HSU considers drone to root out susupan gunung

Amuntai, S Kalimantan (ANTARA) - Acting Head of North Hulu Sungai (HSU) Agriculture Agency Yuli Hertawan said that the agency is considering purchasing herbicide spraying drones to eradicate the susupan gunung wild plant or puteri malu raksasa (Mimosa Pigma) and weeds on farmers' land.

"There is a company, PT MKD, conducting a test of spraying herbicide using a drone on agricultural land. We are waiting for the results to see if it is safe for farmers," he said.

Yuli said the drone was able to transport herbicide liquid while flying around the agricultural area and automatically returned to the starting point when all herbicide liquid had been sprayed.

However, the alternative to buy drones is not the main priority considering the budget for the purchase is quite expensive.

"We hope other efforts can motivate farmers to routinely and continuously clean their land when weeds or susupan gunungs have not grown bigger and spreading," he said.

Yuli regrets that the problem of wild plants in swampland is still an obstacle faced by farmers when starting planting season.

In fact, he said, if farmers clean up the wild plants when they begin to grow it would be easier and efficient.

He saw that there is a tendency for farmers to be lazy to clear their land from susupan gunung, because this type of wild plant stems and roots are quite difficult to clean.

Even if burned, the seeds of the plants are more easily spread to agricultural land, thus they grow more and spread.

In HSU DPRD, a number of legislators still submitting complaints from farmers related to the rampant development of susupan gunung which almost evenly covers agricultural land.

The Head of the agency along with some staff have reviewed the villages, including Hambuku dan Pematang Benteng.

"Our officers have been to Pematang Benteng, the weeds are not on the wide expanse but separated by several points. To clean up we offer herbicide for next year and the spraying technique is discussed with farmer groups, village officials, and agriculture counseling workers," said Yuli.

Yuli offers another alternative for farmers to do a side business in their swamp farming land by raising fish or cultivating lotus after the rice harvest.

"Sometimes farmers are lazy to go down to the land just to clean up susupan gunung, so it is necessary to find a solution with this side business," he said.

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