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Archive for November 17th, 2008

Choose and Produce Your Sander’s Dracaena

Commonly known as Sanders’ dracaena, Dracaena sanderana is also called Ribbon plant, Lucky bamboo, Water bamboo, and Corn plant. It is neither a bamboo nor a relative of the corn (Zea mavs).

This species originated as an understorey plant from the rainforests of Cameroon in tropical west Africa, although some literature state that it came from Congo. It is an herbaceous, evergreen, shrubby plant that grows to 2 meters tall and forms a clump by producing suckers. The stems are slender while the strap-shaped, sheathed leaves are flexible and arranged in a spiral.

Tall plants are prone to bend when there is heavy rainfall or strong winds due to the top heavy foliage. Without anchor or support, containerized plants may topple down. It is seldom seen flowering because it is often cut to a desirable height of less than 1.5 meters which prevents the plant from maturing to flowering stage. Nevertheless, it produces an inflorescence called a panicle under Philippine conditions.

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Techniques in Controlling Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle

Among the pests attacking coconut palm, rhinoceros beetle (Oryctes rhinoceros) remains one of the most destructive in the Philippines anti Southeast Asia.

Rhinoceros beetle feeds on the young unopened fronds in the central crown of the palm. An attack can cause serious damage, while repeated attacks can destroy the apical meristem resulting in the death of the palm. Young palms are particularly attacked. Although adult palms are rarely attacked, significant decrease in yield is observed.

At the farmers’ level, rhinoceros beetle can be controlled using the integrated control strategies that are developed by the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA). As one of the components in the adoption of good agricultural practice for coconut, integrated pest management strategies are applied in the control of pest and diseases.

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3 Schemes to Boost Coconut Production

The Coconut Industry has been battered by destructive typhoons in the last two years, resulting in drastic reduction in yields. In 2005, the country had a production of 2.6 million tons copra equivalent. In 2007, the production was just about 2.3 million tons, thanks to super Typhoon Milenyo in 2006.

Coconut is an important crop in the Philippines. It is a dollar earner and is also crucial in the production of biodiesel for blending with imported diesel as mandated by law. Some 100,000 metric tons copra equivalent is required to produce 70 million liters of biodiesel a year for blending.

To increase coconut production, the government, particularly the Philippine Coconut Authority, is coming up with practical schemes to enhance coconut production nationwide.

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