It is difficult to give a clear and exacting statement on what is bonsai. I always have this predicament when confronted by this very question.

The uncertainty is compounded by the self-recognition that even after several years of actual practice, I myself am still a beginner who spends so much time analyzing, designing, and redesigning a potential tree that comes my way. Nevertheless, I always do the explaining, retrieving my store of memory on the subject which has accumulated with time from various readings, conversations, seminars, exhibits, and hands-on experience.

The word bonsai comes from bon, meaning tray or pot, and sai, meaning tree. Literally, therefore, the word should mean potted tree. However, there are more to it.

What is bonsai: an art and science

Bonsai is the art and science of dwarfing and shaping a tree or shrub and growing it as a healthy plant in a container or attached to some rock or stone, depicting a miniaturized replica of a real, old tree and natural scenery. However, many masters, authors, and practitioners have expanded the coverage of bonsai.

Now bonsai includes plants with hard stems but not classified botanically as tree or shrub, as well as some grasses and herbaceous plants. Notable examples are bamboo and palms. Further, it may consist of a single tree, a pair, or a group of trees.

The process of creating a fine bonsai is complicated and involves the search for the appropriate planting material, propagation, planting and replanting, designing, pruning, training and retraining, refining, landscaping, and the culture of the tree.

First and foremost it is an art, its horticultural aspects considered only as secondary though necessary in the dwarfing process and prolonged culture of the tree. In Japan where it was developed and popularized after it was introduced from China, there are living treasures of ancient masterpieces of bonsai trees which are reputedly 500 to 700 years old or more.

Note: The reference to China as the origin of bonsai is based on archaeological evidence. 

What is bonsai: religion and philosophy

The art of bonsai is synonymous with antiquity. In ancient times it was restricted to a privileged few in China and Japan. It has been associated with both religion and philosophy.  

For the Buddhist monks who originally practiced the art in China during the Han dynasty (202 BC-AD 220), it was a way of establishing a link with God, creator of the universe, and nature in all its forms. To cultivate bonsai is, to some extent, to show an understanding of the concept of the creation of the world.

It also seems that bonsai plants were not originally produced from seed, cutting,s or layering. A uniquely shaped plant would first have to be found in the mountains or forests.

The search for such a plant was endowed with the symbolic meaning of a “quest for the inner self” and a return to the origins of man. It is a search for true perfection.

What is bonsai: elements of visual art

Bonsai is now a recognized art with geographical and international competitions held periodically. It has the same aesthetic elements consisting of composition, line, form, depth, proportion, balance, and so on as in painting, sculpture, and other forms of visual art. The personality and style or signatures of different artists are recognizable to the discriminating.

It is considered a living sculpture and a dynamic art form. In the strict sense, no bonsai is ever finished. Left without the care and attention which are demanded, the tree may either accelerate its growth, or be transformed into another shape, or it may die. 

Like any other art form, bonsai can be analyzed, taught, and learned. In the beginning, I myself measured the trunk diameter, height, canopy diameter, and the vertical spacings of main branches of photographic specimens in books to learn about proportion.  

What is bonsai: a challenge

The usual limitations to what individuals can accomplish apply. Great artists are born, not made. Artistic talent is a gift that cannot be assigned. That rare ability of the “eye” to perceive what is uniquely and naturally beautiful as well as the dexterity of the hands in responding to the commands coming from the brain cannot simply be assumed by another individual.

This, however, should be considered a challenge rather than a deterrent.  The real pleasure in the practice of art lies in the search for beauty and excellence in harmony with nature.

Moreover, the skills demanded are not easily acquired. It may take several years for one to produce a masterpiece bearing his own unique signature but the moment it is achieved, it will be worth all the time and effort expended. The feeling of ecstasy should be like that of one who painstakingly perseveres step by step to climb a steep mountain and, finally against all odds, is able to put that last step that matters on top. Conquerors just never quit.

What is bonsai? What else? It’s conquering your fears, your insecurities, your uncertainties, your conceitedness, your loneliness. It’s conquering yourself!

Indeed it’s my constant companion, it’s my most willing listener. It stretches my limbs, it calms me, it gives me extreme satisfaction as I shape it according to my will without it raising any complaint. It brings the mountains, forests, and a replica of nature into my urban dwelling.

And yet occasionally it pains me too as when tragedy befalls the tree. It then tells me right on my face that I’m just a man. That I ought to take a tight reign on my impatience and should better exercise due diligence and foresight.

What is vermicomposting?

According to Arancon and Edwards (2006), it is the non-thermophilic process by which organic materials are converted by earthworms and microorganisms into rich soil amendments with greatly increased microbial activity and nutrient availability. The term has its origin from vermis, the Latin word for worm. The term is also used to refer to the technology of converting raw organic materials into organic fertilizer supplements, called vermicompost, mainly through microbial action and the use of certain species of earthworm. In addition, the technology is applied in waste management by which organic “wastes” are recycled and made available for plant growth.

This process is inseparable from vermiculture or the culture of earthworms. In vermiculture, the earthworm is the primary product while the vermicompost is only a by-product.

But the primary object of the vermicomposter is the production of vermicompost, a special type of compost, with earthworms as a secondary product. In vermicomposting, the organic materials must be chosen with care or mixed in the right proportions and the compost bed must be provided with optimum conditions for the growth and reproduction of earthworms so that they will be more efficient in their feeding of the organic materials and producing excreta called vermicast.

Short Review of the Development of Vermicomposting

Composting, which refers to the controlled decomposition of organic materials, has been used by farmers and gardeners since prehistoric times to recycle wastes into products that enhance plant growth (Trautmann and Krasny 1997).

Charles Darwin, the English naturalist who made waves in the scientific community with the publication of his “Of the Species and the Descent of Man,” conducted a comprehensive study of burrowing earthworms.

In 1881, he published his last and final book “The Formation of Vegetable Mould, Through the Action of Worms, With Observations of their Habits” which reported in detail how these organisms feed and convert organic materials, mainly leaves, to castings which favor plant growth.

In the 1950s, vermiculture was started in the United States for the production of fish baits. In the 1980s, the United States and the United Kingdom started using earthworms to produce vermicompost from organic wastes. In the Philippines, the production of vermicompost and vermimeal, or earthworm meal, started in 1979 (Guerrero 2009). But it was only in 1982 that the composting earthworm called African nightcrawler (ANC) was introduced into the country (Guerrero et al. 1984).

The publication of the “Proceedings of a Workshop on the Role of Earthworms in the Stabilization of Organic Residues” in 1981, 100 years after Darwin’s study, is responsible for the accelerated interest in the use of earthworms in breaking down organic wastes within and outside of the United States. Roy Hartenstein in the US and Clive A. Edwards in the U.K. spearheaded the research on vermiculture in the 1980s (Edwards 2006).

As of 2004, Edwards (2004, cited by Edwards and Arancon 2006) reported that commercial vermicomposting projects have been developed in many countries such as England, France, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Spain, Poland, the United States, Cuba, Mexico, the Bahamas, China, Japan, Philippines, India and elsewhere in Southeast Asia, as well as Australia, New Zealand, American Samoa, Hawaii, and many countries in South America.

On November 16-18, 2005, the International Symposium-Workshop on Vermi Technologies for Developing Countries was held in the Philippines.

Starter Guide in Backyard Vermicomposting

Vermicomposting methods vary according to various factors such as location (indoor, outdoor), the intensity of care and scale of production (backyard, commercial), systems used (windrow, worm bins, bioreactors), methods of feeding and preparation of organic materials (gradual, batch, mesophilic, combined thermophilic and mesophilic composting).

For backyard batch composting following the windrow or outdoor pile method, it is common to combine thermophilic (high temperature) composting in which a maximum pile temperature of about 60-65°C is targeted. This is referred to as the pre-vermicomposting stage during which complex organic compounds are degraded by microorganisms. At the end of this thermophilic stage, the temperature of the pile gradually drops and the composting process becomes mesophilic (moderate temperature). This signals the right time to commence the second stage in which the right species of earthworm is introduced.

As a practical guide in vermicomposting, the following step-by-step procedure (thermophilic + mesophilic process) is provided:

1. Prepare the following materials or provide at the right time: carbon- and nitrogen-rich organic materials, spade, ground space, hollow blocks, stakes, plastic sheets or used sacks, water and water sprinklers, shading materials, nylon net or any substitute to cover the beds, and composting earthworms (e.g. ANC). Nitrogen-rich substrates refer to animal manures, legumes, and fresh grass clippings, while others, particularly those colored brown and dry, are generally classified as carbon-rich substrates.

2. Mix carbonaceous with nitrogenous organic materials at the right proportions to obtain a C:N ratio of about 30:1. For example, rice straw and fresh manure are mixed at about 25:75 ratio by weight. But for practical application, a 1:1 or 50:50 ratio by volume can be tried as a basis in mixing bulky carbonaceous materials (e.g. dried grasses) and manures.

3. Prepare the vermi bed by spreading plastic sheets or used sacks on the ground to prevent mixing of the soil with the compost during harvesting. Pile two layers of hollow blocks in a square or rectangular pattern. Secure the blocks by sinking stakes through the holes. Remove completely growing vegetation surrounding the bed and sweep away plant debris that may serve as food and induce the earthworms to migrate outside. Provide shade.

4. Fill the bed with organic materials and water sparingly. The size of the pile can vary but in general, a volume of at least 1 cubic meter (1 m3) is desired to allow thermophilic heating. A pile 1 m wide, 2 m long and 0.5 m high will have this volume. To conserve moisture and heat, the pile is covered from the top to the sides with plastic sheets or any substitute materials.

5. Wait for at least 15 days for the thermophilic process of composting to end. This process is characterized by a rapid increase in the temperature of the pile (it can be checked manually with an open palm on top of the pile) followed later by a gradual decrease. When the temperature approaches ambient temperature (<35°C, the height of the pile also subsides), remove the covering. Sprinkle with water if necessary, then commence vermicomposting proper by introducing the right species of earthworm.

6. Stock the partially decomposed organic materials with composting earthworms, e.g. ANC, by releasing them on top of the pile. The earthworms will immediately move downward. A stocking rate of about 500 g of earthworms is sufficient for an original pile of 1 m3 but it can be lesser or more, depending on availability. A heavier stocking rate will mean a faster rate of vermicast production.

7. Mulch the pile with coconut coir dust or grasses to prevent excessive loss of moisture. Then cover with nylon net or any substitute material like coconut fronds to serve as a barrier against birds and other earthworm predators. Maintain sufficient moisture and aeration throughout the composting process.

8. Harvest the vermicompost as needed or when only a few organic materials remain intact. Use the earthworms for another round of vermicomposting. 

LITERATURE CITED

ARANCON NQ, EDWARDS CA. 2006. Effects of vermicompost on plant growth. In: Guerrero R.D. III, Guerrero-del Castillo MRA (eds.). Vermi Technologies for Developing Countries. Proceedings of the International Symposium-Workshop on Vermi Technologies for Developing Countries. Nov. 16-18, 2005, Los Baños, Laguna, Philippines. Philippine Fisheries Association, Inc. p 32-65.

DARWIN C. 1881. The Formation of Vegetable Mould, Through the Action of Worms, With Observations of their Habits. London: John Murray. Retrieved May 27, 2011, from http://darwin-online.org.uk/pdf/1881_Worms_F1357.pdf.

EDWARDS CA. 2006. Foreword. In: Guerrero R.D. III, Guerrero-del Castillo MRA (eds.). Vermi Technologies for Developing Countries. Proceedings of the International Symposium-Workshop on Vermi Technologies for Developing Countries. Nov. 16-18, 2005, Los Baños, Laguna, Philippines. Philippine Fisheries Association, Inc. p. iv-v.

EDWARDS CA, ARANCON NQ. 2006. The science of vermiculture: the use of earthworms in organic waste management. In: Guerrero R.D. III, Guerrero-del Castillo MRA (eds.). Vermi Technologies for Developing Countries. Proceedings of the International Symposium-Workshop on Vermi Technologies for Developing Countries. Nov. 16-18, 2005, Los Baños, Laguna, Philippines. Philippine Fisheries Association, Inc. p. 1-30.

GUERRERO RD III. 2009. Vermicompost and Vermimeal Production. MARID Agribusiness Technology Guide. 22 p.

GUERRERO RD III, GUERRERO LA, CARGADO AU. 1984. Studies on the culture of the earthworm, Eudrilus euginae, and its use as feed for Macrobracchium Idella and fertilizer source for Brassica compensis. Trans. Nat. Acad. Science. 6:33-40.

TRAUTMANN NM, KRASNY ME. 1997. Composting in the classroom: scientific inquiry for high school students. Retrieved May 29, 2011 from http://cwmi.css.cornell.edu/compostingintheclassroom.pdf.

Pot gardening or container gardening is the growing of plants, singly or in the group, exclusively in pots or containers rather than directly on the ground. This method is ideally suited for urban farming where planting ground is limited or unavailable. It is generally applied for houseplants and is also useful in areas where the soil or climatic conditions are not suitable for a particular crop.

Potted plants can be grown on porches, front steps, walls, along driveways and pathways, inside the house, on tabletops, rooftops, near the kitchen, and anywhere else.

Any pot or container can be used. It may be a barrel, tub, planting box, bowl, urn, tin can, hanging basket, or anything that can hold soil. It may be made of metal, clay, stone, concrete, wood, rubber, plastic, or hard parts of plants and animals like the shell of the coconut and some shellfish.

The choice is unlimited, subject only to such considerations as availability, durability, cost, aesthetic effect, and the number as well as the maximum sizes of the plants to be grown.

Other advantages of pot gardening include:

1. Flexibility. Potted plants can be moved from one location to another in the garden or house where they will grow best or give the most appealing effects. They can be moved vertically and horizontally to experiment on new garden designs and to create new effects.

2. Space Shaping. Potted plants can be used to shape and define selected parts of the landscape such as seating areas, paths, and entryways. A planted container between the garden and a walkway will provide a pleasing transition between spaces. Potted miniatures and certain flowering plants can serve as accents.

3. Ease in Culture. Plants can be grown with the best potting medium, prepared by mixing the appropriate ingredients. There is less risk of soil-borne diseases and weeds can be easily eliminated. Where any plant is infested or diseased, it can be easily removed for treatment.

4. Mobility. Growing plants in containers allow the creation of mobile pot gardens. Potted plants can be transferred to new locations whenever there is a need to change residence.

Steady Supply of Food and Medicine Thru Pot Gardening

Both land plants and aquatic plants can be grown in containers. These plants include cash crops and both food and non-food crops. The advantage of pot gardening, however, is best exploited by the urban poor for the purpose of food production and cash generation.

A steady supply of fresh and nutritious food for the family can be ensured by growing potted vegetables (e.g. eggplant, jute or saluyot, malunggay or horseradish tree, peppers, pigeon pea or kadyos), fruits (e.g. citrus, guava, sapodilla, sugar apple, tambis or bell fruit) and culinary herbs (e.g. basil, lemongrass, onions, anise, fragrant screwpine or pandan).

In addition to food crops, the growing of potted medicinal plants will also generate cash savings. Clinically proven medicinal plants include ampalaya (charantia), guava, lagundi (five-leaved chaste tree), tsaang gubat (Ehretia microphylla), and yerba buena. Both ampalaya and guava can be grown as sources of food and, at the same time, as emergency sources of herbal medicine.

For landscaping, the advantage of container or pot gardening is without limit. A collection of food crops and medicinal plants will easily arouse curiosity. A potted tomato or pepper with ripe fruits is wonderful to see, as with an acapulko (ring-worm bush) profuse with yellow flowers. These plants will likewise become useful as filler where there are vacant spaces in the landscape.

References

Bix, C. and The Editors of Sunset Books. Container Gardening. 1998. Menlo Park, CA: Sunset Publishing Corp. 112 p.

Iannotti, M. undated. Top 10 tips for great container gardens. Retrieved September 9, 2010, from http://gardening.about.com/od/gardendesign/tp/ContainerGarden.htm.

Weldon Owen Pty. Ltd. 2003. The Essential Gardening Encyclopedia. San Francisco, CA: Fog City Press. pp. 210-277.

Wikipedia. 2010. Container garden. Retrieved September 9, 2010, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Container_garden.

Yes, plant fruit trees, coconut, and other perennial crops with haste. For those who work in the office day after day, such can be incorporated into the retirement plan. Such a farm can be a comfortable retreat after years of going back and forth to the office. As admitted by those traditional mono-crop corn farmers, it can raise the market value of a farm and so it can become a sound investment.

If you are one of those who call themselves poor farmers and yet own and live in a farm that remains weedy and barely productive, make a turn-around. If that farm has a rugged terrain that is hardly suitable for annual crops, now should be the right time to plant fruit trees and other permanent crops. Not later, not tomorrow, not another year.

 Stop being intransigent, stop giving alibis, put an immediate end to the time-wasting. By all means continue growing corn, but improvise and be more productive. Stop practicing pure monocropping and diversify, adopt multiple cropping. Plant fruit trees, coconut, and/or other perennial crops. 

A farmer who rarely goes to the market or sari-sari store to buy vegetables and spices because these are always available around his bahay-kubo (small house made of indigenous materials) can easily make it. After all, why must a landed farmer who calls himself poor still spend scarce money to buy the vegetables and spices which he can otherwise easily grow in the backyard? If he can’t grow by himself these necessities, how will he manage to plant fruit trees and other permanent crops? Certainly, this is more physically demanding and further needs more time in taking care of the plants.

Note: This article is particularly intended for the benefit of those poor but landed farmers who continue to depend mainly on corn farming. However, it is quite impossible that these farmers will ever read this.  

This should therefore be a call – and a challenge too! – for those who are engaged in agricultural education and rural development initiatives. For these concerned individuals, one more piece of unsolicited advise: go to their places, be with them, live with them as an equal even if only shortly and occasionally. Teach and convince them by actually doing it by yourself. Mere talking and visuals will not do it, hard experience has taught them “to see is to believe”. At least it’s how I am starting to do it now. – Aug. 2014

You are always there on the farm anyway so what could be a better way to make the day productive? Supply of planting materials? Many others did it so there are always ways. You can also start with a few mother plants to serve as a seed bank or from where vegetative planting materials can be obtained. It will obviously cause a delay, but the delay will not matter anymore once the harvesting starts. 

The trees will hamper the planting of corn? But it’s now common in many farms to intercrop coconut and fruit trees with corn particularly during the juvenile growth stage of the permanent crops! The land is cogonal with a steep slope? My late grandfather himself fully planted 12 hectares of land with similar terrain in a remote place in Sarangani Province. He did it with his bare hands and so did many others! 

But perhaps the most understandable and acceptable reason I ever heard from such farmers is that they are unaware of any establishment or person who buys the harvest all year-round. And so when you try to convince them to plant fruit trees, there’s always that follow-up question, “Where will we sell our produce?” And also, “What is the buying price?” And, further, “Same questions next year, 5 years from now, and  many more years from now.” 

In contrast, there is no need to convince them to plant coconut. A farm plan which consists of plant coconut first and plants fruit trees next would therefore be easy to sell. They can still continue to plant corn. The clearing, soil preparation, and weeding operations attached to corn growing will allow the planting of coconut and favor subsequent growth. Even after the fruit trees have been planted but before full growth, corn can still be planted on the interrow strips. They can plant other annual crops including vegetables and legumes instead of corn, but this is one more separate matter that needs a thorough assessment and requires another convincing. 

Here’s one such farm plan with mathematical calculations showing how easy it is to plant fruit trees and coconut in the same area:

Assume a farm with an area of 5 hectares (50,000 sq m), coconut as main crop, and planting rate is one plant per day at 10 m x 10 m plant-to-plant spacing (horizontal distance) .  The planting distance for coconut can be shorter, but 10 x 10 or longer will leave a wide strip between adjacent coconut rows that offers a wide choice of perennial intercrops and still allow the growing of corn. 

There are 365 days in one year and therefore the same number of coconut seedlings will be planted in one year. At a spacing of 10 m x 10 m, the plant population for 5 hectares will be 500, meaning that it will likewise take 500 days to complete planting if survival is 100 percent. This is equivalent to only 1 year and 135 days or about 1 year and 4 1/2 months. 

It should not be the end. You can go further. Having started that one plant per day routine, it will likely become a habit. You can plant fruit trees as intercrop. 

Assume that you now start planting fruit trees at the center of four coconut trees. The planting of fruit trees here will transform the planting pattern from square into quincunx with fruit trees as filler crops. For a 1-hectare  farm having dimensions of 100 m x 100 m, there will be 81 filler hills. Just for convenience in this illustration, let us multiply this by 5 to obtain the estimated number of filler crops in 5 hectares. Therefore, for our 5-hectare farm, 405 trees will occupy the center of each 10m x 10m square. At the same rate of one plant per day, it will only take 405 days to plant the filler fruits. This is equivalent to 1 year and 40 days or 1 year, 1 month, and 10 days. 

Planting of the coconut maincrop and the filler fruits, therefore, can be completed in 905 days or about 2 years and 6 months. One plant per day will be too easy and still will give plenty of time for any farmer to attend to other matters and farm concerns including corn growing.  But is this plan plausible? 

Likely it cannot be done if the rate of planting is strictly restricted to 1 plant per day. It should be expected that there will be mortality. Planted fruit trees or any other crops also need care primarily weeding. The farmer has to attend to emergencies and the body is not entirely immune to all forms of ailment. For one who needs an alibi, many smarter justifications can be invented.

However, one who is totally decided can still make it in 2 years and 6 months or even lesser. Instead of one, he can make it two, or five, or 10, or even more plants in one day during the rainy season. He only needs to exercise initiative in finding the planting materials. 

As to fruit trees that will adapt to the prevailing soil and climatic conditions, there is a wide choice. Notables are durian, jackfruit, avocado, and soursop (guyabano) which are now considered high-value crops. Additionally, these fruit trees can be propagated by seeds and have relatively short maturity. Other perennial crops such as banana (including saba or cardaba), coffee, cacao, calamansi, and guava may still be interplanted between coconuts or between filler fruit trees.

No, you don’t really have to do it all at once. You can do it one at a time, it’s a matter of choice. Make it fast, or make it slow. Plant coconut, then plant fruit trees. But do not forget those “bahay kubo kahit munti” vegetables, herbs, and spices for the table… and potentially also for precious cash.

Update Apr. 24, 2019:  I did it! Yes, I convinced everyone I was acquainted with in this community of farmers to do it in haste. They fully supported the plan and promised to plant fruit trees and coconut soonest!

But only in my face, only in braggatry. Funny, there’s plenty of help harvesting the vegetables I toiled hard myself to grow. Funnier still, there’s plenty of reason not to become an idol. The planting and replanting had to continue, the previously planted not being agile in avoiding man-made injury.

The peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.), also called groundnut, is a popular annual crop. It is listed as one among the many leguminous seed crops and also oilseed crops. Statistics provided by FAOSTAT (2019) of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations revealed that in 2017 the top 3 producers of groundnuts with shell in the world were China (17092000 tons), India (9179000 tons), and the United States of America (3281110 tons).

Botanically the plant is a legume under the family Fabaceae or Leguminosae rather than a nut. Just like other members of the family, it produces fruits. Its fruit, often called “nut”, is technically a pod (also “legume”). It is connected to the stem with an elongated thread-like pedicel called a peg. This leguminous plant is unique for having fruits that develop underground.

The main economic part of the plant because of its multiple uses is the seed (usually from 1 to 4) which is encased in a pair of hard shells. The pod or nut is also cooked either fresh or dry and cracked to extract the seeds for a snack. In addition, the plant has been used as a source of forage. Moreover, the plant finds more use as an intercrop or as a restorer of soil fertility mainly because as a legume it fixes atmospheric nitrogen through a symbiotic relationship with Rhizobium bacteria. The fixed nitrogen is subsequently converted into ionic forms which the peanut itself and other plants can absorb.

The seed of the plant is rich in protein and oil. Highlighting its nutritive value, Hill (1972) wrote that 1 pound of seeds yields 2700 calories but 1 pound of beef contains 900 cal. only. 

Why I Grew Peanut

I decided to grow the crop –and the two varieties- for many reasons. The following advantages were considered:

          1. I thought that it was a good substitute for corn as a cash crop. It is easy to grow and the corn farmers in the community where it was to be grown are familiar with its culture. It has a shorter maturity period of about 90-95 days compared to corn’s 110-115 days.

While drying is a must in corn, peanuts can be harvested even during rainy days and the sacked fresh pods can be delivered wet to the buyer. Although the established crop will prevent the spraying of herbicides, weeding can be done anyway by hand-pulling or with the use of handheld tools.

          2. This legume is short-statured. Being so, the crop will not hamper the farm plan of planting coconut and fruit trees continuously. The same will allow an extended view to farther distances at the farm and the perennial crops already planted will remain visible.

          3. It being a eudicot with a primary root will hold the soil in place and minimize erosion.

          4. The capability of legumes to restore or supplement nitrogen will be beneficial in terms of lower fertilizer input.

          5. The peanut crop should be a good choice in making use of the portion of the land that had been cleared instead of allowing the regrowth of weeds and slashing again. The plants can help suppress weed growth.

          6. The need for farm workers until the crop matures is minimal. This is because it has a relatively short maturity and as traditionally practiced, no pesticides and fertilizers are applied.

          7. The growing of the crop can be started with a minimal amount of seeds. Although the cost of seeds needed per unit area of land is higher compared to corn, this was remedied by procuring only starter amounts (30 kg “Native White” and 10 kg “Red”). The plan included the sourcing of seeds for the next cropping from the harvested seeds.

           8. The Native White and the Red varieties were the only ones available at the time of the search for planting materials. Both were procured for on-farm comparison.

Lessons Learned in Relation to Varietal Selection

In a nutshell, peanuts should remain a potential choice in crop selection. However, some issues need to be resolved.

For one, crop selection should also include varietal, or cultivar, selection. This rule applies as well to other crops.

I found out that knowing the intended end use of the product –and buyers’ preferred product- is essential in choosing the variety to be grown. Indeed, if the end-use is cooked (boiled) fresh pods, the better choice is the Imelda variety. It has bigger pods than the Native White and the Red varieties. But it’s not just the size. Peddlers I interviewed prefer this variety because compared to the latter two, the boiled pods do not easily spoil. Accordingly, leftovers still remain marketable 2 or 3 days after boiling.

The Red variety can also be sold as freshly harvested pods but buying capacity (in General Santos City) is limited to a few sacks. It’s rather different with the Native White. There’s no market for freshly harvested pods except only when the supply of Imelda is scant.

There’s an unlimited market for dry seeds of the three peanut varieties. However, the price of Imelda is lower per unit weight. This is not to say though that for dry seeds Imelda is of inferior quality. Seed yield and net income should also consider such parameters as pod yield per unit area of land and shelling recovery using a mechanical sheller.

LITERATURE CITED

FAOSTAT. 2019. Production: Countries by Commodity.  Retrieved Feb. 26, 2019, from                      http://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#rankings/countries_by_commodity.

HILL AF. 1972. Economic Botany: A Textbook of Useful Plants and Plant Products. 2nd ed. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill Pub. Co. Ltd. 560 p. 

On a separate page, I wrote about increased corn farming activities in our remote, mountainous part of Sarangani using no-till or zero tillage farming techniques. Not only has the area planted to corn (maize) expanded, much of those parts of farms which have not been cultivated before or otherwise considered as hardly suitable for annual crops have, since the past few months, been converted into beautiful green landscapes of corn vegetation.

I know how hard and laborious it is to produce corn in remote places with mountainous terrain and where the only mode of transport is by foot and animal “power”. And so it was somewhat surprising to find recently that there has been a surge in corn farming activities applying no-till farming techniques, at least in this community of marginal farmers.

Since childhood and until my teens, I helped with farming and house chores including harvesting, drying, sorting and manual shelling of corn ears, hauling of harvest by carabao-drawn sled, harvesting and cooking of young ears, and cooking of corn grains which was then our staple food.

As an adolescent I was assigned a cogonal portion in our farm (not the present one) which I cleared by slash-and-burn, tilled with the help of a carabao, and subsequently planted to an indigenous variety of corn. It was hard work, but then rr or glyphosate-resistant corn was not yet conceived.

Corn farming is a traditional source of subsistence and livelihood for many poor farmers worldwide, particularly in rainfed rural areas. But in highly industrialized countries and for those with sufficient capital, corn is a cash crop with versatile uses such as food, animal feed, and industrial products.

As of 2012 according to FAOSTAT, the statistics division of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations,  the United States is the top producer of corn in the world with aggregate production of about 273.8 million metric tons of corn grains (maize) and 4.1 million metric tons of green corn. In contrast, ranked 15th in the world is the Philippines with the production of about 7.4 million metric tons of corn grains which is a mere 2.7% of the U.S. production.

Corn production is ancient and the cultural practices appropriate in any community are handed down to the next generations. Transfer of technology is by actual participation since the children of farmers customarily provide the farm labor.

Innovations and Practices in Corn Farming Practices

With the advent of glyphosate-resistant corn, rural farming communities are quick to improvise and apply no-till farming techniques. The technology involves the use of such varieties, slash-and-burn or kaingin, chemical weed control, and post-planting application of granular fertilizers. Undoubtedly, unless its disadvantage is convincingly proved, these farmers will continue to adopt and seek to improve this technology. 

Farmers are also quick to adopt to the popularity and advantage of using glyphosate-resistant varieties. In just a short period of time there came that open-pollinated yellow corn which is tolerant to glyphosate herbicide. They call it “sige-sige”, a local name which connotes continuity, or perpetuality, or “always”. A news report described it as a variety that farmers themselves bred.

Indeed, the growing of sige-sige has proliferated so much to the point that in our farming community only a few plant company-bred hybrid corn. But still, it is apparent that corn farming activities increased in which sige-sige is the one that is predominantly grown. 

No, it is not because this variety is a high yielder. It is rather because seeds are readily available at minimal cost, or even free. Indeed, there can be a continuous free source of planting materials once able to start planting it. Being open-pollinated, all it takes is to apply mass selection.

Whether sige-sige or any glyphosate-resistant variety, however, they still apply the same techniques in hill farming. How these farmers actually practice no-till corn farming using these varieties in sloping lands under rainfed conditions is dealt with in separate pages on clearing and land preparation, planting, herbicide application, and fertilizer application. The links are provided below.

Disclaimer: These series of articles are only for information purposes on farmers’ actual practices. Herein author hereby expressly declares that he does not, and neither does this website, endorse any product or variety for farmers’ or anyone’s adoption or seek to promote negative opinion against any. He holds that only by knowing what lies therein beyond the mountains can anyone make an informed decision. He subscribes to the rule that everyone ought to exercise their freedom of choice.

Plant nutrition is a study that deals with plants’ need for certain chemical elements including their specific and interactive effects on all aspects of plant growth and development, their availability, absorption, transport, and utilization. These chemical elements are referred to as plant nutrients. 

Those nutrients which have been proved absolutely needed by plants are commonly called essential elements. They include carbon (C), oxygen (O), and hydrogen (H) which are derived from atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) and from water (H2O), as well as the mineral nutrients which are mainly absorbed from the soil in ionic forms through the roots.

Plant Nutrition vs. Animal Nutrition

Plant nutrition can be differentiated from animal nutrition based on distinctive traits that plants are autotrophic while animals are heterotrophic. This means that plants produce their own food but animals do not. In both organisms, it is this food that serves as a source of energy (chemical energy) that is required in life processes.

Plants by themselves obtain their own supply of energy from the sun and absorb nutrients from the air and soil. Ultimately they convert these nutrients into organic compounds which serve as storage of chemical energy for later use and as structural components of the plant body. They are therefore self-sustaining and aptly called “autotrophic”.

In contrast, animals are heterotrophic, that is, they are not capable of utilizing directly the radiant energy from the sun. They must obtain their supply from plants in the form of chemical energy either directly or indirectly. They also need to harvest most nutrient elements that their body needs from those absorbed by plants from the soil and incorporated them into the organic compounds which form the latter’s body.

Animals do this harvesting of chemical energy and most nutrient elements by eating plants or by eating those animals which eat plants or the animals which eat plant-eating animals.

Further here are some definitions/meaning of nutrition:

Maynard et al. (1980), in their book Animal Nutrition, explained: “Nutrition involves various chemical reactions and physiological processes which transform foods into body tissues and activities. It involves the ingestion, digestion, and absorption of the various nutrients, their transport to all body cells, and the removal of unusable elements and waste products of metabolism.”

Pertaining to human nutrition, Wardlaw et al. (2004) provided the following definition from the Council on Food and Nutrition of the American Medical Association: Nutrition is “the science of food, the nutrients and the substances therein, their action, interaction, and balance in relation to health and disease, and the process by which the organism ingests, digests, absorbs, transports, utilizes, and excretes food substances.” Therefore, the needed chemical elements enter the animal body in the form of whole food and water. But plants absorb these elements in compound form (e.g. CO₂ and H₂O) and also in ionic forms (e.g. NH₄⁺, NO₃^–, H₂PO₄^–, K⁺).

Notes on the General Concept and History of Plant Nutrition

It took plenty of years for the modern concept of plant nutrition to evolve. First, it was necessary to disprove the Humus Theory of plant nutrition, that is, that plants are soil eaters. Specifically, it was believed then that plants feed upon the organic matter of the soil, or humus, their major source of nutrition. Rather, it was demonstrated by numerous researchers that it is some chemical elements in the air and water and the minerals in the soil that sustain plant life.

Plants likewise absorb mineral elements mainly from the soil which become components of the plant body. These chemical compounds and minerals are in turn harvested by animals either directly as plants or plant parts are utilized as food, or indirectly from animals or animal-based food.

In his classic pot experiment starting with a stem of the willow tree, Johann Baptista Van Helmont (1577-1644) concluded that it was water, not soil, that was responsible for the increase in plant size. He was correct as to soil, but only partially as to water. John Woodward (1665-1728) himself demonstrated that the growth of plants was more enhanced when they were grown in muddy water than in rain water. Although it was not apparent then, it is because the soil contains some nourishment which is essential to plant growth.

In 1804, Nicolas Thiodore de Saussure (1767-1845) confirmed that plants need the carbon dioxide in the air as well as water that is mainly absorbed through their roots. He concluded that the chemical composition of the plant body consists mainly of carbon dioxide that is fixed from the atmosphere with a portion coming from the soil solution.

He argued that the minerals in the ash of plants, though in small amounts, are essential to plant growth and development. He classified essential elements into two types: one is effective in large amounts (now called major elements or macronutrients) while the other is needed in trace amounts (now called trace elements or micronutrients).

According to Devlin (1975), de Saussure should be credited for discovering the essentiality of minerals in the soil to plant growth. Likewise, Hart (2005) declared that he (de Saussure) founded the modern theory of plant nutrition, along with Jan Ingenhousz and Jean Senebier. However, it was not until confirmed by Justus von Liebeg that the mineral nutrient theory of plant nutrition became popular.

Justus von Liebeg (1803-1873) likewise found that plants are composed of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, as well as nitrogen, sulfur, phosphorus, and other mineral matter. The minerals are obtained by plants from the soil and these can be detected in their ashes. As a result of a study that involved the application of manures, he concluded that the soil must be replenished by adding the minerals that agricultural crops have withdrawn (Shenstone 1901).

In destroying the humus theory, Liebeg advanced the following argument (in the wording of Shenstone (1901): “since it is universally admitted that humus is only produced by the decay of plants, no primitive humus can have existed for the first plants, for plants must have preceded the humus.”

The hydroponics culture introduced by Woodwardmade it possible later to shed more enlightenment on plant nutrition by growing plants in nutrient solutions with varying compositions. The deliberate exclusion of certain chemical elements in the growth medium particularly showed if indeed they are essentially required in plant nutrition based on the criteria of essentiality.

At least 16 essential plant nutrients or essential elements have now been identified according to approved criteria. Of these, carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen combined comprise the main bulk of the plant body. The carbohydrates alone comprise about 75 percent of the dry matter content of all plants (Maynard et al. 1980).

A carbohydrate molecule is generally composed of C, H, and O in the ratio of 1:2:1 (ex: C₆H₁₂O₆); therefore, the respective proportions of the elements in the molecule taking into consideration their atomic weights are: C = 40.0%, H = 6.7%, and O = 53.3%. Both C and O are sourced from atmospheric CO2 while H is derived from water or H2O via photosynthesis.

(Click here to read the process of photosynthesis)

REFERENCES

1. DEVLIN R. 1975. Plant Physiology. 3rd ed. New York, NY: D. Van Nostrand Co. 600 p.
2. HART H. 2005. Brief papers: Nicolas Théodore de Saussure. Retrieved Feb. 10,2012 from http://www.plantphysiol.org/content/5/3/424.full.pdf. 
3. MAYNARD LA, LOOSLI JK, HINTZ HF, WARNER RG. 1980. Animal Nutrition. 7th ed. New york, NY: McGraw-Hill Book Company. 602 p.<br><br>
4. SHENSTONE WA. 1901. Justus Von Liebeg: his life and work. In: Roscoe HE, editor. 1901. The Century Science Series. Retrieved Nov. 17, 2012 from http://ia600506.us.archive.org/3/items/justusvonliebigh00shenrich/justusvonliebigh00shenrich.pdf.
5. WARDLAW GM, HAMPL JS, DiSILVESTRO RA. 2004. Perspectives in Nutrition. 6th ed. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. p. 3-6.

Starting a farm that is plant-based sounds easy, but it is not and should not be so presumed. Whether there is already existing farmland or one still needs to be found, farming should be well planned. A general plan, ideally including a feasibility study, has to be prepared first taking into consideration all factors that may affect the profitability or sustainability of the undertaking.

Otherwise, huge losses may be incurred. Unfortunately, a farm cannot just be replaced or otherwise modified because a mistake was committed in its selection. The same is true for crops, especially perennial crops when already established.

With the high-density planting of fruit trees, the farmer must condition his ailing heart for that eventuality when plant population has to be reduced. This operation, called thinning, involves the cutting of excess trees in order to widen the distances between the remaining trees.

The cutting of trees may also become a reasonable resort when it is finally realized that the market for the product has become lame. Likewise, the same may become necessary when it is decided that the landscape design has to be changed.

There are three important premises that will affect planning preparatory to actually starting a farm:

First, there is no preexisting or preselected farm and no crop has been selected for growing but you want to buy a farm and engage in farming. Second, the farm is already available. Third, the crop to be grown has been decided but a suitable farm has yet to be found. All these will have to consider either crop selection or site selection or both.

I would consider various factors before actually starting a farm.

First, know what you want. Whether or not there is preexisting farmland, the purpose of going into farming must be identified. What exactly are your ultimate aims in developing a farm? For little cash and subsistence, as a showcase of your farming skills and ingenuity, as a form of self-employment with a meager profit, or as a business venture? As a place to spend a vacation? As a permanent residence or refuge from the polluted and chaotic city life? Or as a component of a grander plan such as engaging in fruit processing or in agri-tourism inspired hotel and restaurant business?

Whatsoever, it will affect the choice of location and the site and size of the farm as well as the choice of crops and the planting layout. For example, an agri-tourism business establishment should be relatively large and located preferably where it is visible and easily accessible to the public. A natural attraction and a pond for fish culture and aquatic plants will be a huge bonus. Here the likely crop candidates are the shade trees, fruit trees, and ornamental plants. Unique landscape architecture also needs to be designed.

Knowing what you want before actually starting a farm will save the trouble of feeling frustrated because of errors in either crop or site selection. Next in line should be a thorough evaluation of the various factors necessary in order to come up with an informed decision as to the choice of crop or crops and the farm location and specific site.

A wildling is a seedling that grows naturally in the wild. Plentiful can be found on forest floors. However, the term is now used broadly to include those which grow from seeds that fall under the canopies of adult trees, shrubs, and palms which are intentionally cultivated.

These naturally growing seedlings can be the best choice as planting materials if available, easily accessible, and affordable. Where there is an immediate need for potted seedlings grown in the nursery but supply is scant or uncertain, access to sources becomes valuable.

Personal experience by the author also revealed that with Robusta coffee (Coffea robusta L.) having stems approximately as thick as a common pencil or over, flowering may be advanced, that is, within a year. In contrast, it may take three years for young nursery-grown seedlings to mature. 

In addition, these planting materials may be the only reasonable resort where the cost of nursery-grown seedlings is beyond the means of a farmer. Why indeed should a poor farmer be excepted from growing coffee in his farm when there are seedlings growing in abundance in nearby farms which can be harvested at will at little or no cost?

Wildlings can be potted into polyethylene bags immediately upon arrival. With due care, it will only take a few days for the seedlings to form new roots and sprouts. These can also be directly planted on the field especially if the source is nearby. To ensure high survival, it is preferable to transplant during the rainy season particularly on a day with low light and the soil is wet. 

The massive use of these planting materials as bareroot for direct planting is best in farms that are frequented by rain and where the ambient temperature is not so high. This is so because these planting materials are prone to water stress and heat injury.

Whether potted and temporarily raised in a nursery or directly planted on the field, the seedlings can be transformed later into a superior variety by grafting.

Where Wildlings Come From

These plants arise from mature fruits (i.e. coffee berries) or seeds (as in pine trees) that fell on the ground or from depulped fruits (i.e. coffee beans) excreted by animals.

Growth, in fact, is exceptionally thick in some places that the vegetation becomes a groundcover. I saw this in some farms at Basag, Monkayo, T’boli, South Cotabato, Philippines where coffee trees were old and tall.

I also discovered a similar view around a dead stump of a big molave or tugas tree (Vitex parviflora) at Tinoto, Maasim, Sarangani. The view was so spectacular that it remained in my mind. Each plant was old and dwarf and potentially a good specimen for small bonsai (click here to read an article about molave bonsai).

Plant Collection

Back in November 2000, we collected Robusta coffee wildlings on a farm at Basag. The plants were uprooted by hand, sometimes necessitating the use of a digging bar (bara) to loosen the soil. The roots were pruned and the leaves were trimmed.

A day after, the uprooted plants were transported to the Mindanao State University-Fatima Campus, General Santos City (MSU-GSC), and immediately potted individually into plastic bags. The survival rate was almost 100%. Outplanted in the following June-August, many of the plants started flowering after only 5-6 months. The wildlings must be old. Although they were seasonally slashed during weeding, they have resumed growth.

Further, there are plenty of Arabica coffee trees (Coffea canephora L.) growing in Mount Matutum. The seedlings that grow naturally under the canopies can be used as planting materials in highly elevated farms where the variety suits well. I happened to be there at Kinilis last year at the foot of the volcano close to Polo, Polomolok, South Cotabato and Dole Philippines. The seedlings were easy to uproot as the soil was moist and soft and I left with a sackful of the planting materials.

We also collected wildlings of Robusta coffee at Datal Tampal, Malungon, Sarangani Province in August 2017. The planting materials were used in establishing a coconut project intercropped with coffee and chili or hot pepper (click here to read second page).

Vegetative propagation or asexual propagation is the method of reproducing plants with the use of organs other than the seed and spore. In contrast to sexual propagation, the union of the male and female sexual gametes (fertilization) is not a requisite to the production of new plants. Hence the word “asexual”, which means “without sex” or “not sexual”.

The word ‘vegetative’ refers to plant organs with the exception of the reproductive parts. In conventional propagation without the employment of tissue culture techniques, asexual propagation is accomplished with the use of roots, stems, and leaves. 

They consist of the body or somatic cells which are formed through mitosis, the type of cell division that produces daughter cells with identical chromosomes as the parent cell. Consequently, the new plants develop directly from any of these parts without undergoing fertilization or union of male and female gametes. Other naturally formed plant organs which are considered vegetatively produced are likewise used.

Vegetative propagation allows the production of clones or plants which are considered “duplicates” of the parent plants genotypically, and desirably also phenotypically. It is also convenient where a plant does not produce seeds, the seeds are sterile, or whenever seeds are not available. Through marcotting, budding, and grafting, new plants can be produced which are readily mature or with shortened maturity.

Natural vs. Artificial Methods of Vegetative Propagation

There are two methods of propagating plants vegetatively: natural and artificial. The natural method of vegetative propagation utilizes plant organs other than the seed and spore which, even without the involvement of man, serve as plants’ means of perpetuating their species. These plant organs include: bulbs and bulblets, cloves, corms and cormels, tubers and tubercles, tuberous roots, rhizomes, runners, stolons, slips, suckers, crown, and plantlets.

These plant organs can be used deliberately as they are, without significant changes, in plant propagation as planting materials or propagules. To use them, they are separated from the parent plant in which case the propagation method is also called division or separation.

In contrast, the artificial method of vegetative propagation involves the drastic manipulation of plant parts. Without man’s active participation, they would not give rise naturally to new plants. This method includes the use of root, stem, and leaf cuttings, layering (including marcotting), and the application of special techniques such as budding and grafting mainly to produce desirable clones with seed-grown rootstocks.

The use of vegetative parts in plant propagation has its basis in the concept of totipotency which means that cells are capable of regeneration and developing into entire plants.

Natural Vegetative Propagules and Crop Examples

Bulb and bulblet – onion (Allium cepa) and other members of the Lily family, tulip (Tulipa spp.)

Clove – garlic (Allium sativum)

Corm and cormel – Canna spp., gabi or taro (Colocasia esculentum), elephant’s ear (Alocasia macorrhiza), gladiolus (Gladiolus sp.), tannia (Xanthosoma sagitifolium)

Plantlet or keiki – Anthurium spp., Phalaenopsis orchid, spider plant (Chlorophytum capense)

Rhizome – bamboo, begonia (Begonia spp.), calla lily (Zantedeschia sp), ginger (Zingiber officinale), turmeric (Curcuma longa)

Runner – spider plant (Chlorophytum capense), strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa)

Slip – pineapple (Ananas comosus) and other members of the Bromyliad family

Sucker – abaca (Musa textile), banana (Musa spp.), pineapple and other bromyliads

Stolon – bermuda grass (Cynodon dactylon), mint (Mentha spp.), Stachys spp., strawberry geranium (Saxifraga stolonifera), zoysia grass (Zoysia spp.)

Tuber and Tubercle – Potato (Solanum tuberosum), Caladium spp., Calathea spp., Helianthus spp., yams (Dioscorea spp.)

Tuberous root – arrowroot (Maranta arundinacea), cassava (Manihot esculenta), sweet potato (Ipomea batatas), yam bean (Pacchirhizus erosus).

(Click here to read how the Starchy Root Crops, Tuber Crops, and Corm Crops are distinguished)

REFERENCES

HARTMANN HT, KESTER DE. 1975. Plant Propagation: Principles and Practices. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall Inc. p. 469-474.

KAWAKAMI K. 1978. Physiology of yield of underground storage organs. In: Gupta US, ed. Crop Physiology. New Delhi, India: Oxford & IBH Pub. Co. p. 269-309.