I came across products developed by scientists of Biotech UP Los Banos in Laguna which I think are very useful in farming and other applications.

Above: Taken from BioLife (Quarterly Magazine of Biotechnology) Vol1 No2 April-June 2005 Issue

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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.

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“Only he can understand what a farm is, what a country is, who shall have sacrificed part of himself to his farm or country, fought to save it, struggled to make it beautiful. Only then will the love of farm or country fill his heart”. Antoine de Saint-Exupery

The Rare Fruit Society of the Philippines (RFSP) gathering on June 12, 2010 was an overwhelming success judging from the enthusiasm of the farmers-at-heart attendees who surprisingly went in droves (some were with their families in tow). The Cavite tour started at Len Faustino’s farm in Silang, Cavite where they served a delicious breakfast of crispy tawilis, fried rice, itlog maalat (salted duck eggs) with tomatoes, turmeric rice, scrambled eggs and brewed kapeng barako (native coffee).  Some of the food served were generous contributions from the attendees.

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On June 12, 2010, members of the RARE FRUIT SOCIETY OF THE PHILIPPINES (RFSP) will gather for a mini-tour of some farms in the Cavite area. The organizers/catalysts dub this as “Araw ng Kalayaan: Responsableng Pagsasaka ang Magpapalaya Mula sa Gutom at Kahirapan”. The get-together will also be a sharing and fellowship among the members some of whom have not even personally met yet.

There is one caveat though: They say joining RFSP Gatherings is addictive so proceed with caution.

The Itinerary will be:

7:00AM to 9:00AM Len Faustino’s Farm Visit (Pineapple & Coffee) in Silang-Tagaytay (Host – Len Faustino)

9:00AM to 9:30AM Tagaytay-Mendez- Indang travel

9:30AM to 11:00AM Silan Agri Farm Visit (Dragon Fruit) in Indang, Cavite (M/S Eddie & Shirley Silan)

11:00AM to 11:30AM Cavite State University FITS Center Visit (Dr. Teddy Tepora)

11:30AM to 12:00PM Indang-Naic- Maragondon travel

12:00PM to 1:00PM Terra Verde Ecofarm in Maragondon, Cavite – Buffet Lunch (Host - Eric Atanacio)

1:00 PM onwards RFSP Fellowship, Agri-Talks & Demo c/o Berns & TJ with snacks

Agri-Talk Topics

• Fruit Tree Nursery Establishment 101 – Verman Reyes
• Kalabaw Dairy Project (Brazilian Murrah Buffalo) – TJ Gonzales
• El Nino Effects in High Value Crops – TJ Gonzales
• Vermicast Effect in Palay Production – TJ Gonzales
• Natural Farming Technology System (NFTS) – Andry Lim
• Shredder for composting & vermiculture demo – TJ Gonzales & Rex Yerro

Fellowship Activities: 1. Open Forum & Members’ Report on their RFSP membership experience, farm progress & development 2.Seeds & Planting Materials Exchange, Distribution & Raffle 3. Wine Tasting of Joe Real’s Wine c/o Moje

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RFSP is composed of professional, commercial, amateur, and hobby growers of exotic and native tropical fruits in the Philippines. The purpose of the group is to share knowledge, expertise, and experiences of growing tropical fruits with other members.

The group encourages its members to exchange planting materials, seeds, and budsticks for the propagation of rare, minor, new variety of tropical fruits among its members to preserve and conserve the said fruits and the environment for future use due to the deforestation and industrialization in our country.

Lastly, the group aims to improve the fruit industry and to alleviate poverty by helping small farmers through technology transfer and information dissemination. The group hopes that by doing this we will not only be enjoying planting and collecting our favorite tropical fruits but by learning to help others especially the less fortunate.

Carbonized rice hull is a crucial ingredient of bokashi organic fertilizer and can also be used in composting toilets and animal bedding. CRH results from the incomplete combustion of rice hulls under high heat and low oxygen conditions (pyrolysis). Pyrolysis causes the decomposition of organic materials such as lignin and cellulose, leaving a residue of carbon and mineral nutrients.

Click on Carbonized Rice Hull to view in pdf format.

The document was done by one of the members of Natural Farming Philippines.

The three-day 3rd Pinoy Organic Festival will open on May 28, 2010 (Friday) at the AANI Herbal Garden and Livelihood Center at the Quezon Memorial Circle, Quezon City. The event will end on Sunday, May 30, 2010.

The organic fest will be participated in by organic farming practitioners, advocates from the government, academe and the private sector. Various organic products will be exhibited for sale by growers and processors of various commodities.

Expected to grace the 3-day festival are:

1. Pablito Villegas (trustee of the Organic Produce Trade Association, owner of Villegas Organic Farm, and convenor for Asia of the Intercontinental Network of Organic Farmers Organization)
2. Sen. Miguel Zubiri (one of the principal authors of the Philippine Organic Agriculture Law)
3. Rep. Proceso J. Alcala (Congressman of Quezon Province and a staunch advocate of natural farming)
4. Armand and Teresa Saniano of the Earthkeepers (Teresa Saniano write a book on natural farming)

The Quizon Farm in Antipolo City will also display live turkeys as well as processed turkey meat products.

The exhibits, the forums and seminars are open free to the public. The event organizer, in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture, is the Agri-Aqua Network International (AANI). Pol Rubia is AANI’s vice president and operations manager.

See you there.

Note: Article is a repost.

This is a list of botanical plants, methods of preparation and insect pests controlled and or prevented.  No formal scientific study was undertaken on the effects of these botanical plants in the control of pests. However, with the integration of other (cultural, biological and mechanical) measures, an experiment at the garden at the Bureau of Plant Industry – Los Banos National Crop Research and Development Center (BPI-LBNCRDC) produced substantial amount of healthy vegetables.

This is worth a try. Afterall, all of them are easy to obtain.

I found these documents from the Natural Farming Philippines e-group and I think these will all be valuable references for the garden/farm. The guides were done and compiled by Josephine Gamboa who is a natural farming expert practitioner.

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Our weekend visit to the University of the Philippines Los Banos to attend an activity at the Boy Scouts Campsite gave us a reason to finally drop-by the Herb Republic Restaurant for lunch. The heavy traffic (it took us 3 hours to get to Los Banos from Cavite) did not dampen our moods. It was already past 12 when we got there. The place was a oasis considering the searing heat of the midday sun.

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I was quite surprised to see a hydroponics set-up opposite the marker of the the Bulusan Volcano Natural Park. The two-table set-up is in a sleepy and laid-back barangay of San Roque, Bulusan, Sorsogon. They grow lettuce and harvest them after 30 days.

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“Worm composting is a process for recycling food waste into a rich, dark, earth-smelling soil conditioner. One of its advantages is that it can be done indoors and outdoors, allowing year-round composting. Worm composts can be made in containers filled with moistened bedding.”

Vermicomposting is indeed a nice way to manage our biodegradable scraps/wastes and turn them into something useful for our garden. I found this Guide to Vermiculture and Vermicomposting from the Bureau Plant Industry website which is a useful reference to get us started. The document focuses on the production of organic fertilizer through the action of earthworms. There are many other resources on vermiculture and vermicomposting including a series of brief articles posted on EntrePinoys which will further enhance our understanding. A more comprehensive reference is the Manual of On-Farm Vermicomposting and Vermiculture By Glenn Munroe. The document can also be viewed from the Organic Agriculture Centre of Canada.