Growing Makua in Thailand

[chownah]

I'll bet they are long eggplant...which come in purple, green, and white. I'm guessing this because "Ajinomoto" sounds like a Japanese name and in the US the long eggplant are called Japanese eggplant so I guess they are popular in Japan. The long eggplant I grew last year got to about one metre tall and the bamboo stakes in the picture appear to be about the same. The picture showing the transplant doesn't quite look right though but hard to tell. If I'm right on this then in Thai they are called "makhua yaow" which means "long eggplant".

I guess they mean that these plants will start to make fruit one month after transplanting and not be able to pick fruit in one month...but I don't know...looking at that little transplant its hard to believe they will be picking fruit off of it in one month...but maybe.....

Chownah

[Somtham]

I'll bet they are long eggplant...which come in purple, green, and white. I'm guessing this because "Ajinomoto" sounds like a Japanese name and in the US the long eggplant are called Japanese eggplant so I guess they are popular in Japan. The long eggplant I grew last year got to about one metre tall and the bamboo stakes in the picture appear to be about the same. The picture showing the transplant doesn't quite look right though but hard to tell. If I'm right on this then in Thai they are called "makhua yaow" which means "long eggplant".

I guess they mean that these plants will start to make fruit one month after transplanting and not be able to pick fruit in one month...but I don't know...looking at that little transplant its hard to believe they will be picking fruit off of it in one month...but maybe.....

Chownah

Yes, Ajinomoto is a Japanese factory. They buy a medium size, green, not so spicy chile they call prik Jipoon from the local farmers and now I find out they buy these makuas. My Thai is not great but going back to post #70 I think they would be makua yao which are the long purple ones you find in the US. I doubt this guy will be picking ripe fruit in a month but we'll see.

A little OT but you'd love Ajinomoto. I taked to one guy that frows the chiles for them and they insist no pesticides, no chemical fertilizers!! I guess they can this stuff and ship it backto Japan labeled as "organic".

rgds

[Maizefarmer]

Ajinomoto sounds like Japenese !!!!!!! You don't know that Ajinomoto is a a Jap company that makes MSG in Thailand - ask any Thai wife what Ajinomoto is and she'll show you a little clear plastic bag with red writting on it?

"Apparently these guys produce fruit after one month and the plants are good for 7 months. He expects to sell 10kg per plant and pocket ~B6/kg * 10kg/plant for the 7 months. He said he planted 13,000 plants so that works out to B780,000 for the 7 months. Not to shabby.

Has anybody tried to grow these and can you verify the numbers?"

It's Brinjal (or indeed eggplant) - the numbers are optimistic and assume a good price, good product, good production, little insect damage, all plants produce ect ect ... add on 15rai of dripper lines, drippers, plastic, land prep and planting - and the net figure 1/2 - 2/3 of that, or about Baht 6 per plant per month - not bad I guess.

Kepp your eye on how it progresses.

MF

[Somtham]

Ajinomoto sounds like Japenese !!!!!!! You don't know that Ajinomoto is a a Jap company that makes MSG in Thailand - ask any Thai wife what Ajinomoto is and she'll show you a little clear plastic bag with red writting on it?

"Apparently these guys produce fruit after one month and the plants are good for 7 months. He expects to sell 10kg per plant and pocket ~B6/kg * 10kg/plant for the 7 months. He said he planted 13,000 plants so that works out to B780,000 for the 7 months. Not to shabby.

Has anybody tried to grow these and can you verify the numbers?"

It's Brinjal (or indeed eggplant) - the numbers are optimistic and assume a good price, good product, good production, little insect damage, all plants produce ect ect ... add on 15rai of dripper lines, drippers, plastic, land prep and planting - and the net figure 1/2 - 2/3 of that, or about Baht 6 per plant per month - not bad I guess.

Kepp your eye on how it progresses.

MF

Ah yes, the Ajinomoto MSG. I'm alergic to the stuff but there's always a bag around the house as the Thais like to throw it on everything.

The plot is across the street from one of our paddies so I'll keep an eye on how it goes...as will probably every rice farmer in the area as I think this is a first.

The guy's wife told me the tape and plastic ran just under B50K and add another B20k for the plants. He also has 500 rai of cane and brings his workers down from the mountains and pays them a whopping B120 per day. I'm sure when he calculates a return the labor will be absorbed into the cane fields.

rgds

[Maizefarmer]

Right next door you - thats convienient!

Keep an eye on it - in particular when he irrigates. Watch out for empty additive/insecticide/fertiliser packets/containers left lying around, keep a note of the weather, when flowering starts, when fruit starts to grow, how much per plant, what is added, how much, when - keep a note of as much detail as possible i.e. best way to earn is from your neighbour - then give it go yourself.

MF

[btate]

Went to look at a piece of property yesterday afternoon between showers, ( another 1.5 inches of rain over the last 24 hours) and found these growing wild in a field of tall grass and weeds. Obviously not cared for at all. So it bodes well for a cultivated breed it seems.

They are softer than you would expect but have no idea of taste, texture etc. 10 + rai, mostly mangosteen and longan with about 3 rai of grass and weeds, with year around water on the property. The house is a typical Thai raised style that can be upgraded quite easily. The main building is make of teak so its worth something.

The property is fenced and has a Chanote so will check it out further. Asking is 1.1 MM baht. We'll see.

Bt

[Somtham]

Went to look at a piece of property yesterday afternoon between showers, ( another 1.5 inches of rain over the last 24 hours) and found these growing wild in a field of tall grass and weeds. Obviously not cared for at all. So it bodes well for a cultivated breed it seems.

They are softer than you would expect but have no idea of taste, texture etc. 10 + rai, mostly mangosteen and longan with about 3 rai of grass and weeds, with year around water on the property. The house is a typical Thai raised style that can be upgraded quite easily. The main building is make of teak so its worth something.

The property is fenced and has a Chanote so will check it out further. Asking is 1.1 MM baht. We'll see.

Bt

Around here that would be a steal. How big is the house? 1"+ thick teak planks sell for B25K/yote and the 2cm thick siding for B9k/yote. Got a pic?

Also, as I recall, mangosteens take about 8 years to fruit so that sounds like a bonus. We bought them at Talat Thai last week for B12/kg.

rgds

[Somtham]

Right next door you - thats convienient!

Keep an eye on it - in particular when he irrigates. Watch out for empty additive/insecticide/fertiliser packets/containers left lying around, keep a note of the weather, when flowering starts, when fruit starts to grow, how much per plant, what is added, how much, when - keep a note of as much detail as possible i.e. best way to earn is from your neighbour - then give it go yourself.

MF

Well, right next door to the rice paddy which....is on the other side of the river. I made it a point to be close to mom and dad but not right next door. We're 10km away from the family moo baan, intentionaly, but I do go over there at least every other day so I'll keep an eye on the progress of the binjal. Seems the farmers just toss their waste along side the field so it should not be difficult to figure out what fertilzers and insecticides are being used.

rgds

[chownah]

The long eggplant I planted as seed in Feb is just starting to produce....any makhua news from others?

chownah

[Amicitia]

About a month ago we had some mysterious desease-dont know what it was ,since I am not there right now-.The plants were cut down to the stem,reproduced wonderfully and are better than before . Now are producing fruit again . In Nong Wua So ( near Udon ) we are getting now 5 THB per KG Makua form a lady who sells them on the local market and makes about 1 THB profit for her troubles.

[chownah]

So a neighbor next to the rice paddy is converting 15 rai of sugar cane to the purple eggplant. Not sure what the Thai makua name is. There is an Ajinomoto factory down the road where he will sell the produce. He planted in single rows spaced 3m apart and plant to plant spacing in the row was 120cm. After 6 months he will replant in rows 150cm over from the current rows. He tilled the land with a Ford, put down a few cups of chicken manure (he also has about 14,000 chickens growing), laid down the irrigation tape, covered it with plastic, and then planted the seedlings. The irrigation tape is gravity fed from a storage tank his wife told me was 15,000 liters which is filled from a catfish pond.

Apparently these guys produce fruit after one month and the plants are good for 7 months. He expects to sell 10kg per plant and pocket ~B6/kg * 10kg/plant for the 7 months. He said he planted 13,000 plants so that works out to B780,000 for the 7 months. Not to shabby.

Has anybody tried to grow these and can you verify the numbers?

Here's a couple pics of his layout. Not in pails but still looks much better than what I've done :-(

rgds

How about an update on how this project is going.

My makua yow is producing but not very well....on the other hand I haven't even looked at them for a couple weeks or more as its rice season now and I'm builidng a kitchen so I haven't had time...but they keep appearing at the dinner table so they are still producing. The crunchy round makua are still producing too but not so many like before....I've got some corn that's doing well though...and the prik noom seems to still be doing quite well too.

Chownah

[Somtham]

How about an update on how this project is going.

My makua yow is producing but not very well....on the other hand I haven't even looked at them for a couple weeks or more as its rice season now and I'm builidng a kitchen so I haven't had time...but they keep appearing at the dinner table so they are still producing. The crunchy round makua are still producing too but not so many like before....I've got some corn that's doing well though...and the prik noom seems to still be doing quite well too.

Chownah

Drove over today to have a look and the plants are about 60cm tall and almost all have flowers with some showing very small fruit. The plants look healthy and well cared for. The farmers truck was parked on the road and there was one small bottle of "Cypermethrin" in the back. Didn't see him/her using it on the makua but the bottle was perched up on the wheel well so I'm guessing it was used.

Here's some pics from today. Don't mind the date on the pics. Danm camera keeps wanting to default back to 1-1-06 everytime I turn it on and I'm tired of changing it.

rgds

[chownah]

If I remember correctly they claimed fruit in one month and its been about one month and sure enough they have fruit....only its not marketable yet....still, that's pretty fast.

[Somtham]

If I remember correctly they claimed fruit in one month and its been about one month and sure enough they have fruit....only its not marketable yet....still, that's pretty fast.

Went over to the paddy yesterday to cut some bamboo and on the way out took a few wrong turns. Anyway, I stumbled upon 3 more plots growing this Binjal eggplant. I stopped to talk to one guy and his plants are 7 weeks old and he was going to start picking today. And.........he sprays for worms every other day!! OMG, no wonder I want to grow all our own veggies.

rgds

[btate]

Time for an update on Bt's makua and the BUGS!

We started another 20 plants, along with some tomatoes, round the 1st of April. Lost half of the makua to the rains in late April. Once established in the paper cups they seemed to do pretty well when only exposed to eastern morning sun.

Decided to let em grow until they were just too big for the cups. Ended up they were all in excess of 25 cm in height when I repotted on 1 June.

In the meantime I noted a couple of leaf miner invasions, not to severe but there none the less. Gave them a normal watering using Karate at the prescribed solution rate in early May. Rain rain and more rain, this time they were protected by the eaves of the house so I was out watering during rain storms. The neighbors thought the farang had gone totally ba ba bo bo.

Repotted all in buckets on 1 June, standard potting soil and 20 % buffalo chips and threw in 4 small fish from the local market just to see what happened. The fish (4 small size aomtam type in each bucket along the sides of the bucket about 20 cm down in the soil) idea comes from seeing my dad do it as a child, he used to throw a medium size perch into each hole he placed a tomatoe plant.

Placed the buckets in bright light but not direct sun. Next day they had all been overturned by the puppies next door. They decided they would dig out the fish, yummy. We managed to salvage 9 of the ten plants and watered them and watched them for a couple of days.

Once I was sure they had survived the initial shock of the puppy escapades, I decided it was time to place them in the direct sun. When I went to move the first bucket I was totally surprised by the CLOUD of leaf hoppers that had accumulated on the plants. Must have been thousands of them on the nine plants. Time for more Karate, that was two days ago so will be interested to see over the next couple of days the results of the Karate. There had also been a small infestation of leaf miners, but interestingly the little tunnels terminated quite quickly, Karate at work I suppose.

If the little buggers are still there its time for the Actara. If the Actara doesn't hack it the only resort would be ot build a closed environment. A costly proposition for sure unless it was for small scale growing. The combination of heavy rains and the bugs makes growing delicate plants a difficult proposition here in the fruit orchards.

I am truly appreciative of MF's suggestion to start small and find out 'some' of the issues you face. I would be pulling out the several hairs on my head had I planted a rai or two to start out. I've started real small with a few plants, and progressed through various watering, pesticide, fertilizer routines and kept note of the results. IF I decide to go full time I will have had some basis for making decisions on how to manage the process.

For those of you interested in the organic methods of gardening I recommend you plant, inter crop, makua amongst your valuable plants. The bugs absolutely love the makua, the tomatoes show no signs of leaf miners or leaf hoppers seems the little critters prefer the makua. Plant some makua, whether you need to or not, they are great bug attractors.

Bt

[Tim207]

Well, I have finally got flower buds, not alot but they are coming. Only one flower has opened so far. It took 3 months from seed to first flower. I did leave them inside for way too long because it was too cold outside. I think that set me back a month judging by the size differences between the first set and the second set I started 6 weeks later. The second group is almost as big as the first already. I remember a quote from several months ago, something along the lines of "one day you will wake up and there will be flowers everywhere". I am checking every morning now.

[Pond Life]

Bt,

How did the Karate work out against the bugs ?

[btate]

Bt,

How did the Karate work out against the bugs ?

The short answer is " it didn't". I have great plants with leaves that look like sieves. Just now started harvesting fruits. The fruits are good, not a lot of blemishes but don't know how long the plants will go as they are beginning to look pretty grim.

After much consideration I am of the belief that vegetable farming here is not a viable enterprise. There are of course exceptions, chilli, lemon grass, basil, holy basil do well, no bug problems. Tomatoes are semi viable for family use but not on a commercial basis.

The variety and numbers of bugs is just way over the top. The latest is yellow spotted beetles, they just absolutely love the makua and the 40 or so orchids I've got. With the very very wet and rainy times the last few months - pretty much steady rain since a week after Songkran - the bugs are multiplying at incredible rates and I expect they will continue until the dry season starts in November. Its all pretty depressing, on the other hand Maize Farmer's advice proved to be very accurate - start small and find out what your problems will be.

I have some Actara but have decided not to use it. The risk of contaminating the nearby water is just too great. Using the bucket with holes method, I've been able to actually watch the water seep out of the bottoms and drain off towards the canals, not good.

From my experience the only way to grow is to have an enclosed environment, which I've looked into. That would mean a clear roof of some sort (just way too much rain over very long periods) and at least a screen side walls. Considering it must be totally enclosed with screen it means some sort of foundation and sealed flooring ( plastic would work for the floor ) to be effective.

Using the cheapest of materials is still a considerable expense when building on a decent scale. PVC sheet roof (which I doubt would last more than a few months with the wild winds here), wood framing, cement block knee wall, PVC sheet with gravel or rock flooring and some sort of air moving methods mounts up to substantial costs. On top of that you would need a method of pollenization. Just too much complication for the Ms too manage and we haven't even talked about the technicalities of irrigation, fert. etc.

This would be OK for a 'family' garden type thing but not for a commercial production business. Land here that is suitable for establishing a commercial garden, ie. reasonably flat, access to water, power and road runs from 100K per rai to over 200K per rai. Everyone here thinks you can get rich on land. Maybe so but not from me. Even the banks holding bad paper are out of their skulls with pricing. Two days ago I was offered 1.25 rai on a paved road, "best deal you'll find" I was told by a third party. Price, 210,000 baht.

There is a reason why this area is an orchard community/region, its because that is what does well here. Trees are much more hardy and can withstand the onslaught of bugs etc. I've spent considerable time in some of the orchards and farms that do dragon fruit etc.. These plants are strong and seem to be impervious to leaf miners, beetles, worms and what ever else there is.

A rather long reply but a fitting end to my experimenting with makua, other than a few plants to provide our own needs.

Bt

[Pond Life]

Sorry to hear you so discouraged,

I'd agree its very hard to make any money with veggies, but I'm only intending to grow for myself.

I've got about 10 of the very small egg shaped makua growing in the ground, the leaves look like sh*t but they still produce a fair amount of perfect fruit.

[Tim207]

OK, I am eating makua and they are excellent. Lots of buds and flowers but the fruit are mis-shapen. They are not rounded, a cross section dividing stem half from blossom half looks like an oval and has a few very pronounced ridges/valleys. I have seen this on tomatoes but have no idea what causes it. Any guesses? It almost looks like a string was tied around it in a few places and the fruit grew out where the string was not constricting it.

[SAP]

BTATE

I am too lazy to read through old posts, but were you the CHAP that challenged the big fella (MF) to a growing contest. Because at the end of the day, tropical climates are the biggest users of chemicals. That is because no frosts, and upto 10 times the insect cycle of a temperate climate.

I believe that the advances made in organic and bio farming is starting to filter through, and should be encouraged by governments and farmers, but always remember that the farmer is always the last one to see a price rise after the

Fuel Co

Fert Co

Chem Co

Broker

2nd Broker etc etc etc

And Tesco that reject 20-30% because it doesn't meet house wives visusl standards (in the west, gotta grow potatoes shaped liked eggs these days)

I am sorry this is way off the post or thread!

But MF, I hope you are well and return to help all and sundry soon

SAP

[btate]

BTATE

I am too lazy to read through old posts, but were you the CHAP that challenged the big fella (MF) to a growing contest. Because at the end of the day, tropical climates are the biggest users of chemicals. That is because no frosts, and upto 10 times the insect cycle of a temperate climate.

SAP

Nope, you got the wrong fella. Never challenged anyone since I know a little of the vagaries of farming from a past life.

I did follow MF's advice though and used the chems he recommended. The bugs in Chantaburi seem to be immune to them lolol.

Bt

[btate]

OK, I am eating makua and they are excellent. Lots of buds and flowers but the fruit are mis-shapen. They are not rounded, a cross section dividing stem half from blossom half looks like an oval and has a few very pronounced ridges/valleys. I have seen this on tomatoes but have no idea what causes it. Any guesses? It almost looks like a string was tied around it in a few places and the fruit grew out where the string was not constricting it.

Tim

Your description fits one of the symptoms of inconsistent watering cycles.?????

Bt

[Tim207]

Tim

Your description fits one of the symptoms of inconsistent watering cycles.?????

Bt

The odd thing is that it seems to be only the first fruit of a plant. Subsequent fruit on each plant have been smooth and round. This has held true for both ground planted and bucket planted makhua.

[Hadrian1]

I am trying to grow some of the golf ball sized aubergines in the UK as well as some pea aubergines. The larger ones are doing nicely but the pea aubergines havn't germinated at all. I tried surface sowing but it hasn't worked for the pea aubergines. I saw that maizefarmer suggested pushing finger into the soil and dropping seed into that. How deep would that be? Anybody with any other suggestions? Sorry for a slight degression to the thread!

[teletiger]

Hadrian.....I would check your seeds. The pea sized aubergine (Makua Puang) is one of the easiest to grow, over here. Something of a problem in my garden. Birds depositing them all over. Put one in a lump of bird poop

Regards.

[Hadrian1]

Hmmm...thanks teletiger. The seeds might be the problem but I would like to know how deep the gardeners/farmers plant the seed.

[teletiger]

Most farmers around here buy the seedlings. 100+ plants per poly pack. Whether it's .5cms or 1.5cms, any seed worth it's salt will pop up.

Regards.

[slapout]

As teletiger says good seed will pop thru. The old grandpa always said the rule of thumb, is the depth planted should be 2 times the seed size. OK next question, on elongated seeds do you use flat or long measurement? For watermelon, cantaloupe, etc, I found the seed can up even using the deeper depth.

[Maizefarmer]

Anything from 1/4" - 1/2" (or even a little deeper) should be fine.

Irrespective of soil type/ condition they should at least germinate (unless the soil is seriously seriously acidic) - if they aren't germinating at those sorts of depths then chances are the seed(s) are damaged and you;re going to have to get some more.