Destination Isabela! Giant Bamboo Propagules For Cagayan Valley Region

My farm nursery in Kidapawan City is now propagating Giant Bamboo planting materials in polybags using Coco Peat to be shipped to a group of friends in Isabela Province leading the advocacy to plant bamboo along the banks of the often-overflowing Cagayan River.

The use of Coco Peat instead of soil is in compliance with a quarantine protocol set by the Bureau of Plant industry prohibiting the transport of bagged seedlings from Mindanao because of the presence of the Fusarium Wilt, a devastating soil-borne banana disease.

The group, Bamboo Valley Corporation led by Victor Calderon and Edgar Pagulayan, has established a nursery in Cabagan, Isabela which targets to produce planting materials of the Giant Bamboo (sn: Dendrocalamus giganteus) to cover an area equivalent to 5,000 hectares.

It was I who actually presented the idea of promoting Bamboo farming in the Cagayan Valley Area to fulfill my commitment to the farmers of the region when I was Agriculture Secretary to help address the perennial flooding of the valley because of the overflowing of the country’s longest river.

The Bamboo Valley Corporation nursery was established in Cabagan early this year with the help of veteran nursery management expert Romie Sotito of Cotabato.

Both Victor and Edgar are actually followers of my advocacies in Mindanao, especially the propagation of the Giant Bamboo both for the prevention of soil erosion and income and jobs generation.

The advocacy is also supported by the acknowledged “Mother” of the Bamboo Advocacy in the Philippines, Myna Decipulo of Malaybalay, Bukidnon.

Myrna initially shipped carefully packed propagules by air cargo.

The long travel, however, resulted in high mortality so we came up with the option of propagating the planting materials in Mindanao first first before shipping them to Luzon.

Due to the prohibition on the shipment of seedling bags using Mindanao soil, the Coco Peat, a by-product in the processing of Coconut Coir, was used instead.

The first batch of 20,000 propagated seedlings will be shipped by the end of June this year to be planted in areas near the banks of the Cagayan River in time for the rainy season.

Calderon said the Bamboo Valley Corp. aims to establish a Bamboo Processing Facility similar to the Bukidnon Giant Bamboo Resource Corp. plant in Malaybalay.

He said the seedlings will be sold to private individuals and local government units, especially those located along the banks of the mighty but often overflowing Cagayan River.

A buy-back scheme will be worked out where CVBC will assure the Cagayan Bamboo farmers and LGUs of a ready market for their produce.

#NationwideBambooAdvocacy!

#StopMeetingsStartPlanting!