PinoyEcoFarmer

My son often teases me that if I really want to be a farmer then I should start farming.  A recent meet with fellow farming practitioners and enthusiasts further inspired me to go for it. So I hatched a little plan and I am taking the challenge. I know that this will pale in comparison to what my farmer friends have but it is a start.

Our frontyard is normally reserved for ornamental plants but after realizing that vegetables give more practical value we transformed what was once a flower and grass lawn into plots of vegetables and herbs. I just bought slabs of adobe to act as the borders for our raised beds. We even made use of a vacant lot one house away to plant more vegetables. Tomato, pechay, radish,  pipino, ampalaya (bitter gourd) are just among the vegetables that we  decided to grow. I also have ginger, luyang dilaw (turmeric), gabi (yam), basil (got this from the recent Rarefruit Society of the Philippines gathering). A small nursery of various seedlings (pili, avocado, latexless langka – another RFSP haul, cacao, marcotted tambis) sit on one corner  of our garden.

Above: A tomato plot just outside our bedroom window

Above: Petsay seedlings sown in an old tub (for transplant)

Above: Newly-transplanted petsay

Above: Ginger

Above: Radish sprouts

Above: More plots on our neighbor’s vacant lot (kangkong growing fast)

Above: Okra and string beans

Above: No vacant spaces wasted

Above: An ampalaya (bitter gourd) sprouting

Above: String beans

Above: Kamote (purple sweet potato – I sprouted these from kamote bought by my wife on her travel to Leyte)

Above: Basil (got this from RFSP gathering)

Above: Citrus seedlings (just sprouted from seeds we threw so we do not really know what specific varieties they are)

Garden work is a bit physically demanding but I see it as an opportunity to flex my otherwise sedentary muscles. The entire household has also taken an interest on the project so it now becomes bonding time for us. We are not sure yet on what to expect but it is definitely a start. Each day I look forward to seeing the plants grow and hopefully they give us something to harvest later. As an aspiring farmer, it all boils down to learning by doing.

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