Changing patterns of agriculture, monocropping and expansion of rice cultivation have had a negative effect on the environment as well as on the livelihood of many farmers. Debts increased and the capacity of villagers to deal with urgent problems such as illness in the family was handicapped by their financial burden and the lack of a range of food produced by each family. As the environment deteriorated the quality of life worsened. It was these sorts of problems that eventually led to reflection, and a decision to revive some traditional farming practices from past generations when we saw that they didn't face the problems that we face. Even in times of illness or poverty their ability to cope was greater than ours, even though there were far less services and facilities to care for the health and welfare of the people, such as hospitals and pharmacies. When someone was ill, there were traditional doctors and native herbs to treat them. Even though there was a lot of illness, people sought natural remedies and treatments.

We had problems with insufficient money to buy food, but we weren't hungry as there were many kinds of food available in the village without having to go outside to buy at the market. Villagers made fish traps from woven bamboo strips and always caught so many that they had to dry them to preserve for later use, and some returned some to the ponds and streams. At the beginning of the rainy season there were also lots of wild vegetables growing.

With the advent of modern agriculture and accelerated agricultural development twenty to thirty years ago, these conditions changed. When villagers are ill they can no longer find native herbs for treatment. When they have no money they are no larger able to pick wild vegetables, or catch fish as easily as they did in the past. The result of this is that villagers have to spend most of their time trying to earn money to buy food, and the way of life changes, requiring more money to sustain a lifestyle that depends on the outside world, finding work to have enough money to buy food at the market.

Because of these developments we looked closely at our lives and at our predicament in order to analyze why such things had taken place, and decided we should go back to traditional farming and try to be as self-reliant as possible. This is the best way to look after the welfare of our families because we are responsible for our own lives, so we must find appropriate ways to solve our problems. That's why we have turned towards a method of farming that we call forest agriculture.

Forest agriculture means growing plants and raising livestock that meets our basic needs. We also grow plants and fruits that are used for food and other purposes, such as sontol, mango and yang wood. In the future these plants will grow and we can make use of them for building houses.

Wanakaset is the official name that we use, Wana means forest, and Kaset means agriculture. When we combine these two words together, Wanakaset means the natural forest, or natural ecological system. We receive many benefits from having a relationship with the ecological system. Forest agriculture requires combining balanced farming with the promotion and use of natural forest. A natural forest should provide all the necessities of life.

The natural balance that exists in forest agriculture consists of plants of many different varieties and sizes, with root systems penetrating the earth and using differing amounts of water and minerals. All of these are ecologically balanced, maintain the fertility of the soil, and promote healthy growth. When this balance is disturbed, we begin to see disease and insects having a serious effect on plants, trees and animals. A number of the sixteen basic elements necessary for growth may be absent, or else be present in unbalanced quantities. The three major elements are Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium, together with thirteen minor elements including Manganese, Zinc, Aluminum and Copper. Some of these elements support growth, others help prevent disease. For example, Zinc and Copper can be applied against some fungous diseases that cause leaves to wither or rot. Some plants may bear more fruit and grow more healthily depending on the concentration and composition of the natural chemical balance of the soil, and depending on the different root systems. The natural cycle by which plants derive nourishment from the soil and return it to the soil by shedding of leaves, flowers, fruit and other foliage, is in a state of balance, with all vegetation playing a role in the growth and health of other parts of the system.

Larger plants draw nourishment from deep in the earth, while smaller plants cover the surface and assist in the process of naturally fertilizing the soil. This is particularly important in periods of drought with ground vegetation maintaining soil humidity. In a situation of natural balance there is no need for using artificial chemicals and pesticides.

If we are not preoccupied with a struggle for day to day survival, we have time to consider how to return to and maintain a natural balance in the environment around us. This leads us to the concept of forest agriculture where we endeavor to make use of what is growing in the forest. As we move into this way of life we will see more clearly the balance existing between plants, animals, the earth and the weather. We will see the role played by insects, birds, fruit, and animals, all feeding off one another, and the relationship between them and the villagers.

Thinking about living in balance with plants and animals will benefit us in our relationships with others, and a society will develop similar to the natural balance and harmony present in the Dharma.

At first I had no plan about how to work in forest agriculture. Although I had thought of different approaches, once I started it was very different to use my initial ideas, and I learned a lot by actually working. One thing I learned is the need to be patient and not be in a hurry to plant something in order to make a quick profit. When we started we didn't have any plan about the type of plants to grow, or the amount and design of cultivation. We just planted some different varieties that would bear fruit and other edible and useful produce within a reasonable period of time so that we would have something to eat.

I believe that when working in forest agriculture there are certain techniques we should follow. We shouldn't plough the land as long as the area to be planted is small. Secondly, we should plant many kinds of plants and just let them grow naturally. Another way to operate is to let the grass and ground vegetation grow naturally without cutting or weeding it. Later we can start bit by bit to plant some trees which are already partly grown, then we plant smaller trees. The trees, big and small, will act as a windbreak, and protect smaller and more vulnerable plants from weather. Grass will protect the soil and help retain humidity. This approach enables us to continuously plant and cultivate.

After several seasons of planting, the land will be covered with trees. Organizing this planting on the basis of a plantation is more effective than ploughing the land. If there are plants that need a lot of water, or that repel insects and weeds, they should be planted in some order, such as in rows. In the first two years the plantation will probably look very disorganized and there will be lot of weeds, but as the trees settle down and grow, and the grass spreads out beneath them, by the third year we should see a successful forest plantation appearing.

In my garden there are two different types of plants. The first type consists of plants to be consumed, these are either edible plants or medicinal herbs. The second type consists of plants to be studied and experimented with, to see what uses and benefits are possible. Altogether there are more than 400 varieties of which 10 are currently being used.

In modern agriculture, the single plantation system, whether it is a rubber plantation or a fruit orchard, is not the same as forest agriculture. Forest agriculture doesn't have trees taking up all the land, or trees just providing shade or a windbreak. Forest agriculture requires having at least four major varieties of plant. In the natural forest there are more than fifty varieties of plant growing in an area of one rai (2.5 rai = 1 acre; 2.5 acres= 1 hectare, approx), and the plants are all useful in some way. There should be two or three types of tree providing fruit or lumber, and there should be plants protecting the condition of the surface soil, contributing to its fertility.

To transform an orderly rubber plantation into forest agriculture is possible by planting varieties of trees other than rubber, as well as vegetation to cover the ground surface. While it is difficult to move from a rubber plantation into forest agriculture, it is possible to reach an intermediate stage where the rubber trees provide shade and act as a windbreak.

Most of the land in Huay Hin is open area, good for farming and growing herbs. The land is ploughed and planted every year. We have considered planting eucalyptus or pine trees in some areas to begin moving towards forest agriculture, but both of these trees are grown for their wood, not as permanent parts of the forest. There is also differing opinion about their benefits. I think that there are benefits, as these trees can be cultivated over a four to five year period, and they can be cut to sell when needed. However these trees shouldn't only be grown for sale, as the land and environment will not be improved, it will remain bare and not help regenerate the forest. Eucalyptus and pine trees are useful as a windbreak and can become part of the ecological balance of the forest. It is difficult to say with certainty that forest agriculture is the easiest way of life, because it no longer exists as it did in the past, so its difficult to reach definite conclusions.

People who worked in forest agriculture in the past are here no longer, but there are still many villagers who are convinced that it is a way of life that easily provides the necessities of life. In the past there were fewer people and much more forest, so life was much easier in terms of having more than enough for peoples needs. At present there are many people, and when we think of doing as people did in the past we have to spend much more time. We are not sure what to do because our needs have changed a lot, and as nobody can say what is the correct or best way, we must experiment, starting by ourselves and with our family. It's good to start working with those who are close to us and who can understand how we think. By doing this we will gradually discover and learn what are the true benefits of forest agriculture. We will learn from the problems we encounter, and we will be able to give advice to others who are interested, so they will have our experience and example to follow. If we are successful, the community will be able to benefit and learn from what individuals and families have achieved.

We have found some answers by looking at the things that the villagers lack, such as happiness, a peaceful way of life, and sufficient food. Comparing the common lifestyle of recent past and the debts that many villagers have, in forest agriculture there is no debt. Families can find enough to eat and live happily and peacefully. This is a better alternative for rural Thai people, In the last three or four years we've been doing this, some interesting results have emerged. Another five to ten years should bring much better results, and if we work at a community level, the results will be even better.

Together with a group of people who believe in the value and importance of forest agriculture, I have been cultivating some plants to give to people free of charge to grow on their own land, and on public land as well. We have concentrated on mango and sontol trees. If the price for mangoes is low, we can make mango jam, preserve it and sell it when the price is better. The seeds can also be sold for cultivation. If we don't sell the seeds, we can raise seedlings and plant more ourselves. Sontol produces fruit we can eat, and if we grow it over a longer period we can cut it to use the wood either for our own use in building or for sale. If we decide to grow teak and spend about 1,000 baht to plant 100-200 teak trees, we will eventually have trees worth 200,000-300,000 baht for security in our old age.

Starting to work in forest agriculture, from cultivating seeds to caring for seedlings and then planting, the villager becomes emotionally involved and develops an understanding and attachment with the land, the trees, and the forest. I know from personal experience, and from observation of people close to me, that we have all changed, we are all more positive and feel happy and satisfied when we see the plants and trees grow.

The most important thing is to change how we think - we must find a new way of thinking. Most of us still think about the marketing system and how to become rich. If we think about this we cannot do anything at all, because we can't respond to our thoughts. Some things will develop slowly, some will be inconsistent, and some may lead to uncertainty.

If we think about change and we plant some trees in order to serve our lives, ourselves, and our families, we know that we will have enough to eat within a reasonable time. This will help us solve problems of malnutrition and starvation. If we follow the marketing system we have to sit down and estimate what the market needs, what the price will be and whether we will make enough money to cover our costs. These things are impossible for us to do so we have to adjust our way of thinking first. This is the important thing to do for forest agriculture, to change our mind to find a way to plant in order to find food to eat first, and sell any surplus produce afterwards. When we develop this way of thinking we then start to consider what we need, for example, whether or not the soil be appropriate for this purpose. If we change our ideas, it becomes easy because we don't have to worry about marketing, or about what can or cannot be sold. During the rainy season there is heavy rainfall and some plants grow well when they get rain only four or five times. Losses are not high, and if we end up with half of the crop that should be enough. This is a continuous process over four or five years, not relying on market cycles and fluctuations.

At the same time, water is still an important problem. However many plants do not require a lot of water, they rely on the seasons. If we've already planted large and small trees and ground cover to retain soil humidity then the trees can adjust to the changing seasons and grow. Besides, it is not only the sun that nourishes plants, the wind is also important.

Translator: Dome Burirar