PinoyEcoFarmer

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Watching films that tackle the issue of sustainability is definitely worth our time. It nudges us to look , re-examine and do something to regain the balance that has been lost over the years. As natural/organic farmers, we can learn something from this feature and maybe re-apply the concepts locally.

Wildlife film maker Rebecca Hosking investigates how to transform her family’s farm in Devon into a low energy farm for the future, and discovers that nature holds the key.

With her father close to retirement, Rebecca returns to her family’s wildlife-friendly farm in Devon, to become the next generation to farm the land. But last year’s high fuel prices were a wake-up call for Rebecca. Realising that all food production in the UK is completely dependent on abundant cheap fossil fuel, particularly oil, she sets out to discover just how secure this oil supply is.

Alarmed by the answers, she explores ways of farming without using fossil fuel. With the help of pioneering farmers and growers, Rebecca learns that it is actually nature that holds the key to farming in a low-energy future.

Here is another reference material for natural farmers entitled Nature Farming Manual: A handbook of preparations, techniques and organic amendments inspired by Nature Farming and adapted to locally available materials and needs in the Western Visayas region of the Philippines.

Excerpts from the Background:

Organic agriculture in The Philippines is developing rapidly and farmers have adopted and adapted an array of techniques inspired by a number of different philosophies including biodynamic farming, permaculture and Nature Farming. Of particular interest to organic agriculture practitioners in The Philippines is the Nature Farming approach which was first advocated by the Japanese philosopher Mokichi Okada in 1935. This system promotes a holistic and sustainable approach to agriculture, with the aim of protecting life and the integrity of the natural world. The basic principles of Nature Farming are akin to those advocated by Rudolf Steiner in 1924 when he laid the foundations of biodynamic agriculture. Both systems of thought arose in response to problems that were, even then, associated with industrial agriculture, inorganic fertilizer use and monocultures. A fundamental principle that has evolved with these alternative agricultural systems is that a farm should form a basic unit of self-sustainability. The use of native materials can restore and enhance the fertility and vitality of the farm.

A key component of sustainable organic farming in the developing world is the use of locally produced and low cost biomass resources to rebuild and maintain soil productivity. Organic fertilizers and soil amendments can be produced in a number of different ways. This manual focuses on the preparation of organic soil and plant amendments using microbiological processes, as inspired by Nature Farming. Although biodynamic farming also uses preparations that may potentially stimulate microbial activity of the soil, these have not yet been fully adapted to the indigenous plant materials in the Philippines.

In The Philippines, there are numerous small-scale farming endeavors occupying a mosaic of environments spanning a broad gradient of biotic and abiotic conditions. In this context it is preferable to avoid inputs of commercial EM preparations in favor of locally produced IMO preparations.

Click on Cover Page to Download

I got hold of this publication “Likas-Kaya at Organikong Pagsasaka ng Palay” (Sustainable and Organic Rice Agriculture) by University of the Philippines-Los Baños (UPLB) Professor Oscar B. Zamora and his team. The Go-Organic! Philippines Movement and the Philippine Rural Reconstruction Movement (PRRM) helped launch the manual.

I think the manual is a very authoritative reference for farmers who want to venture into sustainable and organic rice production. The book is written in Filipino.

Ma Ceres P. Doyo wrote about it on her column the Human Face in the Philippine Daily Inquirer dated May 21, 2009. The title of the article is “Human Face : Free book on sustainable rice agriculture”. She wrote a general summary of what the manual is about.

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Internet has surely revolutionized a lot of things. One of the many advantages it brought is that it has eased the access to information and collaboration among like-minded individuals. As farmers we can also take advantage of the internet. The information is just there for learning and discussion . It is just up to us to discern what would be the best practice that will most benefit  us and the environment.

These are some of the local groups that I recommend:

1.  Natural Farming in the Philippines

(http://groups.yahoo.com/group/natural_farming_philippines/);

Worldwide, the growing demand for safe, pesticide-free and naturally-farmed products trigger interest on natural and organic farming. Still considered as a budding sector in Philippine agriculture, nonetheless, organic food production belongs to the top ten priority sectors for revenue development in the Philippines (DTI, 2006). Thus, the Executive Order 481 aims to “promote agriculture development, conserve environmental resources and promote social equity and product access to foreign and domestic markets.”

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Our trip to the University of the Philippines Los Banos  (UPLB) to attend the Centennial Celebrations gave a me a chance to meet two ladies who are into organic products. Melda Pantua of Herb Republic (which I wrote about in “A Herb Republic Rises”) and Adelfa M. Nuestro of Delfa’s Organic Products. Aling Delfa sells a variety of organic products including instant ginger tea (a personal favorite), peanut butter (creamy and chunky varieties), Tsokolate Alfonso (tablea de cacao), cafe barako/ coffee alamid, Luyang Dilaw Tea (turmeric), assorted pastillas, ube/ coco/ coco-pili / pineapple jams and black ground pepper.

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We chanced upon this small stall in the Student Union (SU) Building at the University of the Philippines Los Banos (UPLB) when we went there to join the Centennial Celebrations. The Herb Republic booth sells herbs and vegetables which they harvest directly from their small farm in a nearby baranggay. Their slogan is “From Seed to Table”.

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Hydroponics (from the Greek words hydro water and ponos labour) is a method of growing plants using mineral nutrient solutions, without soil. Terrestrial plants may be grown with their roots in the mineral nutrient solution only or in an inert medium, such as perlite, gravel, or mineral wool using mineral wool.

The farm (only about a thousand square meters) is located before the rotonda (left side going to Tagaytay) just a few meters after the road going to the Pink Sisters Chapel. It is on the right side going to Silang from the rotonda. The greenhouse is at the backside of the Brudrick Marion School. They do not use pesticides, fungicides and other harmful chemical in growing their vegetables.

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This is an offshoot of my previous blog on organic/natural farming which I intend to expand and improve by making it more systematic, engaging and informative.

I have been mulling on several names to best describe the several earth-friendly ways of farming here in the Philippines. I know that there are many varying mindsets ranging from organic, natural, bio-dynamic, ecofarming and other labels but I think that all of them have a common goal of practicing a sustainable way of farming that considers the best interest of people and the environment. Finally, (after some thought) I decided to use the Pinoy Eco Farmer tag to encompass all of them. Eco is short for ecological which means tending or intended to benefit or protect the environment.

My approach is to make this as a venue for the promotion of an ecological and sustainable way of farming (household/small and economic scale) by featuring best practices here in the Philippines. The topics will likewise include other related articles on waste management, energy management, boosting one’s health, and other green initiatives so readers will know and be inspired to do it in their own homes/farms/offices. I hope that we can provide a more comprehensive source of information for those who are planning to go or shift to this way of farming.

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