Hero of the Drylands
Saprudin
In the hands of Saprudin, 39, dry earth can magically transform back into fertile farmlands. The struggle of the Ekas Buana villager in Jerowaru district, East Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, has motivated other farmers in the area to make their rupiahs from the arid land.
“I want to be a farmer here, but I need to live here permanently so I can focus on working the land,” said Saprudin in early August. He is a newcomer to Ekas Buana village from Pejaring village in West Sakra district, East Lombok.
Saprudin was first introduced to Ekas Buana village in 1999-2000, when he was researching local seaweed cultivation and marketing methods for his undergraduate thesis at the Faculty of Agriculture in Mataram University. He found much idle land in the village that was not providing for the villagers, which prompted the idea to utilize the idle land in Ekas Buana village.
However, implementing the idea was not easy, as the soil in southern Lombok dries up and becomes hard as rock during the dry season. During the rainy season, the soil turns incredibly muddy and viscous. As a result, the 1,027-hectare plot in the village is not good for perennial farming.
“Between June and December, the entire village dries up and there are weeds everywhere. Life begins again in January, February or March. Farmers can start working their land only at the beginning of the rainy season.
The condition affects the locals’ farming seasons and crop patterns. For instance, they only sow mung bean in their fields. They do not manage its cultivation, and just let it grow on its own. They then plant a few mung beans in their yards at home. “Once the mung bean plants in the yard bear fruit, it means the plants in the field have, too. They will revisit their fields only during the harvest season,” he said.
Saprudin slowly transformed this habit by example. He became a farmer in 2010 and four years later, he purchased 0.9 ha of idle farmland for Rp 6 million (US$452.7), which he had made from selling his Suzuki Tornado motorbike. At the edge of the land, he planted 100 golden teak as a natural barrier.
In the beginning, he needed to work hard to clear the land of overgrowth.He then dug holes of a certain depth and filled them with manure and coconut fiber. The holes were biopores that circulated air into the soil. The holes allowed the highly needed oxygen to penetrate the soil and make it moist and friable.
After two months, he planted mung beans on his land and applied simple growing techniques. “The harvest was not good, but I could sell some of it,” Saprudin said.
Not satisfied with growing mung beans from 2012 to 2014, Saprudin then planted 700 saba banana trees (pisang kepok) and enjoyed better harvests. The banana trees produced good banana bunches that could sell for Rp 60,000 or Rp 70,000 per bunch. He shared some of his harvest with other villagers, hoping that they would follow in his footsteps.
Apart from bananas, Saprudin also encouraged other farmers to plant local chili plants that grow for two years. The farmers recently sold their chili harvest for Rp 100,000 per kilogram. “This became an alternative source of income for locals, many of whom are also fishermen and [livestock] breeders,” Saprudin said.
Motivating farmers
Saprudin recently expanded his farm by renting a 6 haplot that was almost idle. He planted corn there. In 2015, he harvested 26 tons of corn that was sold forRp 3,500 per kilogram.
Saprudin’s success in earning rupiahs from a rid land motivated other farmers to follow in his footsteps. One such follower is his landowner. “This year, he decided to grow corn on his land instead of renting it out,” Saprudin said.
Other than grain crops, Saprudin has begun cultivating 1,000 Lumajang orange trees. He planted 473 trees on his land and distributed the remainder to other villagers. The trees are beginning to bear fruit.
Saprudin dreams of turning Ekas Buana into a fruit production center by 2020. Therefore, he has urged local villagers to plant a variety of fruits, such as mangos, grapes, longans and sugar apples (srikaya) in their home gardens. Saprudin obtains the seeds with the help of his friends.
In order to achieve his mission, Saprudin established the Ekas Garden Dryland Horticultural Farmers Group, which now has 130 members. “I offer an incentive to the villagers. If one tree dies, they have to pay Rp 30,000. If they keep all of them alive, I give them five more seedlings,” he explained.
As a result, almost all of the fruit trees are flourishing. “Now, I am overwhelmed by looking for seeds.”
Educating locals
Aside from teaching good farming methods to villagers, Saprudin also improves their basic education. He is concerned that many adults in Ekas Buana village cannot read. He is trying to eradicate illiteracy by encouraging them to learn to read.
He has established 15 “reading corners” in the village’s seven hamlets. Local villagers, with the help of volunteers, manage the reading activities.
Saprudin uses his own money to purchase the books. Some books were donated. Generally, the books are about farming techniques and food processing from local sources. Saprudin routinely travels around the village, carrying books and reading materials in his car, which he has turned into a mini library.
The reading corners have encouraged many local housewives to learn how to process harvests into marketable food products.
Saprudin has been able to not only transform how locals farm the dry land, and has also been able to improve the welfare and education of the villagers. It is no wonder that the residents of Ekas Buana have dubbed him the hero of the drylands.
