At Manolou Integrated and Diversified Farm, 700 dragon fruit trees are among the farms highly priced commodity fruit. In 2018, farm owner Ian Lou M. Daamo harvested 1,800 kilos and sold at a wholesale price of 70.00 pesos per kilo. This exotic fruit, according to him, generally bears fruit until October. As of August, he already harvested 3,200 kilos.
Poblacion, EL SALVADOR CITY---The Learning Site (LS) partners of the Agricultural Training Institute-Regional Training Center X (ATI-RTC X) are growing exponentially as it pursues to further promote modern farming, especially among the youth and make agriculture a way of life consistent with the program thrust of the Institute.
Two new Learning Site (LS) partners of the center are as follows:
1. Manolou Integrated-Diversified Farm by Ian Lou M. Daamo of Mimbunga in Gingoog City, Misamis Oriental
2. Dumaluan’s Hidden Paradise Integrated-Diversified Farm by Maria Cristina L. Dumaluan of Lunotan in Gingoog City, Misamis Oriental
As the lead agency in agricultural and fisheries extension, the ATI taps rural farms to serve as learning sites for knowledge sharing opportunities for farmers and would-be farmers. As its new farm partners, the two farms were considered for practicing applicable agricultural technologies, employing doable farming strategies and operating successfully which are worthy of emulation.
The Manolou Integrated-Diversified Farm started as a piggery by the Daamo family in Gingoog City. Farm manager and owner Ian Lou is planning to install biogas digester to fuel his generator that will eventually produce electricity to light the farm. His creativeness is evident in the way he arranges his crops and plants since agri-enthusiast frequents his farm to take pictures. Free-range chicken actively scratches the ground under the calamansi trees and their manure serves as fertilizer. Since water from LGU is expensive and no natural source of water is near his farm, he constructed a rain harvesting structure, and it is teeming with fish. Manolou Integrated-Diversified Farm is also a DOT-accredited farm tourism site.
Meanwhile, Dumaluan’s Hidden Paradise Integrated-Diversified Farm is accessible along the highway of Claveria-Gingoog road. The farm is owned and managed by Maria Cristina L. Dumaluan, wife of a Barangay Kagawad of Lunotan. She was the Regional Winner of the 2019 Gawad Saka Corn Category in Region 10.
Aside from being a Magsasaka Siyentista, she is also a graduate of several trainings organized by the ATI-RTC X and a member of the Lunotan group of farmers. Her farm was recommended by the City Agriculturist of Gingoog City for its unique agricultural landscape and as a diversified farm with complete basic farm facilities.
To date, ATI Northern Mindanao has certified 92 learning sites in the region to serve as demonstration areas for the institute’s agricultural training programs. (with reports by Jisa T. Dulay, DMO-I)