Betel leaf cultivation earns growers regular income in Ngaphe

The growers from Hson Gon village in Ngaphe township in the Magway region are growing the betel leaves on a manageable scale in their farmlands and earning regular family income. The local villagers are being engaged mainly in the agriculture business.
When we cultivate the betel leaves, we have to dig two feet to add the irrigation water. The soil has been prepared for planting with the same volume of sand, compost and cow dung. Afterwards, the seeds have to be planted one foot apart. After two months, the plants need to be cleaned and sprayed with foliar fertilizer.
Currently, the plants are two years old. There are more than 850 plants of betel leaves in the Hson Gon village. The farmland owners are hiring two persons daily to pick up ten visses of betel leaves. The wages are K600 per viss of the betel leaves.
The betel leaves are priced at K3,000 per viss for small leaves and K6,000 per viss for big leaves in the Padan and Letpandaga villages’ wholesale market. There are 450 betel leaves in one viss. Some of the betel vendors bought big leaves and cut them in the middle.
“Consequently, the betel leaf growers earn a daily family income of an average of K20,000 to K30,000. So, those interested in cultivation should grow the betel leaves in their farmlands. At present, there are five betel leaf growers in our village,” said U Maung Maung Myint, a betel leaves grower from Hson Gon village. — Ma Yu (Ngaphe)/GNLM