Village Head Plants Rice in 840 Used Gallons, Harvests This Much Grain

Dukuh Ngelorejo, Gari, Wonosari, Gunungkidul, Susanto (44), has utilised used water gallons to cultivate rice. He can now harvest grain in his own yard. “I want to educate the community that they can plant, especially rice, at the lowest possible cost. For example, I have a 10 m2 plot of land with an estimated 1,000 gallons. With a calculation, buying a 10 m2 paddy field might cost Rp 15-20 million. But with gallons costing Rp 2 million, and soil purchased for, say, Rp 1 million, it is very affordable,” Susanto told detikJogja on Monday (29/6/2026). Susanto admitted he was inspired by a post from Gunungkidul Regent Endah Subekti Kuntariningsih, who planted using gallons at her official residence. Since then, he began collecting used gallons to farm on his neglected 10m2 plot of land. Within four months, Santo Mboso, as he is known, managed to collect 1,200 used gallons. However, only 840 gallons could be accommodated on his land. “The gallons were then filled with soil and Ciherang rice seeds, leftover seeds. Planting the rice in the gallons began at the end of March 2026,” he said. Caring for the rice in the gallons is also water-efficient as it does not need constant watering. Regarding the yield, Santo claimed one gallon can produce approximately one ounce of grain. “Some have already been harvested, the Regent did the harvesting yesterday. The amount is roughly one ounce per gallon, but I will sample the quantity again. The harvest results were good, perhaps because of good fertiliser control and effective pest prevention,” he said. Santo’s act of farming with gallons is now attracting the attention of his community. Many residents are now interested in planting vegetables using used gallons as a growing medium. “Residents are starting to be interested in planting vegetables using gallons, that is fine. Because the important thing is they have turned it into productive land, especially since in Gunungkidul there is a lot of unproductive land or yards,” he said.