Davao City: Should they adopt SALT?

“We are looking what we have” says Leo Avila, the newly appointed OIC of Davao City Agriculture Office. Such statement is in response to need of helping the farmers Paquibato District, Davao City. Recently, Mayor Inday Sarah Duterte, have visited the said area due to malaria outbreak. She saw the need to help the farmers and uplift their lives.

So what is the problem?

The problem in slope land farming is soil degradation due to poor soil conservation measures and rapid soil erosion. Most farmers have neglected soil conservation and therefore farm productivity is reduced resulting to poverty (cylic pattern of poverty). It should be reduced if not completely stopped.

What can we help to the said problem? And what can we offer?

I believe we have the human resource, the expertise, and available technology for a sustainable farming in slope land areas. We can help.

The farmers should be trained how to farm better using “Sloping Agricultural Land Technology” or otherwise known as SALT. SALT was developed at Mindanao Baptist Rural Life Center by Rev. Harold Watson, Dr. Warlito Laquihon, and Rev. Rodrigo Calixtro. According to the developers SALT is a “diversified farming system, a package technology on soil conservation and food production and a method of growing field and permanent crops together” that can “provides sufficient food, income for the farmer throughout the year.”

SALT is Simple, Adaptable, Low-cost, and Transferable(SALT) technology. In short SALT is SALT. Its objectives are to control soil erosion, conserve soil fertility, increase production, and restore environment.

I’ve been advocating SALT for almost 20 years now. I can’t help to share this since I am a resident of Davao City. Recently, I was invited by an NGO to share the technology in Maa, Davao. The Governor of Capiz region also has invited us to share the said technology sometime in 2007. I also have shared the same on Vegetables Industry Council in Southern Mindanao (VICSMin) conference here in Davao, as well as to farmers Mindanao-wide through a JBIC funded project here in Mindanao.

Why I am so passionate about it?
Because of the following reasons: 1) I have the desire to help poor slope land farmers, 2) I have the opportunity to observe its humble beginnings at Mindanao Baptist Rural Life Center, Kinuskusan, Bansalan, Davao del Sur. 3) I believe that it can help answer the problems in slope land areas. And 4) I can’t forget the experience of doing it with my dad in our sloping farm at Mt. Carmel (learning by doing).

The 10 simple steps of SALT are the following:
1. Make an A-Frame.
2. Locate the Contour lines.
3. Prepare the contour lines.
4. Plant Leguminous Trees and Shrubs.
5. Cultivate the strips alternately until the hedgerows developed.
6. Plant permanent crops once every third strips.
7. Plant early harvestable crops.
8. Trim down hedgerows regularly.
9. Practice crop rotation.
10. Maintain the green terraces.

So, you think Mayor Inday Sarah Duterte should look into this? I do hope so.

For further information please contact us @ (082) 271 4038 or 09208688862.

MIndanao Agriculture on TV

"Balik Kita sa Uma"(Back to the Farm) radio program is now TV.

The JKR Multimedia Productions & Services, a newly established multimedia company, is now working on how to bring the "Balik Kita sa Uma" radio program series on TV. There were efforts now on to bring in the technologies on TV. Initially it will be shown in XNTV Channel 17 of Bansalan Cable TV.

The "Balik Kita sa Uma" radiop program was sponsored by Mindanao Baptist Rural Life Center before. It was originally hosted by Dr. Warlito A. Laquihon, known by listeners as "Warling", Letecia Espero (Letty), Merlie Pagbilao, and later on by Zorayda Guya. According to Janoz Laquihon, the project manager, "We are looking for sponsors who can help us with the project."


"We wish to help farmers through multimedia. With the coming of the internet and local cable TV providers on countryside, we will be able to giveand share valuable information to all farmers... It is our prayer that every farmer will have an abundant life as promised in John 10:10" says Janoz.

If you believe in such advocacy and willing to support the project, contact JKR Multimedia Productions and Services through jkrmmp@yahoo.com.ph or contact 09208688862.

Recent Calamity in Mindanao

“NCotabato officials declare state of calamity due to flood damage…caused millions worth of damage to crops and infrastructure.” This was the headline on the ABS-CBN News online under the regional dated April 29, 2008. Same headline seen in a Local Newspapers like Sunstar davao today (May 1, 2008).

You will read more of these headlines and devastating damages soon if we continue to cut trees, continues land conversion, and continue to ignore the call to protect our soil.

The call to protect soil erosion decades ago are still the call for today. When I was 6 years old, I remember Rev. Harold Watson and Dr. Warlito Laquihon advocating sustainable agriculture in uplands and urging all to restore the degraded soil by using Sloping Agricultural Land Technology. In 2004, I myself was calling to help prevent soil erosion during the Vegetable Congress sponsored by VICSMin in Davao City. Today, I believe the same call I pose to all Filipinos.

Pardon my words but what recently happened in Cotabato is an effect of ill planning in sustainable land use and continued ignorance in soil conservation and environmental protection. I see hills with more than 40 degrees slope used without any soil erosion control for vegetables, corn and even sugarcane farming. Likewise, uplands in Cotabato, Davao, and Bukidnon, are vastly converted to plantation crops like banana, sugarcane, and pineapple (later will include jathropa) without any soil erosion measures but rather large canals for irrigation and drainage. As a result, we are experiencing flash floods.

It seems we have not learned at all from the tragedy of Leyte to the damages in Cotabato lately. Does our government have interventions or political will to protect damages in uplands and low land areas? Should the agencies like DENR and DA look into this? Should we wait for more damages? What can you do?

I wish to call the attention of all government officials, all agencies concerned, academe, NGOs, civic sector, farmers, friends and you. Let’s not wait for another tragedy and more damages to come, act now.

I wish I could help more by sharing my knowledge in agriculture, for today, I just wrote this article to start the journey of protecting our life. If you think you can make a difference, let join hands and think of a better way. Share this to a friend.

YOU’RE LOSING YOUR SOIL!

Davao, Philippines - Sloping Agricultural Land Technology (SALT ) proved to effectively reduced soil erosion over other systems. This was revealed through the conduct of a 8-year study (1997-2004) on different soil conservation measures at Mindanao Baptist Rural Life Center (MBRLC) in Kinuskusan, Bansalan, Davao del Sur, Philippines.

Results revealed that SALT and vetiver grass had effectively reduced the soil loss of about half ton/ha/yr and 1.5 tons/ha/yr, respectively. On comparison, there is a remarkable soil loss in rockwall (32.40 tons/ha/year) when compared to other treatments. Terrace and natural barrier had lesser erosion rates of 5.13 and 6.22 tons/ha/year, respectively.

A cement catchment were established at the lowest portion of the hillside. Eroded soil that were trapped in the cement catchment were collected and weighed after every significant rain.

The result suggests’ that the farmers can effectively use SALT and vetiver grass to prevent losing the precious top soil. The disadvantages seen using vetiver grass are: it consumes higher space requirement thus lesser area for productive crops and since its a grass, it competes with corn on nutrient uptake.

According to Warlito A. Laquihon and Harold Ray Watson, former Associate Director & Director of MBRLC respectively, "The price of soil loss is poverty, but we have seen land restored to a reasonable level of productivity by using SALT”


Let’s not wait and get the price of poverty. Instead, adopt SALT now and get the price of sustainable productivity. - jxysl