Agriculture Business Week

Bandera Espanola(Canna indica) has been in the Philippines since the time of Father Manuel Blanco(circa 1837 until his death in 1845). In his book “Flora de Filipinas,” the Augustinian prriest mentioned a straw-colored form or variety he saw somewhere in Bulacan. Could it be the first Canna x generalis brought to the country?

Canna is the lone genus of the family Cannaceae which is only comprised of 20 species from Central and South America. The name originated from the Greek name for a certain type of reed. Since the type species, C. indica, can survive submerged in 6 inches of water, it behaves quite like the aquatic plant. However, it is not a native of India as the name implies, but of the West Indies. It reached India and the for human consumption in the Andes, the starch is made into glass noodles rest of Asia, and also Africa much later through Europe.

It is quite surprising that plant breeding of this tropical and subtropical genus was initiated and continuously done in temperate countries. The reason is more surprising because Cannas require a minimum of only six hours of sunlight in order to grow in almost any type of soil, and seedlings will produce flowers in less than a year. Once they bloom, artificial pollination may be done again.

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Posted on October 22nd, 2008 under Ornamental. Tags: Canna, Flower. Comments: None

What used to be hobby of a housewife who only wished to enjoy the beauty and the relaxing effects blooming flowers has turned out to be a source of livelihood for family.

For Emma Gonzales, 52, of Silang, Cavite, nothing can be more satisfying than to wake up in the morning and be greeted by the colorful Canna flowers that she has been painstakingly cultivating for years now. What’s more, she has discovered that there is more to this easy-to-grow floriferous plant than its colorful, year-round flowers that continue to amaze plant lovers.

Emma’s love affair with Canna, also known as Bandera Espanola started eleven years ago when she first attempted to grow this plant in her frontyard which is along the road. “All I wanted then was to grow ornamental plants simply because I love flowers,” she recalls.
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Posted on October 21st, 2008 under Ornamental. Tags: Cannas, Flowers, Ornamental. Comments: None

To many, there’s no extraordinary use for the leaves and twigs of trees in addition to its shade-giving property. Once Pruned, these trimmings are considered as wastes, which are either burned or left on the ground to decompose.

But this is not the case to Joyce V. Leal and the enterprising women of Quirino province. They transform these ordinary leaves into something useful, beautiful and profitable: the fossilized flowers. These have become one of Quirino’s attractions and lucrative livelihood as well.

Fossilized flowers are made from fresh leaves that are scoured, bleached, and dyed. These are then crafted to resemble flowers using twigs as stalks or stems. They are termed “fossilized” because they have been preserved and dyed with colors that last.

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Posted on October 4th, 2008 under Ornamental. Tags: Flowers, Ornamental. Comments: None

Foreigners are going crazy over our rare Philippine Hoyas. In fact, thesetropical gems are sold in the internet for as high as US$75/cutting. AreFilipinos getting hooked on Hoyas, too?

In pictures, our endemic and indigenous Philippine Hoyas look deceptive. They appear as large as the vandas and cattleyas. In reality, they’re even smaller than rose buds. But that is all part of the whole Hoya allure. Like rare, expensive gems or stars in the sky, they shine and upstage even the most colorful and gigantic flowers.

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Posted on September 15th, 2008 under Ornamental. Tags: Flowers, Hoyas, Ornamental. Comments: 1

Entrepreneur Rene Fuentes spearheads a new kind of flower revolution by way of online advertising and innovative door-to-door delivery.

Flowers Express, the first of its kind to innovate door-to-door delivery of quality flowers without service charge, is bullish that Baguio City, which is billed as the flower capital of the Philippines, would support its growing market.

Owned and operated by eLBC Direct Inc., a Philippine corporation engaged in the business of providing a market portal for Philippine products and services for sale to consumers in the US and the rest of the world, Flowers Express presently sources its blooms from local growers of Bukidnon and Tagaytay.
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Posted on August 4th, 2008 under Entrepreneurs, Ornamental. Tags: Entrepreneurs, Flowers. Comments: None

In celebration of the University of the Philippines’ centennial, UPLB’s Institute of Plant Breeding releases a new mussaenda variety, named after the first UP woman president.

Ornamental expert Dr. Monina Siar excitedly leads us to a small garden lot right in the heart of the Institute of Plant Breeding (IPB) inside the University of the Philippines at Los Banos (UPLB) campus. “Come,” she giddily guides us. “We want you to be one of the first to see the latest mussaenda variety. From a long line of red, pink and white ornamental shrubs so named after prominent Filipino First Ladies and women of distinction, a white mussaenda, resembling a bouquet of flowers with bell-upright bearing stands regally. “This is mussaenda Emerlinda R. Roman,” Dr. Siar introduces the plant to us, like she would introduce a friend. It’s very dainty and cute.”

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Posted on August 2nd, 2008 under Ornamental. Tags: Flowers, Ornamental. Comments: None

The secret to healthier ornamentals, as one family attests, is using the right fertilizer.

Finding the right fertilizer has always been a major problem of ornamental plant growers. They always have specific considerations in choosing the right fertilizer that would give them bountiful, healthy and attractive crops.

Dr. Perlito Ibarra, associate professor at the University of the Philippines Los Banos, and his wife Mrs. Angelita Ibarra, proprietors of Gintong Talulot found the perfect solution for the fertilizer needs of their ornamental plants especially orchids. Thanks to one such fertilizer Osmocote Controlled Release Fertilizer (CRF)professional growers like the Ibarras are assured of healthy crops year round.

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Posted on July 28th, 2008 under Ornamental. Tags: Fertilizer, Flowers, Orchids. Comments: 1

Bring nature inside your homes by creating your own dish garden. It’s a great gift and a great source additional income.

0ne of the best ways to enjoy the outdoors during this rainy season is by bringing nature inside. And the simplest, easiest way to achieve this, even in a small apartment or office is by making your own dish garden.

Dish gardens can also be great living gifts that can truly make a loved one feel special. It can be made in a few easy steps, and both parents and kids will surely enjoy making. It’s an art that can be accomplished in as little as two hours, and can be a perfect relaxing activity for busy people. Since there are so many plants and pots to choose from, selecting what to use for your garden is already in itself fun to do. Just remember to choose plants with shallow roots that can thrive in your chosen dish or pot.

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Posted on July 24th, 2008 under Agri Tips, Ornamental. Tags: Garden, Landscape, Plants. Comments: None

Not many people are familiar with Hoyas and what they actually look like. Some may have seen or chance upon them growing between and among shrubs and trees or along ridge tops or trail gaps, but would be often ignored due to the lack of a better knowledge about this plant. Yes, Hoya is no chocolate (in reference to the famous Goya sweets manufacturer); it is rather a juicy, porcelain-looking flowering plant.

Hoya is colloquially known as wax plant, wax vine, porcelain flower or gap plants and is considered as one of the most horticulturally interesting plants because of its profuse number of species (discovered and undiscovered). Also, due to its unique form, size, texture, and wide variety of its multi-colored blooms.

It belongs to the Apocynaceae family of tropical plants and was discovered by the Scotland-born botanist, Robert Brown (widely known for his Brown Movement). He named the plant after his friend, Thomas Hoy, an English botanist who worked as head gardener for the Duke of Northumberland in England. The word Hoya is the Latinization of Mr. Hoy’s surname.

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Posted on July 23rd, 2008 under Ornamental. Tags: Hoyas, Ornamental. Comments: None