Sujono taps into a profession all his own<\/p>\n
YOGYAKARTA (JP): A dark complexioned man lugs dozens of bamboo
\ntubes tied with a plastic rope, a sharp sickle strapped to his
\nwaist.<\/p>\n
He looks into the distance, his gaze piercing through the
\ncoconut leaves in search of something. The sun sinks in the west
\nand a drizzle falls, wetting his body. He stops under a 50-meter-
\ntall coconut tree and begins an agile climb, his hands and feet
\nclinging to its stem. In a moment, he is already on the bough of
\nthe coconut stem and midrib leaves, cutting the manggar buds.<\/p>\n
Sujono, 38, is a quiet man from Karagan, Kokap, Kulonprogo.
\nAlmost every day he climbs a coconut tree to tap legen, the sap
\nfrom the palms.<\/p>\n
A father of one, Suyono has no plot of land of his own and has
\nbeen climbing trees to gather the toddy for his neighbors since
\nhe was 12 years old.<\/p>\n
When many of his peers left to find work in towns, Sujono
\nremained in the village.<\/p>\n
To keep himself occupied, he continued to climb trees to help
\nout his neighbors, such as widows. The requests increased and he
\nfound the job increasingly taxing. In 1987, he made a public
\nannouncement in the village that he would only tap the legen for
\npayment because he needed to support his family.<\/p>\n
Many villagers initially considered that Sujono was asking too
\nmuch and was exploiting his skills for commercial gain. They
\nobjected to his terms. Eventually, however, they came to realize
\nthat Sujono's job was demanding and carried risks. The villagers,
\nparticularly the widows unable to tap the sap themselves, gave in
\nto his demands.<\/p>\n
Sujono spends close to 12 hours a day tapping legen. From
\nmorning to late afternoon, he climbs up and down about 150
\ncoconut trees and gets his share of between 15 liters and 20
\nliters of legen.<\/p>\n
Suyono prefers to be paid in the sap rather than in cash. His
\n20 liters can make three kg of brown or palm sugar. If the market
\nprice for the sugar is Rp 3,000 per kg, he earns Rp 9,000 a day.
\n\"I cannot accept my fee in cash because both sides need each
\nother.\"<\/p>\n
He said the key to successfully cutting the manggar depended
\non using a clean instrument. Dirt may cover the pores of the
\nmidrib leaves and therefore obstruct flow of sap. As many as
\nthree bamboo tubes may be placed in each coconut tree. They are
\ntied to the stem and midrib leaves to collect the drops.<\/p>\n
Usually, the tapping lasts from 6 a.m. to 8 a.m., or about 14
\nhours, with the maximum quantity collected being about half a
\nliter per tree. If the tapping is held for 10 hours, the maximum
\noutput will be about a quarter of a liter per tree. During the
\ndry season, however, only 0.1 liter of sap can be collected from
\neach tree.<\/p>\n
To ensure that the flow of the sap will be smooth, the bud
\nmust be cut every day and washed clean with water. Otherwise, the
\nliquid hardens and causes a bitter-tasting palm sugar.<\/p>\n
\"You can tap each bud of manggar for a month, or sometimes it
\ndepends on the fertility of the coconut tree itself,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Bamboo tubes already used to collect the extract must be
\nwashed clean and then dried. Dirty tubes will contaminate any
\nextract collected later, and cause an offensive odor.<\/p>\n
An elementary school dropout, Sujono said tapping for sap was
\nthe only job he knew.<\/p>\n
\"I have climbed coconut trees since I was a child so I can
\nhardly abandon this job,\" he said. (Ahmad Solikhan)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/sujono-taps-into-a-profession-all-his-own-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}