Agriculture Business Week

Even if he has only less than a hectare to cultivate, Elias Baguindoc of Brgv. Pias Stir, Curriinao, Ilocos Norte thought it would be difficult to adopt the technologies that PhilRice and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) were teaching through their technical cooperation project 3 (TCP3).

However, that was only at the start. What’s happening now is just the opposite. He has changed his mind and adopted the technologies that JICA expert Kunio Inoue and PhilRice researchers taught him. And he is happy about this because now, he earns more.

“It appeared difficult to follow [the technologies] at the start because we had not yet seen how it is done,” 50year old Elias said.

He tried off season vegetable production on a small scale and found that “it really has a good outcome.” This is why he planted a wider area during the current wet season.

RICE PRODUCTION
He was already planting PJ7 before the TCP3 started. He first used the seeds from the harvest of Teresita Allado who was living near Brgy. Pias Sur before he planted seeds from his own harvest. He planted PJ7 thrice but eventually he stopped using it because there were already mixtures in the seeds.

Then he used PSB Rc82 whose seeds came from the PhilRice Central Experiment Station. Using seeds from his harvest, he planted this variety in 4,000 sq. m. for three seasons and his yield increased somehow despite an erratic weather.

Elias said that he used to transplant old rice seedlings raised in dry bed and sowing was done at the same time. “This was the reason why my yields were low,” he said.

He then learned to produce rice seedlings in wet bed “so that the seedlings would still be young at transplanting.” Even if the amount of seeds that he uses now has tremendously decreased, sowing is no longer done in one sitting. Now, he sows three times and does it only when strong rains come.

Elias also recalls that he was not applying basal fertilizer in the past because he doesn’t have much money. So, he applied fertilizer only when the seedlings had already recovered from transplanting shock.

“It is a lot better if basal fertilizer is applied together with organic fertilizer,” he said. In the 2006 wet season, he applied inorganic fertilizer and Novatech PCM or processed chicken manure, now known as Durabloom, at the rate of 10 bags per hectare. He also topdressed seven bags of ammonium sulfate for one-half hectare based on soil analysis at 60 days after sowing.

Before the TCP3, he used to spray insecticides whenever he saw insects on his crop “but insect damage was still heavy.” Now that he practices integrated pest management, he would only spray if a lot of leafhoppers fall on the ground. The best time to spray insecticides, he said, is when the hoppers are still in their nymphal stage.

Elias also used to apply herbicides but he learned that he does not need this anymore as long as irrigation water is controlled since weed growth is minimized. He said herbicide application is only needed if hand weeding is no longer sufficient to control the weeds.

On top of these, the most important thing he has learned from the project is how to minimize production cost without sacrificing yield. To further cut down on rice production cost in this year’s wet season, he has adopted the modified dry direct seeding technology that was developed earlier by Samuel Liboon when he was still at PhilRice-Batac.

OFF-SEASON VEGETABLES
When we interviewed Elias for the first time in February this year, we noticed that he had patches of ampalaya, eggplant, string beans, tomatoes and watermelon. Also, his sweet Senorita watermelon in a small area was loaded with fruits which was in great demand.

When we returned last July, 16 hills of ampalaya (bitter gourd), eggplant in 8 m x 14 m, and string beans in 2 m x 18 m were at the height of fruit bearing. He had just finished harvesting 100 hills of tomato and 20 hills of squash which, he said, gave a good income to his wife who helps him run the farm.

Two weeks before we re-visited him, he planted 40 hills of ampalaya in 2 m x 20 m planting distance. A similar area was planted with ampalaya one week before the interview. He was also scheduled to plant table tomato the day after we interviewed him. He said that if the rains come late, he would no longer plant rice in a half hectare rainfed area. Instead, he will just plant vegetables, corn, and mungo, which he will partly used as green beans.

Elias said off-season production gives farmers, especially in rainfed areas, income all year round. “It’s a lot better if you have something to sell all the time,” he added. Before, he used to plant all his vegetable crops at the same time. This has changed. Now, he starts raising new seedlings in plastic trays while he is still harvesting those at the fruit bearing stage.

Elias has also been into tomato contract growing with the Northern Foods Corporation (NFC) since 1989. The production area ranging from 2,000 to 2,500 sq. m. depends largely on the contract given by NFC. Before the project started, this was the only crop he planted after the wet season rice.

He said that he gets a net income of P8,000 to P10,000 from tomato contract growing if the plants are given proper care.

Last season, he was able to sell more than P3,000 worth of tomatoes from 300 hills. Moreover,, his sale from Senorita watermelon was more than P3,000 and his 40 hills of off-season eggplant gave him more than P2,000 until last April. From less than 100 sq. m. of Bonito ampalaya, he earned almost P3,000.

Another important practice that he has learned in off-season vegetable production is the use of plastic mulch, which he said requires less labor for watering and weeding. He got this plastic mulch from the project and he would buy some when the project ceased to supply.

He observed that although there are a lot of work to be done – as recommended by the project staff – he is enjoying because he is learning more technologies.

Elias said that the advantage in off season production is that the produce commands a good price unlike in contract growing wherein the harvest had a flat price.

This is why Elias and his wife are happy that the TCP3 has widen their knowledge on farming which resulted in better yields and more income.