Nget Mao is a woman farmer from Trapaing Sragnge village, Angtasom commune, Tramkok district, Takeo province. She has contact with the project since 2003.There are five people in her family. The family has 0.7 hectares of rice field, with two cattle that can be used as draft animals for farming. She mentioned that she has adopted and adapted the SRI techniques since 2003 on a plot of rice field of 0.1 hectares. The first experiment was conducted in order to see the result of SRI. Now, she cultivates all 0.7 ha of her rice field using SRI techniques. Particularly, she has applied the technique of transplanting in rows on 0.33 ha. She mentioned that it is difficult for her to use the string while transplanting in rows, which is why she could apply this technique on only part of the field.
Mao has adopted/adapted the following SRI techniques:
- Selecting only full grain seeds for propagation by soaking seeds in water with the combination of some salts.
- Preparing raised seedbeds and soil leveling. Previously she had 3 seedbeds about 0.1 ha, but now she has reduced the number of seedbeds to only 2 plots of 0.08 ha. She added that she increased the quantity of compost for those seedbeds.
- Reducing the quantity of seed. She previously used 60 kg for 3 seedbeds but she currently uses only 18 kg for 2 seedbeds. Therefore, she reduced the amount of seed used by 42 kg after applying the principles of SRI. She additionally uses neem leaves in combination with the seeds in order to protect those seeds from damage from pest insects.
- Transplanting healthy young seedlings aged 15 to 20 days old.
- Transplanting only 1-2 seedlings per hill, which is quite different from her conventional practice of transplanting 5-6 seedlings.
- Moreover, she conducted other SRI techniques such as improving soil health by applying natural fertilizer (compost), frequently weeding in order to control the weeds and to improve soil aeration, adjusting the water level at an appropriate level, shallow root transplanting and transplanting seedlings in rows, etc. She emphasized that she completely stopped using chemical fertilizer in 2006 because she understands the negative effects of chemical fertilizer on soil degradation, economic losses due to rising price of chemical fertilizer and on human health. Before cooperation with the project ILFARM-TK, she used chemical fertilizer at a quantity of 100 kg per year, but now she does not use it anymore, which is also good for her because it reduces production expenses. At the same time, she improved and applied the technique of compost making in order to increase the quantity of compost to replace the use of chemical fertilizer. Before cooperating with project, she was able to use compost for vegetable growing only but now the quantity of compost increased, enabling her to also use compost for the rice field.
- In 2008, she spent 479,000 riels for the production cost of rice cultivation on the rice field of 0.7 ha. However, she harvested 3,360 kg of paddy as a result (4.8 t/ha). At that time, the selling price of paddy was 1,000 riel/kg. So, the total estimated income is 3360 kg x 1,000 riel/kg = 3,360,000 riels. Therefore, she earned 3,360,000 – 479,000 = 2,881,000 riels.
- Finally, she is very happy and strongly interested in the SRI technique because she can harvest more yield through the practices of SRI. In the future, she will improve and practice other techniques. In particular, she intends to conduct the technique of transplanting in rows for the whole of her rice field as well as to increase the quantity of compost used.
