BARAS, PALO, LEYTE – Eighteen coconut farmers from 4 pilot municipalities availed of the government’s intercropping program offered by PhilFIDA in partnership with PCA and Local Government Units. The project package is composed of free planting materials at 1,100 abaca seedlings per hectare, digger and bolo, fertilizer, insecticide, labor cost of planting and hauling of materials from drop-off point to planting site.
PhilFIDA, the proponent of this project tapped the assistance of PCA Coconut Development Officers assigned in Catubig, Northern Samar; MacArthur, Leyte; Hinunangan, Southern Leyte and Abuyog, Leyte to monitor and supervise the progress of the intercropping project.
“We in PhilFIDA consider coconut and abaca as partnercrop, not a mere intercrop. This pilot project aims to determine the compatibility of abaca-coconut partner cropping in Region VIII in order to prepare a large-scale planting in the near future, and to augment the income of coconut farmers by intercropping abaca”, said Joseph Salas, Senior Agriculturist of PhilFIDA Region VIII. The pilot project limits a maximum of two hectares and a minimum of one hectare to give preferential attention to small coconut farmers.
In 2017, the Catmon Community-Based Forest Management Project Development Organization, a KAANIB site, received 3,000 abaca suckers and 8 bags of ammonium phosphate fertilizer from PCA. Out of these 2,024 abaca trees survived equivalent to 14.5 hectares in Brgy. Catmon, Saint Bernard, Southern Leyte and is now on its flowering stage. # # # (DA-PCA Region VIII)
Photo caption: Field validation of coconut farm of Mr. Gabriel Ortonero of Catubig, Northern Samar intended for the establishment of abaca under coconut project, with PCA CCDO Engr. Dominador Dula, PFO Ralph Bandal and FDO I Renato Puaso. (DA-PCA)
