1.2 Contact details of resource persons and institutions involved in the assessment and documentation of the Technology

Name of project which facilitated the documentation/ evaluation of the Technology (if relevant)

Scaling-up SLM practices by smallholder farmers (IFAD)

Name of the institution(s) which facilitated the documentation/ evaluation of the Technology (if relevant)

Royal University of Agriculture (RUA) - Cambodia

1.3 Conditions regarding the use of data documented through WOCAT

When were the data compiled (in the field)?

10/04/2017

The compiler and key resource person(s) accept the conditions regarding the use of data documented through WOCAT:

Yes

1.4 Declaration on sustainability of the described Technology

Is the Technology described here problematic with regard to land degradation, so that it cannot be declared a sustainable land management technology?

No

2.1 Short description of the Technology

Definition of the Technology:

The use of old newspapers to wrap up bitter gourd, so as to prevent the fruit from being damaged by insects, and to protect them from direct sunlight and contact with pesticides. This agricultural approach only uses animal manure, fish heads and urea (46-0-0) as fertilizer to improve the soil’s quality.

2.2 Detailed description of the Technology

Description:

Bitter gourd is a crop that can be supported by trellises and it is possible to plant it throughout the year. However it is not recommended to grow it in areas with strong winds because then it takes longer to grow. Bitter gourd requires more fertile soil than other varieties in the Cucurbitaceae family. It needs to be well-saturated or loamy soil with a pH of 6 to 6.8. The most suitable land can be found along river banks, streams, and lakes with high silt content. Bitter gourds are susceptible to be damaged by pests and diseases. In order to protect the fruit from pests, plastic, paper or other materials are wrapped around the fruit. Additionally, the crop needs nets for climbing, which can be quite expensive (Agritoday, 2016).

In this case study the farmer plants bitter gourds by using bamboo sticks to construct the trellis for plant climbing. And he wraps up the fruits with old newspapers. This growing technique is less expensive than using nets for plant climbing and medium A4 sized brown paper envelopes to protect the fruit. The bamboo sticks can be used for two years, and during this period the farmer is able to make use of them three to four times a year. The newspapers that have been bought to protect the fruit can be used two or three times, so as not only to reduce the cost but also to reduce the environmental impact. Covering the fruit with newspapers is better than using plastic bags or pages from books, because plastic bags can easily become too hot, and pages are particularly vulnerable to rain or water. The main purpose of wrapping up the bitter gourd with newspapers is to protect them from insects, especially the fruit fly. However it also protects them from the heat of the sun makes the fruit whiter, and acts as a protection against pesticides as this would otherwise be directly sprayed onto the fruit. Insecticides normally last an average of 7 to 10 days and plants will then have to be sprayed again to prevent the return of the insects. Farmers are able to harvest the bitter gourd about 15 days after pinned with newspaper.

As the area is flooded by the Mekong River during the months of August - October, it is not possible to plant bitter gourd in the rainy season. After the water has receded the soil should be ploughed and dried by the sun for 15 days. After this the soil should be plowed again, and then the field needs to be harrowed evenly and the soil left to dry for three more days. Fertilizers should not be added whilst ploughing. Planting is done by firstly using a hoe to scratch a central trench in the field. Further parallel lines to this trench should be 1.2 meters apart and the bitter gourd seeds should then be planted along the lines, at 40 centimeter intervals. Once the seeds are in the ground manure, cow or buffalo compost should be applied over the top and then watered. Before growing, it should be soaked for 2 hours and then covered with cloth. Afterwards they should be left to soak in a steady flow of water for 4 to 5 days until the shoots begin to grow. After when the developing bitter melon is 15 days old a bamboo pole with bamboo sticks of about 1.7 meters height and 10 cm from the plants has to be placed. A further 15 days after having put up the poles, the soil should be loosen up again and then the fish head fertilizer mixed with a little bit of UREA is applied. The fertilizer should be spread about 30 to 40 cm from plants, or it can be added between the bitter gourd clumps, which can also be combined with manure and UREA. Watering should be done twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening. The irrigation system involves pumping water from a nearby lake. Even though pesticides are used regularly, if paper is not used to protect the fruits, they can still be affected by pests. Once affected the fruit falls down, becomes stunted, grows into irregular shapes, the color becomes dull. In case the fruit were directly affected by the poison it could be harmful to people’s health. Any combination of these physical symptoms can be identified very easily and monitored by the farmers themselves. Since the use of this technique the farmer’s income has increased because they are able to grow a product of good quality and high output.

2.3 Photos of the Technology

2.4 Videos of the Technology

2.5 Country/ region/ locations where the Technology has been applied and which are covered by this assessment

2.6 Date of implementation

If precise year is not known, indicate approximate date:

• 10-50 years ago

2.7 Introduction of the Technology

Specify how the Technology was introduced:

• as part of a traditional system (> 50 years)

Comments (type of project, etc.):

Doing as traditional ways by using tree's branches as the trellising and changed to bamboo branches, which is similar.

3.1 Main purpose(s) of the Technology

• improve production

• Protecting fruit from insects

3.2 Current land use type(s) where the Technology is applied

Comments:

Plantation of bitter gurd can be done by the farmer from November to July because from August to October the plain will be flooded an no planting is possible.

If land use has changed due to the implementation of the Technology, indicate land use before implementation of the Technology:

Before this land was planted by corn, cucumber, and sesame.

3.3 Further information about land use

Water supply for the land on which the Technology is applied:

• mixed rainfed-irrigated

Comments:

Lake is about 500 m in distance (last year lake dried up because of the drought).

Number of growing seasons per year:

• 2

Specify:

First, planted in early December and then in late February for the second time.

3.4 SLM group to which the Technology belongs

• integrated soil fertility management
• integrated pest and disease management (incl. organic agriculture)

3.5 Spread of the Technology

Specify the spread of the Technology:

• evenly spread over an area

If the Technology is evenly spread over an area, indicate approximate area covered:

• < 0.1 km2 (10 ha)

Comments:

He planted bitter melon on about 2100 square meters which is the rented land. At the time he has to pay 100000 Riel for this land.

3.6 SLM measures comprising the Technology

Comments:

Wrapping up the green gourd fruit with newspaper

3.7 Main types of land degradation addressed by the Technology

3.8 Prevention, reduction, or restoration of land degradation

Specify the goal of the Technology with regard to land degradation:

• prevent land degradation

Comments:

Before the farmer has leased the land and this land was covered by the fabaceae plant Mimosa Pigra which is known as nitrogen fixing plant. When the farmer leased the land he burned down the mimosa plant and got a very fertile soil (not much fertilizer had to be applied).

4.1 Technical drawing of the Technology

4.2 Technical specifications/ explanations of technical drawing

The size of the plot of land is 2100 square meters (a width of 30 meters x a length of 70 meters) containing 25 rows, which are about 70 meters in length and 1.2 meters apart from each other. Along each row there is a distance of 40 cm between each plant and the trellises have a height of 1.70 meters. Then the fruit have been wrapped with newspaper to protected from sunlight, insects and pesticide applied, and also to keep the fruit white.

4.3 General information regarding the calculation of inputs and costs

Specify how costs and inputs were calculated:

• per Technology area

other/ national currency (specify):

Riel

Indicate exchange rate from USD to local currency (if relevant): 1 USD =:

4000.0

4.4 Establishment activities

	Activity	Type of measure	Timing
1.	First plow is keeping 15 days	Agronomic	December
2.	Second plow is keeping 3 days	Agronomic	December
3.	Nursery and propagation	Agronomic	December
4.	Draw the line and planting	Agronomic	January
5.	Watering	Agronomic	January
6.	Collection of bamboo branches	Management	November
7.	Prepare fish head fertilizer, compost, and urea (46-0-0)	Management	August or September
8.	Prepare newspaper for wrap up fruits	Management	December
9.	Buying the tools such as spade, knife, large basket, and water pumping machine.	Management	November
10.	Self keeping seeds	Management	March

Comments:

Most labor is provided by themselves and he keeps his own seeds after harvesting.

4.5 Costs and inputs needed for establishment

	Specify input	Unit	Quantity	Costs per Unit	Total costs per input	% of costs borne by land users
Labour	Nursery and watering	peson-day	3.5	20000.0	70000.0	100.0
Labour	Plowing 2 times	peson-day	3.75	20000.0	75000.0	100.0
Labour	Draw the line and planting	peson-day	8.0	20000.0	160000.0	100.0
Equipment	Pumping machine	piece	1.0	1600000.0	1600000.0	100.0
Equipment	Spade	piece	2.0	20000.0	40000.0	100.0
Equipment	Knife	piece	2.0	20000.0	40000.0	100.0
Equipment	Large basket	pair	1.0	5000.0	5000.0	100.0
Plant material	Seeds	seed	3000.0	60.0	180000.0	100.0
Fertilizers and biocides	Fish head fertilizer, compost and urea	kg	200.0	2500.0	500000.0	100.0
Construction material	Bamboo branches	piece	100.0	5000.0	500000.0	100.0
Other	Newspaper	kg	40.0	1000.0	40000.0	100.0
Other	Spraying tank	piece	1.0	80000.0	80000.0	100.0
Total costs for establishment of the Technology					3290000.0

4.6 Maintenance/ recurrent activities

	Activity	Type of measure	Timing/ frequency
1.	Making soil soft and adding fertilizer	Agronomic	after the plants are 15 days old
2.	Adding more soil at bottom of plants, putting fertilizer and trellising	Structural	After making the soil soft during 15 days
3.	Watering	Agronomic	Everyday (morning and evening)
4.	Checking for insects	Management	Everyday
5.	Wrap up fruits with newspaper	Management	When fruits are provided
6.	Spraying pesticide to prevent insects	Management	When insects are appeared
7.	Spraying fish head fertilizer, animals manure, and urea	Management	3 times for life cycle

Comments:

One life cycle of bitter gourd is 3 months.

4.7 Costs and inputs needed for maintenance/ recurrent activities (per year)

	Specify input	Unit	Quantity	Costs per Unit	Total costs per input	% of costs borne by land users
Labour	Making the soil to be soft, adding more soil at bottom of plants, and trellising	person-day	8.0	20000.0	160000.0	100.0
Fertilizers and biocides	Urea (46-0-0))	kg	6.0	2500.0	15000.0	100.0
Fertilizers and biocides	Pesticide	bottle	2.0	15000.0	30000.0	100.0
Fertilizers and biocides	Fish head	kg	50.0	600.0	30000.0	100.0
Other	Gasoline to pumping for irrigation (3 months)	liter	45.0	3200.0	144000.0	100.0
Total costs for maintenance of the Technology					379000.0

4.8 Most important factors affecting the costs

Describe the most determinate factors affecting the costs:

High costs for pumping machine, fish head fertilizer and compost.

5.1 Climate

5.2 Topography

Indicate if the Technology is specifically applied in:

• concave situations

Comments and further specifications on topography:

The land is in the floodplain area, which is flooded from September until November.

5.3 Soils

If available, attach full soil description or specify the available information, e.g. soil type, soil PH/ acidity, Cation Exchange Capacity, nitrogen, salinity etc.

The pH of this soil is 5 and depth of soil is 20 m with the kind of loam soil in the top soil.

5.4 Water availability and quality

Is water salinity a problem?

No

Is flooding of the area occurring?

Yes

Regularity:

frequently

Comments and further specifications on water quality and quantity:

When the lake is dried up he used water from river instead. Generally this area is flooded every year.

5.5 Biodiversity

5.6 Characteristics of land users applying the Technology

Indicate other relevant characteristics of the land users:

Almost the whole income of family is coming from agriculture.The farmer started doing this since he was single. Now he is 40 years old.

5.7 Average area of land owned or leased by land users applying the Technology

5.8 Land ownership, land use rights, and water use rights

Land ownership:

• individual, titled

• Hire

Land use rights:

• leased
• individual

• Hire

Water use rights:

• open access (unorganized)

Comments:

Before he got an own pumping machine but when the pond dried out he hired another pumping machine.

5.9 Access to services and infrastructure

6.1 On-site impacts the Technology has shown

Socio-economic impacts

Production

Income and costs

Ecological impacts

Biodiversity: vegetation, animals

6.2 Off-site impacts the Technology has shown

Comments regarding impact assessment:

Some farmers followed him by using bamboo branches and newspapers as well.

6.3 Exposure and sensitivity of the Technology to gradual climate change and climate-related extremes/ disasters (as perceived by land users)

Gradual climate change

Gradual climate change

	Season	Type of climatic change/ extreme	How does the Technology cope with it?
annual temperature		increase	moderately
seasonal rainfall	wet/ rainy season	increase	moderately

Comments:

This area is rain every year in April that cause from fired forest field or finding wildlife. About insects on the bitter melon are worm, wasp.

6.4 Cost-benefit analysis

How do the benefits compare with the establishment costs (from land users’ perspective)?

How do the benefits compare with the maintenance/ recurrent costs (from land users' perspective)?

Comments:

Looking for job sees to be less profitable than growing vegetables. Bitter melon can be harvested during half a month and could be cultivated twice a year.

6.5 Adoption of the Technology

• 1-10%

If available, quantify (no. of households and/ or area covered):

There are about 6 families in the village who practice this technique as well.

Of all those who have adopted the Technology, how many have did so spontaneously, i.e. without receiving any material incentives/ payments?

• 90-100%

6.6 Adaptation

Has the Technology been modified recently to adapt to changing conditions?

No

6.7 Strengths/ advantages/ opportunities of the Technology

Strengths/ advantages/ opportunities in the land user’s view
Gain of a variety of benefits because they do not have to hire labor or buy bamboo sticks and they have animal manure.
Reduced use of chemical fertilizers as instead they are using fish head fertilizer.

Strengths/ advantages/ opportunities in the compiler’s or other key resource person’s view
Bamboo sticks do not cause additional costs because they can be gathered for free.
Using newspapers does not cause negative environmental impacts compared to the the use of plastic and it also reduces the need for pesticides.
Fish head fertilizer and animal manure helps to improve the soil’s fertility and reduces the need for chemical fertilizer.
Reduced cost of planting materials.

6.8 Weaknesses/ disadvantages/ risks of the Technology and ways of overcoming them

Weaknesses/ disadvantages/ risks in the land user’s view	How can they be overcome?
Pesticide was applied without protection of the fruit but it did not work.	Wrap up bitter gourd in newspaper before applying pesticide and then check the fruit regularly.
No water in the pond during the dry season.	Use water from the river by pumping instead.
Expense of buying pipes to pump water from a distant source.	Borrow from others and take a loan from retailers.
Low market price of the bitter gourd.	There is no solution for market yet.

7.1 Methods/ sources of information

7.3 Links to relevant information which is available online

Title/ description:

Agritoday (2016). Bitter Gourd. Retrieved December 06, 2017​

URL:

http://agritoday.com/view/2084.html