From Failed to Fruitful Garden.

Mrs. CHEA, 64 years old, and her husband LAM At live in Preychor village, Samrong District in Takeo Province. Her children are all grown and married and live elsewhere, so she and her husband still need to work hard to earn enough to support themselves. She tried to grow vegetables in the traditional way when she was raising her family, but her attempts usually failed because her small-scale garden was always destroyed​ by insects, so she would give up her efforts. 

Then in October 2021 she and her husband were chosen to participate in a model farmer agriculture training program from KPY. They gained some good new skills in growing vegetables through small-scale home gardens. The training also included some agricultural inputs including seeds for start-up to practice the skills right after the training. She decided to try the apply the new growing techniques and change her traditional practice.

Mrs. Chea was surprised to see the results! She said, “I never expected that this small land can be used for growing vegetables and yield better beyond my thought.” 

“Now I can earn around $50 per month from my garden, so it is a big income compared to my old techniques of planting. My vegetables are high quality without any insects or worms!” she added.

“This land wasn’t used much before, but after training with KPY, my husband and I started to make this kind of homegrown garden. I spent about two weeks to make this garden, then I saw the benefits of good vegetables, using little water and using little fertilizer.”