Savu - Agriculture

Agriculture

Savunese culture is ecologically fitting for such an arid environment. The traditional clan agreements on land control and water distribution ensure that the land is carefully managed and not over exploited. Their gardens form a well structured ecology, emulating a tropical forest with diverse species of trees and shade plants.

Agricultural production on Savu includes corn, rice, roots, beans, livestock (meat/milk) and seaweed, which was introduced by Japanese interests, in the early 1990s. Pigs, goats and chickens are commonplace in the villages. Those farmers who depend on mixed crop gardens or on mung bean fields are generally better able to manage during times of poor rain but are seemingly less successful when the rains are good. Corn, as a single crop, remains the predominant staple on Savu, though most farmers try to plant several different fields to increase their chances of at least one successful harvest. Cotton is the main crop on Rai Jua, where the standard of living is below that of Savu. It is used to make traditional textiles. Corn is planted in late November, December or early January and harvested from February through to March; rice and also mung beans are planted later, usually in January, after soils are well saturated with rain. In El Niño years, farmers are frequently misled by initial rains, which offer promise but then cease. Most farmers keep some seed reserves if they are forced to plant a second time during the wet season. Rarely do farmers have sufficient seed reserves for a third attempt at planting and by the time such a third planting seems necessary, there is little likelihood of success. By mid-March the rains begin to diminish and it is no longer possible to plant corn with any expectation of a good harvest.

Prior to the corn harvest, the poorer segments of the population survive on reserve foods, primarily cassava, some sweet potato, forest yams and sugar supplies from tapping lontar palms. This period is known as the time of "ordinary hunger". However, during periods of drought, when the planting and subsequent harvest of the corn crop is delayed, the period of ordinary hunger is extended and "ordinary hunger" becomes "extraordinary hunger". Most families manage on one meager meal a day. Livestock, suffering from the same conditions as the human population, are consumed or sold to buy emergency foods. People turn to green papaya, eaten as a vegetable, and tamarind seeds. In the dry season, drinking water becomes difficult to obtain and is often polluted by animals seeking water. Women and younger girls spend more time than ever carrying water for their families. A strong indicator of the "extraordinary hunger" period is a sharp increase in gastro-intestinal diseases. Children are particularly vulnerable.