Agriculture Business Week

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

The Philippines is proud to have notable ladies who have considerably contributed to the task of nation building.  Among them are President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, former President Corazon C. Aquino, First Ladies Amelita Ramos and Imelda R. Marcos.  Today, such names are not only synonymous with political prestige but are now Hybrid names for indigenous species, Mussaenda.

Collectively known as the Doñas, Philippine Mussaendas were named after the First Ladies of the Philippines.  This is considered as the country’s most important contribution to the ornamental industry.  They are likewise regarded as the “centennial” breakthrough in Philippine Horticulture.  In fact, they have became popular not only in the Philippines but are also now gaining recognition abroad.

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

It was another ordinary day for Ms. Rebecca Bartolome of Pucay Village, Marcos Highway, Baguio City, when I visited her to write an article about her success story on anthurium production.  She was doing some chores and attending to her grandchildren.  On the lookout of their five lovely grandchildren — one girl and four boys — was Dada Doming who just arrived checking his roosters and chickens.  As I approached her, she welcomed me with a warm smile and a fully-gripped handshake.  As usual, she was happy to see me and showed interest in what we were about to do.

Nana Rebecca started growing anthuriums out of interest and love of flowers until it became a hobby which expanded to another family’s source of livelihood.  She first had a hand on the plant when her son-in-law from La Trinidad, Benguet, gave her daughter planting materials of three anthurium varieties (Nita, Hawaiian Red, and Kansaku).  Of course, the gift turned to be a manifestation of commitment and loyalty until it became part of a family story.  Her daughter, Lanie, became the wife of Bon, they are blessed with a bubbly son named Kiko.  The anthurium plants are equivalents of their life stories describing a very strong family relationship.  The production is now on its eight year and still gaining momentum because of a cultivated passion and dedication.  These made her continue to work and enjoy this simple hobby complete with stories and memories, including the fruits of gratifying labor.

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Posted on July 23rd, 2008 under Entrepreneurs, Ornamental. Tags: Anthuriums, Flowers, Ornamental. Comments: None

Have you ever wondered how flowers are arranged together to form a symmetric layers of full colors and variety?  Or are preserved to look fresh and look real for a period of time in a vase?  Well, this kind of activity is based on the skill, artistry, and creativity of the flower arranger and sculptor to show his or her aesthetic creations and well-coordinated hand maneuvering.  The flowers are picked, arranged, and organized to show the colors or the blending of leaves, petals, other products, vases or even the containers used to illustrate life.  To do this, flowers are orderly packed, stocked, and tied in neatly arranged manner exuding their beauty.  As soon as these are organized and blended, the flowers express a feeling of warmth and harmony that magnify the inner soul of the individual making the arrangement or sculpture.  In the end, it is the person receiving that manifest gratitude and appreciation, be it as a symbol of love, peace, harmony, or simply care.  Most often, it is the interpretation of the person preparing and combining the flowers or plants that makes the difference with the right combination and selection of colors, flowers, leaves, and accents.

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