Mar 2, 2009

Bidayuh Pesta Birumuh - Land Clearing and Burning

Before planting of padi commenced, the hill slopes are cleared of vegetation and bushes. A few weeks after that, when the dead vegetation are dried, it will be burned to produce alkaline ash which act as natural nutrients for the small padi.

Nowadays, chemical fertilizers compliment the alkaline ash to promote better padi growth. Land clearing usually started as early as July and burning would be done latest by September. During this period, the weather in Borneo is usually hot and dry.

For the case of hill padi, the land is cleared and burned will also facilitate better planting as you won't want to walk around the ground which is littered with big fallen trees and haphazard dead branches and twigs.


The land before clearing with green vegetation and clear sky.


Once the land is cleared, the dead vegetation are burned.


Portion of burned land. See the blackened ground covered with ashes.


And during the burning season, the sky is filled with smoke and particles and it become hazy. The sky will be clear soon after a short-spell of raining days. That's the time when the padi started to grow.


Related posts:
* Pesta Birumuh - Bidayuh Rice Growing Festival

SEO: Bidayuh padi growing festival | Pesta Birumuh | pestabirumuh |pesta birumuh 2009 | Pesta Berumuh | rice growing cycle | padi planting | slash and burn | shifting cultivation | paddy planting | pestaberumuh |


Pesta Birumuh - Bidayuh Rice Growing Festival

What is Pesta Birumuh? It's a Rice Growing Festival among the Bidayuh community of Borneo. Rice is the staple in Borneo and the Bidayuh people’s expertise in growing it is a big part of the reason for their developed culture.

The inaugural Pesta Birumuh, a showcase of Bidayuh culture, heritage and arts at Serian Mini Stadium on March 20 to 23 2009, is expected to attract more than 15,000 visitors including foreign tourists.

For the Bidayuh, the first stage of the rice (padi or paddy) production cycle for wet padi is burning the stalks, which creates an alkaline ash. For hill padi, the hill slopes are cleared of vegetation and burned. This is also known as slash and burn (or shifting cultivation).

See photos of Bidayuh Pesta Birumuh - Land Clearing and Burning and Bidayuh Pesta Birumuh - Land Clearing - Bertabun

Rice production either start in the sawah (rice field) or hill slopes (for hill padi) . Rice seed is planted in a protected bed for wet padi while rice seed are throw in a hole punctured on the ground for hill padi.

See photos of Bidayuh Pesta Birumuh - Padi Planting - Nuruk

For wet padi, when rice seedlings start to mature, they are pulled and transplanted by hand to the sawah, where they are planted in rows, about a foot apart. In the various stages of maturing, the sawah is flooded and dried to maximize growth of the rice plants (padi).

For hill padi, the farmers will wait for the rain to nourish the padi planted in the hole punctured at the ground. See photos of Bidayuh Pesta Birumuh - Padi Shootlets

When the padi is about a foot tall, weeding of weeds and grasses are done to make sure the padi get all the nutrients from the ground so that the padi will bear better grains. See photo of Bidayuh Pesta Birumuh - Weeding - Ngebu

In between weeding and before the padi turned yellow, there is little farm activities but you can still be busy with activities such as snapping photo of waterdroplets or watermarbles on the padi leave blades. See awesome photos of water marbles on padi blades at Bidayuh Pesta Birumuh - Young padi with waterdroplets.

See Bidayuh Pesta Birumuh - Padi bearing fruits

Harvesting or ngutum, comes when the rice plants/stalks are a meter tall and the grains ripening (turning bright yellow). Whereas the first stages of rice growing are done by men, it is the women who harvest, using a small palm-held knife.

For wet padi, the rice stalks are threshed right there in the field, with the separated rice seeds now called beras. In traditional villages, the beras is kept in an elevated rice barn, to protect it from wet weather and rats.

Once the rice seeds are separated, drying of padi will take a few days (weather permitting) before the padi can be stored or send to the miller for processing.

The last stage of the rice production cycle is burning the stalks, which creates an alkaline ash.

Rice production is still extremely important to the Bidayuh and it will be interesting to how future generations take to it.





SEO: Bidayuh padi growing festival |Pesta Birumuh |pestabirumuh | Pesta Berumuh | rice growing cycle | padi planting festival | slash and burn | shifting cultivation | paddy planting | Bidayuh farming fiesta | berumuh 2009 | growing paddy | nuruk | turuk | tanam padi | pestaberumuh | waterdroplets on padi | water marbles on padi | morning dews on padi |

Feb 24, 2009

Macro photos of red fire ants

Fire ants, are stinging ants with over 280 species worldwide. They have several common names including Ginger Ants and Tropical Fire Ants (English), aka-kami-ari (Japanese), and Feuerameise (German).

For these red fire ants, it is not easy to take the picture because the ants won't keep still. And a zero macro is not possible as the ants would climb to the camera's lens.


Red fire ants giving an alarm


Angry red fire ants, ready for a fight


David the little red fire ant, biting Goliath (me) hand

Feb 20, 2009

Nabau, Borneo giant snake

Photograph shows Nabau, the 'giant snake' lurking in Borneo river. Villagers living along the Baleh river in Borneo fear a 100-foot snake could be lurking in the murky waters.


It is not clear whether the photograph is genuine, or a clever piece of photo-editing. Some suggested the 'snake' was in fact a log or a speed boat and others complained the colour of the river in the photo was too dark.

The most common theory is that the photo has been manipulated on a computer. This is known as photo-shopped image.



What do I think about the photos? It's a totally low-quality amateur photo-shopped. In short, FAKE.

Instead of putting your interest in a snake hoax, why not check the real issue of Siltation that killed thousand of fishes at Batang Rajang , a real freak papaya photo from Borneo or a snake head fish photo.

Related posts:
* Serpent Rock, Bako National Park
* Python Reticulatus photo

The Borneo giant snake has become a hot news topic and even being published by foreign media such as:
* Telegraph.co.uk - Photograph shows 'giant snake' lurking in Borneo river
* LiveScience - 100-Foot 'Borneo Monster' Said Photographed
* DailyMail.co.uk - Picture of 100ft-long 'snake' sparks fears of mythical monster in Borneo
* Mirror.co.uk - Is '100ft long snake' mythical Borneo monster or just a photo fake?


SEO: Philippines Naga | giant serpentine animal | Titanoboa Columbia | Borneo monster | Water serpent legends | Suspicious snake photos | bigger than anaconda | snake in a river | big asian snake | fake reptile

Feb 18, 2009

Two cats and a string

I'm trying out Google Video so I uploaded two short clips of two mixed breed Siamese cat playing with a string.


Two cats and a string - Part 1


Two cats and a string - Part 2

Related posts:
* Mix Breed Siamese Cats Napping

Makna nama Proton MPV Exora

Sebenarnya, perkataan Exora tidak membawa sebarang erti. Ia adalah kata suara seperti kata Bahasa Inggeris, Ixora. Ixora adalah sejenis bunga yang tumbuh di tanah tropik.

Di Malaysia, Ixora juga dikenali sebagai Bunga Santan.

Hal yang menarik tentang bunga Ixora ini adalah bahawa bunganya macam bergabung atau berkumpul sama seperti sebuah keluarga dan kereta MPV Proton Exora memang sesuai untuk orang yang berkeluarga besar.

Related posts:
* Exora Proton latest MPV named after Ixora
* Gambar Ixora (Bunga Santan)

Feb 17, 2009

Exora Proton latest MPV named after Ixora

The latest model of Proton car is called Exora, named after Ixora, the flame of the wood. Proton Exora MPV which is a few years in the making, will be available for booking on Fri Feb 20, 2009 and likely to be priced below RM80K.


Proton Exora unvieled.


Latest photo of Proton Exora - Theophilus Chin


New Proton Exora


Ixora coccinea flower

I think Exora is a nice name considering that Proton has baptised its previous cars with awful name as "waja", "saga", "juara", "gen2" and I-forgot-the-pickup-name.

For the latest photos or pictures of the new Proton Exora MPV, check out the following links:
* HOT: Proton MPV 100% fully uncovered!
* Proton MPV, latest pictures

Related posts:
* Ixora Petal And Water Droplets
* Ixora coccinea flower, Flame of the Woods, Jungle Flame


SEO: Proton new car | Exora | Ixora | Exoza | Photo of Exora | Photo of Ixora | Photo of proton MPV | Proton MPV | latest photo of proton exora | Ezora | Exora pict |

Feb 16, 2009

Dragon Fly - Series#3

Photo of a tropical Dragonfly from Borneo perched on an Ixora leave.



Related posts:
* Tropical Dragonfly - Series #2
* Tropical Red Dragonfly - Series #1

  © Blogger template by Ourblogtemplates.com 2008

Back to TOP