Money in chillies for retired teacher

PASIR PUTEH: Toil the land, and you’ll reap the harvest. This describes the persistence of a former secondary school principal in cultivating chillies in Kampung Sungai Petai here.

Mohamed Mat Adam, 71, said he cultivated chilli using the fertigation method on 0.3 hectare of land and was able to produce about 11 tonnes of chillies last year which brought in about RM50,000.

“I started this agricultural activity after retiring from service in 2009 as a result of encouragement and guidance from an officer of Bukit Awang Farmers Organisation.

“I planted the chilli using the fertigation method, which is to plant it in a polybag that can reduce the threat of pests to the crops especially from the underground and is resistant to unpredictable weather conditions,” he told Bernama here yesterday.

Mohamed said through the fertigation method, the yield of crop is more uniform and he was able to cultivate up to 2,500 chilli plants in his farm.

According to Mohamed, the chilli plant project, besides providing additional income for his family, also benefited a number of villagers working as chilli pickers in his farm.

“From January to early this month, I have sold chillies to Bukit Awang PPK nearly 40 times,” he said.

Meanwhile, a villager, Norizan Md Noor, 42, said she was able to earn around RM30 to RM40 each time she picked ripe chillies for Mohamed.

“The working hours are shorter, between four to five hours a day, and the income earned can help relieve the burden of my husband, Saari Awang Long, 43, who does not have a permanent job, besides I also have to care for my disabled child,” she said. — Bernama