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Mr. Goh Kah Joo edited Mucuna Bracteata: A Cover Crop and Living Green Manure

Preface

“There has never been a cover crop like this before in our plantations” was the common comment that we heard at the Seminar and Field Tour on ” Mucuna bracteata , A Cover Crop and Living Green Manure” held at Sg. Tekam Plantation Resort on 29 November 2006. The contributions in this monograph, which were mainly re-written papers presented at the above seminar, may provide the testament to this enthusiastic statement.

Mucuna bracteata was first introduced to the oil palm plantations in Malaysia by a Malaysian Planter, Mr. Cheriachangel Mathews in 1991. His insight, foresight and perseverance have resulted in this remarkable cover crop being widely accepted and grown commercially in all the major oil palm growing countries in the world. This provides the impetus for the editors to bring together, in one accessible volume, most of what is currently known about Mucuna bracteata , reports on applied research and the practical aspects of its cultivation. The first five chapters attempt to bring a better understanding of the sciences and agronomy of Mucuna bracteata to the readers while the remaining chapters translate theory into large-scale practice. All the chapters are written by practitioners who are also specialists in various subjects of plantation crop management.

This monograph ends with a generalised policy to cultivate Mucuna bracteata successfully under the oil palm and areas for future research , and it also doubles as a take home message. However, we do recognise that in a developing subject such as Mucuna bracteata , it will never be perfect. Nevertheless, the generalised policy should serve as a good starting point for those interested to adopt and adapt it to their local environment, and management culture, missions and resources.

There are 102 coloured photographs in sixteen pages to illustrate the major points raised by the authors, and the establishment and growth ofMucuna bracteata under oil palm in Malaysia and Indonesia. These invaluable photographs which were taken over a decade should guide the readers to a successful planting of Mucuna bracteata under the oil palm.

We hope that this monograph will assist all of those engaged in research and development work as well as planters to appreciate what has been done in their own area and in related fields which have an impact on their endeavour to derive the maximum benefits from Mucuna bracteata . This monograph may also serve as an introduction and inspiration for those who intend to take up work on Mucuna bracteata .

We would like to thank Dr. Chee Kheng Hoy and Dr. S. Paramananthan for their constant advice, guidance and assistance during the preparation of the Seminar and monograph. We are also grateful to FELDA Agricultural Services, Param Agricultural Soil Surveys and Malaysian Society of Soil Science for giving Agricultural Crop Trust (ACT) the right to publish the materials presented. Special thanks are also due to Dr. Tasren N. Mahamooth for his tireless effort to get this monograph published, Mdm. Gan Huang Huang for typesetting and designing the cover page and Mr. Heng Yong Choon for finalising the cover page. This monograph would not have materialised if FELDA Agricultural Services Sdn. Bhd. through its Chief Executive, Mr. S. Palaniappan has not kindly sponsored the publication, which we duly acknowledge. The photograph on the cover page was taken by Mr. Patrick Ng while the back cover by Mr. C. Mathews which we acknowledge with thanks.

AAR Annual Dinner 2007

AAR sports club recently held its 2007 annual dinner at ‘Kelab Rahman Putra Malaysia‘. Over 300 members as well as their families had an enjoyable dinner during this event. A few groups of talented dancers and singers from AAR presented their best performance on the colourful stage. Awards were presented to the faithful and dedicated employees. Attractive lucky draw prizes were given to the lucky winners.

Dr. Kee (Director of Research) was giving a speech during AAR annual dinner 2007.

Everyone was smiling while enjoying the oriental set dinner. From left to right: Mr. Chen, Dr. Kee (Director of Research), Mrs. Kee, Jennie (President of AAR sports club), Madam Ho (Manager of AAR Tissue Culture Lab.), Mr. Goh (Deputy Director of Research) and En. Mohamad Nadzri (Former Manager of Balau Estate).

A series of interesting Malaysia cultural dances were performed by AAR staff from different sections.

The famous singer from AAR Paloh substation was singing and playing the guitar on the stage.

AAR Sports Club Trip to Tioman Island (3-5 August 2007)

3 bus-load of AAR Sports Club members and some of their families went for a 3-day 2-night trip to the enchanting and breathtaking Tioman Island.

Smile! You on candid camera. (Tioman Paya Resort where the members stayed)
Members with their life-jacket cruising to Pulau Renggis & Maritime Park for their once in a life-time snorkeling experience.	Getting ready to snorkel !
Members competing in the volley ball and sand castle challenge
The Sunset!

Deputy Chief Minister of Sarawak, Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Alfred Jabu Numpang recognises AAR’s contribution to greehouse gas studies with Department of Agriculture Sarawak

The Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Alfred Jabu Numpang refuted allegations made by some Western non-governmental organisations (NGOs) that peat soil in Sarawak was unsuitable for planting oil palm in The Borneo Post dated 19 April 2007.

Datuk Patinggi thanked three scientists – one professor from the Hokkaido University of Japan, a private science researcher from an institute in Kuala Lumpur and a local soil scientist Dr. Lulie Melling, from the Agriculture Department in Kuching – who had conducted studies on the planting of oil palm on peat soil and found that on the contrary, peat soil did not emit as much as greenhouse gas into the atmosphere as claimed by the western NGOs.

(The institute named above is Advanced Agriecological Research Sdn. Bhd.)
For further information, please read NGOs’ allegations refuted in The Borneo Post.

Centre for Crop Research

Centre for crop research (published in The Star dated 25 February 2007)

Setting and Working with Effective KPIs (Key Performance Indicators)

This seminar was held from 9.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. at Crystal Crown Hotel. It was organized by Harman from Regal Solutions (Asia) Sdn. Bhd. It was divided into three sessions as follows:

Session 1: Understanding performance indicators that lead to effective management (23-24 November 2006)
Session 2: Identifying objectives and related KPIs to achieve effective management (18-19 January 2007)
Session 3: Implementing a KPI system to achieve ongoing improvement within your organization (14-15 February 2007)

Everyone paid attention when our trainer, Harman from Regal Solutions (Asia) Sdn. Bhd. shared his knowledge and competency with us.

A group photo of all participants attending Session 1 of KPI training. Sitting from left to right: TNM, TLH, SCM, CCN, NA, Partick (trainer), Harman (trainer), SSH, PG and GHH. Standing from left to right: OLH, SAC, TCB, CCW, TCC, CWH, KKK, MK, HYC, SY, AS, AMI, KK, TS, HR, TSH, SCC, WCK, GKJ and GYK.

A group photo of KPI steering committee team. Sitting from left to right: Harman (trainer), GHH (Secretary), HYC (Chairman), SY (Assistant Chairman) and SCM (Committee Member). Standing from the second left to the second right: PG, SSH, TNM and CCN (all are Committee Members).

A group photo of KPI steering committee team including backup committee members. Sitting from left to right: PG (committee), GHH (secretary), HYC (chairman), SY (assistant chairman) and SCM (committee). Standing from left to right: TCB (backup), SSH (committee), AMI (backup), CCN (committee), TNM (committee), AS (backup), SCC (backup), TSH (backup), GYK (backup), HR (backup) and Harman (trainer).

Dr. Soh’s Farewell Dinner

Dr. Soh (Head of Agricultural Research) retired in February 2007. The farewell dinner for Dr. Soh was held at Spring Garden Tropicana Restaurant, Tropicana Golf and Country Club on 4 February 2007.

Everybody was waiting for the dinner to be served.

Dr. Kee, Director of Research (standing right) gave Dr. Soh, previous Head of Agricultural Research (standing left) a farewell gift.

AAR Annual Dinner 2006

AAR sports club recently held its 2006 annual dinner together with AAR 20^th anniversary celebration. AAR directors and over 300 members as well as their families attended this wonderful celebration. The magician who performed fantastic magic shows brought a magic night to us. The group from different sections of the company presented dances and a series of songs to make the dinner memorable to all of us. Awards ware presented to the faithful employees and lucky draw prizes were given to the lucky winners.

This was AAR 20^th anniversary cake cutting ceremony. From left to right: Dr. Kee (Deputy Head of Agricultural Resources), Dr. Soh (Head of Agricultural Research) and Mr. Goh (Deputy Head of Agricultural Research).

Everyone was so excited that the balloons was falling down onto the floor.

The magician was trying to eat the fire. It was a magic!

The group from different sections performed their talents on the stage.

Queen’s Royal Visit to Goodenough College

Queen’s Royal Visit to Goodenough College

Mr. Patrick Ng (second from left) was presented to the Queen of United Kingdom on 10 November 2006.

“Queen Elizabeth II, the Queen of United Kingdom would be making a royal visit to Goodenough College on Friday the 10^th November 2006 to mark the College’s 75^th Birthday”, read a sign in the reception area of Goodenough College, a postgraduate hall that I am staying. I took a glance and sighed as I had classes on Friday. I consoled myself that, with more than 600 people staying at Goodenough, having a glimpse of the Queen may be impossible; let alone meeting her in person.

10 days before the scheduled royal visit, I got a note in my pigeon hole informing me that I was selected to be “presented” to the Queen (no, not on a silver platter but merely means meeting the Queen). At first, I was not too excited about it as I had classes and had no plans of skipping them. Later I found out from my hall-mates that I was indeed very lucky to be selected to represent Malaysia as only a handful of the 600-odd were selected. A tough choice: royalty or duty? I spoke to my professor and he told me that I should go and meet the Queen as she is a very “special” person. Thus convinced, I took his advice and decided to turn-up for the occasion.

The build-up to the royal visit was intense in Goodenough. Floor tiles were replaced, windows were cleaned, banners and flags depicting all the different nationalities were made and hung in the Dining Hall (including Malaysia’s Jalur Gemilang), red carpets were rolled-out, security was tightened and apparently a bomb squad was even sent to ensure that the place was secure.

Everyone got excited on The-Day and I had to admit that I also felt some excitement in the air. The Queen arrived on time and her royal entourage made their way through Goodenough College as all members of the college formed rows on her left and right. The lucky people who were selected to be presented (including yours truly) were then allowed into the Dining Hall where we shall be “presented” to Her Majesty. I was huddled up in the Australiasia Commonwealth Group and as Australiasia began with “A” we were the nearest to the entrance and would be presented to the Queen first!

Words cannot describe the magical feeling of meeting the Queen face to face and shaking her hand. At that precise moment I understood why she was such a “special ” person. When Her Majesty shook my hand and spoke to me, she actually looked me in the eyes and spoke with genuine interest; not like some politicians (I have met quite a few) or VIPs who would shake a thousand hands a day without even looking at the people they were shaking hands with. This event has been the highlight of my time in London. Being a Chevening scholar in Imperial College London pursuing my MSc. in Environmental Engineering has turned out to be a holistic experience and has enriched my views of life abroad.

Contributor : Patrick H. C. Ng