how do you have a fish round-up?  The Thai way would be to have a bus load of people come in with gunny sacks and catch the fish by hand.....tel me there is a better way?

More photos and info to follow.

[kickstart]

2 hours ago, thoongfoned said:

the wife has been saying that around here the rice yields are lower this year, most people are well into the harvest now,alot of the wifes friends have had the machine in to cut, 600 baht per rai so im told. 

this is the first year i can remember not selling out of the bags (from the pigs feed) still got afew hundred in the "shed" we have been selling @ 3.2/3.5 per bag if buy at least 1000 or 4 baht for smaller orders.

Seems to be a set price 600 baht/rie to harvest rice , same price to harvest maize as well  ,wife's son in law pays that , will harvest his rice end of the month ,low yields ,not a lot of rain.

He was out at 5 am two days ago .someone or a group of farmers  near by where going to harvest they crop ,they opened they rice paddy's to let out the water , and promptly  flooded son in laws crop and some of his neighbors ,so he opened his fields to let the water out ,where did it go ? who knows Mie-Pen-Rie. 

[khwaibah]

Just in. Hot as fork in that sun. I counted 15 people on site and another 6 kids. Lunch and dinner are on the boss lady.

 

 

This photo show some blue netting and a 4 inch hose..FL has cut into the dyke and is using a pump to transfer water back into the pond.

 

The boss lady.

[IsaanAussie]

Seeing a team harvesting by hand brings back fond memories. We continued to do it this way for the first two or three years after the DC60's first showed up. As those guys got better and the lost rate went down it got too expensive to hand cut. Pity really. 

Still I think stacking the cut sheaves to dry before threshing produced a more consistent moisture content.