Agriculture Business Week

More and more farmers in La Trinidad, Benguet, have embarked on the planting of chilled tissue-cultured strawberry (TCS) plant materials which were proven to produce higher and better quality berries compared to those that the farmers used to grow from runners, mother plant splits or crowns.

Chilled TCS plant materials are now being promoted by the Department of Agriculture (DA-CAR) and the Office of the Municipal Agriculturist (OMAG) of La Trinidad after years of joint trials in the laboratory, nursery and in farmers’ fields to determine the viability of the technology, according to Mrs. Joan Bacbac, DA regional focal person for strawberry projects.

Simultaneous with the conduct of the trials was the set-up of a systematic production and distribution of TCS mother plants by the DA, runner production in the nursery by OMAG, and runner multiplication by farmers for planting and field berry production, reports Bacbac.

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Ferns are important for food, medicine and ornaments. They are, however, threatened by deforestation and over-harvesting in the wild.

Ferns or pteridophytes are primitive plants that are flowerless and seedless. They reproduce by means of spores found in their leaves or fronds. Widely distributed in the temperate and tropical areas of the world from the lowlands to mountain forests, there are about 12,000 kinds (species) of ferns known to man.

There are about Boo kinds of ferns in the Philippines, according to Dr. Victor Amoroso, one of the country’s leading fern specialists and a professor of the Central Mindanao University (CMU) in Musuan, Bukidnon. Of the total, 275 species are endemic (native) and 625 are non-endemic or introduced.

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Tobacco leaves produced by San Juan, Ilocos Sur Armen are of good quality that even sold at high price, traders and cigarette manufacturing companies vie for these.

But this was not the case in the 1980s. Tobacco leaves in this town back then were inferior compared to the produce of other provinces, remembers Jose Taclas, tobacco production and regulation officer III of the National Tobacco Administration (NTA) based in the town.

The reason for it, he furthered, was that farmers here were doing the conventional method in planting tobacco, the town’s main source of revenue.

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Researchers at the Philippine Rootcrop Research and Training Center (PhilRootcrops) of the Visayas State University (VSU) in Baybay, Leyte have unveiled what could become the next potential biological control for anthracnose in ubi and other plant diseases.

Julie D. Tan, Evelyn B. Taboada, May V. Tampus, Jilly B. Regis and Rodney H. Perez have isolated and tested the endophytic microorganisms found in sweetpotato, which are recognized as source of secondary metabolites useful in biotechnology and agriculture. Initial results have confirmed that these endophytes produce antimicrobial compounds that inhibit the growth of disease-causing microorganisms in plants.

In their study titled “Antimicrobial evaluation and effects of fermentation process conditions of bioactive compounds produced by endophytic Bacillus sp. against some selected food and plant pathogens”, the researchers screened isolates of endophytes from rootcrop-based products and other related fermented food products for their abilities to inhibit the growth of some selected food pathogens. They also determined the effects of fermentation on the productivity and activity of the biocontrol compound.

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Following a successful tie-up with a businessman in the commercialization of bamboo charcoal briquettes, the Ilocos Agriculture and Resources Research and Development Consortium (ILARRDEC) of the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCARRD) has now started to promote its bamboo technologies in the local government level to further boost bamboo production and utilization in Region I.

ILARRDEC director Dr. Stanley Malab said during PCARRD’s 37th anniversary last November that the City of Alaminos in Pangasinan is now advocating the production and utilization of bamboo in its local industries, ranging from food establishments to the tourism sector.

The project is called “Science and Technology Intervention for the Promotion and Commercialization of Engineered Bamboo: Academe, LGU Partnership Model.”

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Catarman, Northern Samar – Unknown to many, the abaca produced by the small farmers in Northern Samar and Leyte provinces are the best abaca fiber in the world and it has a good market, said a prominent businessman here.

Alex Tan, president of the Philippine Abaca Fiber Exporters Association, said the abaca fibers produced by the small farmers from the remote towns of Northern Samar and Leyte provinces have the best quality of abaca and it is known worldwide as the best abaca in the world.

The Bicol region is second only in terms of abaca production and quality of abaca fiber, Tan said.

Tan said he will be presenting the quality of the best abaca of Eastern Visayas during the international convention on fibers at the Philippine International Convention Center in Manila come October 22 which will be attended by international businessmen.

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While the global crisis is reducing consumption across nations and social classes, causing massive unemployment and constricting the world economy to a precarious extent, other sectors are cashing in on some of its unexpected beneficial effects.

Among them is the herbs and other plants sector, which is experiencing immense growth, -according to Edsa Garden House consultant Pearl Banaag.

“Coupled with the thriving niche markets that promote and encourage healthy living for cosmopolitan lifestyles, herbs and other plants are now slowly taking centerstage,” Banaag said.

The need for healthy living seems to conspire with the current need to cut cost in every possible aspect of today’s life, especially with the soaring prices of medicine and healthcare.

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A new broad spectrum fungicide has been proven to kill different fungi and bacteria in ornamentals.

Fungicides have been used for more than 400 years from as simple as a brine solution, which was used for cereal seed treatment, to the introduction of very complex organic chemical compounds in the earlier half of the 20th century. There are different classes of fungicides that are classified according to their chemical structure. One of them is copper-based fungicides or copper fungicides. It has been used to protect crops after the ‘accidental’ discovery of the Bordeaux mixture by Pierre-Marie-Alexis Millardet in the late 1800s.

Disease control with the use of a copper based fungicide is done by disrupting the functions of the cellular proteins of fungi and bacteria. This is because when cupric ions are released in the presence of moisture, it destroys the secondary and tertiary structures (denaturation) of these proteins upon contact. Once these proteins are denatured, its functions are lost.

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Edible landscaping, potted plants and foliage, dried flowers-these are some of the growing trends in the ornamentals world-and more!

Just like the culinary world, the ornamentals universe is undergoing an evolution of sorts. There is fusion-a blending of tastes, sty, es and designs. Innovation is in and strict followers of the purists’ rules of design are starting to dwindle. Hobbyists are on the rise, some of them even earning more than what those erudite ornamental experts do. There is also this innate yearning among practitioners to dig into what’s endemic and indigenous among our plant materials and promote them for popular consumption.

“Those are signs of the times,” enthuses Dr. I,eonido R. Naranja, an acclaimed ornamental expert and Associate Professor of UPLB’s Crop Science Cluster (Formerly the Horticulture Department). “The general rule is, as the living conditions of people go higher, the usage of ornamentals also increases. But from what we have observed, even with the global financial crisis, we’re still seeing an uptrend – in the number of ornamental enthusiasts. It’s quite hard to predict what’s next in this industry.”

We visited Dr. Naranja during the recently concluded garden show and technology fair at the UPLB Social Garden Hall . As part of the organizing team of the yearly flower arrangement and dish garden competition, the amiable professor provided us with wonderful insights on what he thinks are hot emerging trends in the ornamentals world.

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One can earn Php595 weekly from selling backpacks and at least Php172.50 from selling plant holders, both made from bamban.

This perennial herb (Donax canneformis) is proving to be a profitable and more sustainable shooin for rattan as shown by Dr. Roel Alli and For. Jose Tutor of the West Visayas State University in Lambunao, Iloilo. Focused on developing various end-products, the researchers showed that bamban can be made into novelty items such as mats, tables, baskets, flower pot holders, trays, laundry baskets, food covers, and fruit trays.

These products are sold every Saturday with collection and processing of raw materials, and weaving being done from Monday to Friday. The process starts with the cutting and hauling of bamban.

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Infestation of stemborers can result in a yield loss of as high as 50 percent.

According to Rolando San Gabriel, PhilRice training specialist, stemborer adult population peaks from April to May and October to November.

Stemborer damage during vegetative stage is manifested by yellow, dead, young leaves or dead tillers called deadhearts (which can be easily pulled from the base), while damage during reproductive stage is manifested by whiteheads or emergence of whitish and unfilled panicles. Severe stemborer damage causes a decrease in the number of reproductive tillers. To prevent deadhearts and whiteheads, proper management practices must be integrated.

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When she was interviewed some years back at her home in Bitaug, Bansalan, Davao del Sur, last Bagobo weaver Salinta Monon was apprehensive about the future of abaca, “I am very much concerned since we can’t find good source of abaca fiber for our tinalak, ” the national awardee said then.

The good news is abaca is staging a comeback. In southern and central Mindanao, government officials are supporting abaca,expansion. In fact, Kiamba in Sarangan ; Nabunturan in Compostela Valley, and Lake Sebu, Sultan Kudarat are including abaca as their priority product for development through the One Town, One Product program.

“Before, only provincial government units are engaged in abaca production and promotion, but this time, municipal government units have also signified support,” disclosed Olympio Macarayan, director of Fiber Industry Development Authority (FIDA) in Region XI.

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We had been mentioning the minus-one element technique or MOET as an effective and cheap method of determining nutrient deficiencies in irrigated and rain, fed ricefields. The results of the MOET become the basis for the kind of fertilizer that must be applied on the rice crop.

It should be kept in mind that as yields increase, native soil nutrients are mined heavily, causing deficiencies of micronutrients that are not often present in most high analysis fertilizers in the market. It is therefore imperative that fertilizers be judiciously applied based mainly on the need of the crop, and on the capacity of soil to store and provide the essential nutrients.

The MOET shows the status of essential nutrients in soils such as nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), zinc (Zn), sulfur (S) and, copper (Cu). The method simulates actual field condition of a flooded or submerged soil. It is easy to use with fast and reliable results, and does not require sophisticated equipment. In addition, the MOET kit is cheaper than other methods.

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I have been meeting and talking with corn farmers for nearly 10 years in my profession as an agronomist, and I find it amazing to see how ordinary, corn farmers react to some of the latest technologies in corn production. When farmers thought that 3- or 4-tonner corn variety was good enough, they were surprised that hybrid technology could easily double that yield. Nowadays, we hear Gawad Saka awardees for corn hitting or even surpassing the 10 MT/ha level. What’s more, farmers are now offered more options to buy hybrids that protect themselves from one of the most serious pests of corn like the Asiatic corn borer (ACB). These hybrids give farmers efficiency, convenience, and most importantly, better control of things in the cornfield.

With such developments, solutions for weed problem should not be that far. While there are plenty of management options, almost all are characterized by limited window of application, crop damage (burn), highly manual, and expensive. Some could even be described as simply ineffective. Just as the ACB problem has been pestering our farmers, weeds are perennial headaches.

So, is there something new to combat weeds in your cornfield? Rather, the right question is: What is this new technology in corn that makes weed control so easy and effective?

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