Last week, as a part of my farewell visit to districts, I visited Rompin and in particular, Felda Keratong.
En. Baharom, the swiftlet rancher, impressed me most. He built the swiftlet house just behind his house, using the simplest and yet very effective technology. In just eight months he claimed that he has managed to attract about three thousand birds into his house!
I also visited a few cattle farmers in Keratong. The animals were impressive - maximum body score and breeding like anything. I am always fascinated seeing beautiful healthy calves at foot of their mothers.
Most of our animals distributed in 2008 have done very well under oil palm plantation. The abundant grassses make them grow very well. I also saw a huge Charolais cow in one of the Felda settler's plot.
Well, enough about work. Now I want to talk about three plants that I came across near one of the farmer's farm.
It has been ages since I last saw any of them. But I still remember them, how they look in the wild.
They were tuba (Diospyros wallichii), mata ayam or also called mata kancil (Ardisia crenata) and Gelenggang plants (Cassia alata).
They thrived well there without anyone knowing their medicinal value.
My late grandmother used to prepare a foul-smelling concoction of tuba roots, mata ayam root and gelenggang leaves, sulphur and boiled in virgin self-prepared coconut oil. When cool, the oil was rubbed onto my scabbies and lo behold the itchy scabies vanished!
I tell you they were effective. Those days scabies were common among youngsters like me. The hands were so swollen that I could not hold anything in it, even scooping rice into the mouth!
Hospital medicine was not that effective then. Application of the concoction for just three days solved my problem.
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Hi Dato',
We use gelenggang for fungal treatment of plants and vegetables and for skin problems caused by fungus on the skin of ruminants. The workers use it for the occasional ring worm. We use tuba (derris elliptica) for trunk borers (not allowed under organic standards for fruits and vegs). For mycosplasma (CRD, CCRD), we use lengkuas and garlic. In control tests that I have done, they work better than antibiotics. For animal immune boosting, we use tinospora rumphii or crispa (bakawali? brotowali?). The workers seeing how well it works for goats, are drinking the stuff themselves. T rumphii is also very effective against mites esp mites affecting honey bees.
For humans, curcuma longa and curcuma mangga work wonders for aching joints, sun spots and dry skin. For bad circulation to extremities like under the eyes, lower leg, etc, nothing like pegaga gajah.
These are some of the medicinal uses we have discovered and or tested at our farm.
Rgards
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