由農業資材行的運作看栽培技術的發展與擴散──以屏東平原蓮霧產業為例

Abstract

原產於熱帶南洋的蓮霧果樹，經過近三十年來栽培技術的發展，在台灣成為全球獨一無二的蓮霧產業。在知識經濟時代，蓮霧栽培技術的發展歷程，引起我們研究的興趣。此種草根性農業知識是如何形成與運作？在原有的台灣農業知識推廣體系之外，過去較少討論到的農業資材行，在蓮霧產業中展現另一組推廣體系。他們兼有農民及資材販售身份，在蓮霧產業中，設有屏東平原各鄉鎮的連鎖分店，此社會群體如何在蓮霧栽培技術發展歷程中崛起？其社群互動過程對於栽培技術的創新發展有何作用力與影響力？本文從屏東平原蓮霧產業資材行的視角著手，以地理學、及社會學社會網絡觀點加以探討。 本研究得到以下結論。首先，屏東平原蓮霧栽培技術的特色與發展歷程，因為屏東平原各鄉鎮地理環境的差異，促使各種產期調節管理模式的興起。1981年以前林邊黑珍珠蓮霧成功的經驗，帶給屏東各鄉鎮果農很大的啟示，而位於屏南適宜區以外的屏北，即以人為技術達成，現今果農常使用的蓋黑網、剃光頭…等方法，大部分來自屏北地區。在蓮霧栽培技術發展初期，對於栽培技術有所創新及掌握的果農，在其他果農的技術追逐下成立資材行，尤其是屏北地區為最。本文以屏東里港佳群、輝光、及潮州一心農業資材行說明。 就技術空間擴散型式而言，屏東平原蓮霧產業資材系統與各地果農間的技術交流，形成了資材系統社會網絡，呈現栽培技術的階層式空間擴散，即是總店－分店－果農、技術來源區－技術接收區－果農的空間結構。藉由資材系統社會網絡的關係鄰近性，吸納收編分散各地果農田間經驗，在空間互動中，再一次促進栽培技術的創新，並連繫屏東以外嘉義梅山蓮霧栽培技術的改變，呈現再區位擴散型態。資材系統社會網絡在技術的空間擴散與空間互動，是屏東平原蓮霧產業重要的區域特色。 就其社會網絡運作而言，屏東平原蓮霧產業資材系統社會網絡，是鑲嵌在經濟、社會關係中。資材行與果農間在技術交流、資材販售關係中，以巡園、技術諮詢、技術座談等方式進行。資材系統內各資材分店，在朋友、師徒關係中，藉由系統組織運作進行技術擴散。不同資材系統之間，技術互為評比。屏東平原蓮霧栽培技術的創新發展，有很大一部分是藉由資材系統社會群體互動過程中形成。當蓮霧產業面臨市場飽合的變遷，資材系統以技術擴散社會網絡的互信基礎，帶領果農轉作他種作物，或轉換為社會資本，參與內外銷集貨作業，以社會網絡連繫的空間向度，突破在有限短暫時間內快速集貨的限制，減少交易成本，展現出彈性、即時的特色。 總而言之，屏東平原蓮霧產業資材行在栽培技術的發展與擴散，發揮重要的影響力。他們原居於蓮霧產業農糧體系農業生產部門，連繫到上游的農業技術部門，並在下游的行銷部門扮演要角，值得我們有系統地探討之。

The innovation and development of farming techniques have made wax apples, which are originated from the Southeast Asia and transplanted to Pingtung Plain, flourish in Taiwan. In the era of ‘knowledge economy’, we have been highly interested in how the indigenous agricultural knowledge of wax apple industry has been shaped and operated during the past 30 years. In addition to the Taiwanese agricultural knowledge and information extension system, the agricultural supply shops also play an important part in diffusing the agricultural knowledge and information. Why did these social groups form during the development period of the wax apple farming techniques? How did the interaction between the groups and the societies influence the innovation of the techniques? Geographical and social perspectives are therefore very important and helpful in clarifying these ideas. The followings are what we have found out. First of all, the geographical difference of the towns in Pingtung Plain urged many types of wax apple farming techniques. The successful experience of ‘black-pearl’ wax apple in LinBian led the farmers of other towns, especially those in the North Pingtung Plain, to develop many kinds of farming techniques. Next, the agricultural supply shops of wax apple industry were opened by the farmers who innovated or mastered the farming techniques. Some of them even established the groups including branches distributing in Pingtung county even in Meishan, Chiayi. The diffusion of agricultural knowledge between agricultural supply shops and farmers formed the social networks of the agricultural supply shops’ groups , which led to the emergence of the type of hierarchical diffusion of the wax apple industry knowledge and information in Pingtung Plain, and the type of relocation diffusion in Meishan, Chiayi. The organizational or relational proximity of the social networks prompt the groups of agricultural supply shops to collect the farmers’ cultivating experiences more quickly and widely. The spatial interaction of many farmers’ experiences in many places motivates further innovation of wax apple farming techniques. The social networks of the agricultural supply shops’ groups are embedded economically and socially in Pingtung Plain, and transformed to the social capital for promoting the marketing sector. In brief, the groups of the agricultural supply shops have a great effect upon the development and diffusion of the wax apple farming techniques. They were once part of the wax apple farming industry, and then were connected with the the agri-technologies industry in the upper stream and the food retailing in the down stream of the agro-food system. Such development is worthy to discuss and probe systematically.