Mountain Province soil ‘very sick’ due to chemicals

By Dexter A. See

BONTOC, Mt. Province — Experts from the Department of Agriculture said soil in this province has become “very sick” and the condition may even get worse if excessive use by farmers of chemical farm inputs continue.

Speaking before a group of farmers during the 5th Cordillera Organic Agriculture Congress held here, Dr. Ireneo Ramat, head of the fertility division of the DA’s Bureau of Soil and Water Management, called on farmers to shift from synthetic to organic farm inputs if they want to save their soil.

It was gathered that vegetable farmers in the province resort to massive application of inorganic fertilizers and pesticides in an attempt to match the high production of lowland farmers.

“But this practice is actually killing your major source of livelihood, because you will soon lose your soil when it can no longer bring you enough income,” Ramat said.

Aside from Benguet and Ifugao, Mountain Province is also a major source of semi-temperate vegetables being sold to the different lowland and Metro Manila markets.

The towns of Bauko, Tadian, Sabangan, Sagada and Besao are major producers of vegetables, with thousands of residents engaged in vegetable farming.

Ramat offered what he called alternative organic agriculture to help farmers recover healthy soil conditions. He said the system is even friendlier to the environment and would reduce production costs.

In organic agriculture, farmers are taught soil fertility techniques like green manuring, a system of incorporating into the soil green plant materials. The plants are first allowed to reach flowering stage before being plowed into the soil for the next cropping.

Though considered by some farmers as a losing practice, green manure absorbs unbalanced nutrients and becomes compost to the soil. It also gives plants protection from harmful insects and the bad effects of continuous cropping, Ramat explained.

This is very effective in legume farming, he added.

Ramat also cited the use of chicken manure as a rich substitute for chemical urea in vegetables. He encouraged farmers to visit poultry farms and fill their trucks with sacks of manure after unloading their produce in lowland markets.

To ensure that farmers shift from the traditional way of raising crops, the Regional Development Council in the Cordillera has supported the advocacy on organic agriculture.