It’s been a week of no internet (hello, PLDT, are you there? LOL) in our house and because of that I was not able to post anything here. However, one positive thing that happened was I finished reading Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami. I wanna share to you some of my favourite lines in the book. I just forgot to note who said the specific line/s.

“Each person feels the pain in his own way, each has his own scars.”

“People are drawn deeper into tragedy not by their defects but their virtues.”

“We accept irony through a device called metaphor. And through that we grow and become

deeper human beings.”

“Love can rebuild the world they say, so everything’s possible when it comes to love.”

“And as long as there’s such a thing as time, everybody’s damaged in the end, changed into something else. It always happens, sooner or later…”

“…but even if that happens, you’ve got to have a place you can retrace your steps to…a place that’s worth coming back to.”

“Listen, every object’s influx. The earth, time, concepts, love, life, faith, justice, evil – they are all fluid and in transition. They don’t stay in one form or in one place forever. The whole universe is like some big FedEx box.”

“I’m scared. As I told you, I’m completely empty. Do you know what it means to be completely empty?”

“Taking crazy things seriously is – a serious waste of time.”

“Pointless thinking is worse than no thinking at all.”

“The longer people live, the more they learn to distinguish what’s important from what’s not.”

“Whether you’re talking with people, or things, or whatever, it’s always better to discuss things.”

“Chance is a scary thing, isn’t it?” Hoshino said. “It certainly is”, Nakata agreed.

“Let a bright light shine in and melt the coldness in your heart. That’s what being tough is all about.”

“Memories warm you up from the inside. But also tear you apart.”

“The choice is entirely up to you. Nobody’s going to force you to do one or the other. But once you’re in, it isn’t easy to turn back.”

“When you surf you learn not to fight the power of nature, even if it gets violent.”

“The world is a metaphor, Kafka Tamura.”

Young folks don’t often choose agriculture as their career path. Some would want but people around them will raise an eyebrow and ask “what job will you get after you graduate?”. Don’t worry, pal, I got you! I also had the same question when I took the course. After my graduation, I realize that opportunities for agriculture graduates are limitless. Besides we live in an agricultural country. I just wrote 10 career paths among the multitude of options.

1. Agriculturist (PhP 17,000 – 90,000/mo.)

After taking and passing the licensure exam for agriculturists, you can apply as agricultural technician or agriculturist in your town. Your task will involve agricultural activities in your area (e.g. monitoring of rice production).

2. Farmer (PhP 10,000 – 100,000+/mo.)

Being a farmer is one of the best and fulfilling jobs. You are working while feeding people. Depending on your strategy, you can earn to as much as six digits a month. One of the successful people I know quit his CEO position (with PhP 100K/mo. salary) and invest in farming and he said he is earning more farming than his previous job.

3. Farm Consultant (PhP 5,000 – 20,000 per consultancy)

If you do not have an initial capital for your farm or did not inherit a farm land from your parents, why not become a consultant of a farm? Some people have land and would need your farming skills to establish their farm. There are also companies that need your expertise to guide them on their agriventure.

4. Product Developer (PhP 21,000 – 45,000/month)

From the words itself you’ll know that this job will require you to develop a product. In this path, you will need to have skills on methodologies and strategies to create and/or improve a product according to cost and quality targets of the company.

5. Researcher (PhP 18,000 – 75,000/month)

Ever dreamed of becoming a scientist when you were a kid? I bet you can if you take agriculture as your course. Plants, animals, microorganism you choose what field you want to focus on. The objective is to apply scientific knowledge to discover and rediscover things.

6. Professor (PhP 19,000 – 95,000)

Teach. Share your knowledge. Basically, you are going to impart whatever you learned and will learn to your student. You become a mentor of our future aspiring agriculturists. Make sure to mold them to become better people.

7. Field Manager (PhP 16,000 – 45,000)

In other words, you become a supervisor of a farm. You work on the farm and you also supervise. Whether it is a crop trial field or livestock farm, you need to manage your people to efficiently work towards one goal – to have a productive and profitable farm.

8. Marketing and Sales (P 17,000 – 35,000/month + sales commission)

Are you into marketing and sales? If yes, you can take this path as an agriculturist. You will need to promote and sell a product from your company to target consumers. Most of the time you have a quota to reach and exceeding this will give you extra commission.

9. Business owner (PhP 5,000 – 100,000+)

There are just people who don’t want an 8-5 work hours nor a boss. If you are either of the two, then you might want to become the owner of your own business. There are banks that lend money if you don’t have initial capital but make sure that you study your business thoroughly.

10. Extension worker (PhP 17,000 – 40,000)

Do you love sharing knowledge to people? Aside from being a professor, being an extension worker will allow you to do this. You will extend the technology to the end-user. For example, a new farming technique to increase yield was released, your role will be to disseminate and encourage farmers to use the technique.

 

 

Disclaimer: salary and job description mentioned here are based on what I know (either I learned it from the person doing the job or from a position I applied). This may vary depending on the company/institution/organization you are in.

Mulberry or Morus spp. is a tree usually grown to produce leaves fed to silk worms. Its fruits contain vitamins and minerals and a lot of antioxidants (which according to studies can prevent or slow cell damage, btw).

If you are following me on my Instagram you’ll know that I recently posted a picture of mulberry fruits and how I mixed it with my oatmeal the next day. We have been benefiting from the tree since the day it started bearing fruits. The twist is that it is a gift of nature to us and here’s the story…

Once upon a time, in a faraway land, there was a kind mulberry tree. A bird from a random place got tired. He saw the mulberry tree and perch on a branch to rest his aching wing. The mulberry tree greeted the bird, “Hello, bird! Have some fruits, the black ones taste sweet and the reds are a bit sour”. The bird ate the fruits and thanked the tree. After a while, he bid goodbye to the tree to continue his journey. The bird spotted a place to rest again (in our small backyard) and pooped then flew again.

One day, we saw a new plant in our backyard. We did not remove the plant and years went by and the tree grew and started bearing fruit. And from that time we learned that we have a mulberry tree!

Of course I made the story of the bird and the mulberry tree because I really don’t know where the bird came from and where he ate mulberry. I don’t even know the bird’s gender. LOL. All I know is that we never bought a tree nor plant any mulberry in our backyard. Our theory is that a bird that ate mulberry fruits defecated in our backyard.

Birds may disperse seeds. There are number of ways these birds can do this – seeds attached on their wing, seeds the birds brought through their beak or claw and seeds from bird’s droppings. And whenever I see birds on a tree eating fruits I always wonder where the seeds will land and then the song Big Yellow Taxi will play on my mind. Specifically these lines:

Hey farmer farmer
Put away the DDT
I don’t care about spots on my apples
Leave me the birds and the bees
Please!

Will always be thankful to the bird that gave us a mulberry tree. I can enjoy mulberry fruits for free! If you have one, try putting some to your oats.

 

Durian is the famous must try food in Davao. And I second the motion. Even I myself tried it and have loved the fruit since that day. But if you are not a fan of durian, here are some other must try food I tried myself when I was in Davao.

1. Charcoal ice cream

Not the most good looking ice cream but the taste is superb. And getting charcoal all over your mouth is just a unique and fun experience.

2. Red peanuts

These red peanuts have intense red skin and a little sweeter taste than the usual fried peanuts I tasted. They have other varieties of peanuts so just spot the difference.

3. Grilled banana (Sugbang saging)

If you are just familiar with banana cue and boiled Saba, then here’s another way to cook them – Saba bananas that are in between unripe and ripe stage are grilled for few minutes.

We have this in our town so I am familiar with this. You have a choice to either eat the grilled bananas as is or get it coated first with margarine and white sugar, I’d recommend the latter.

4. Binaki

This grated yellow corn mixed with sugar and milk stuffed in its own husk before steaming is definitely a must try! The ingredients combine perfectly and the aroma of the corn will make you crave for another one.

5. Grilled dishes

In Roxas night market there are kiosk with seafood and meat products wherein you will just choose and they will grill. Perfect with their sauce or/and vinegar. You will surely get an extra rice.

6. Kwek-kwek with seaweeds (lato) and cucumber

Kwek kwek (egg coated with orange batter) is almost everywhere int the country but the twist with their kwek kwek is the free seaweed (I think they call it lato) adding new and refreshing taste to our ‘egg waffle’. 😀

7. Fried chicken innards

Chicken gizzard, intestine, liver, proventiculus, name that chicken innard and they have it crispy fried. They are affordable and best paired with cold gulaman drink.

8. Buchi with assorted flavours

If you are craving for something sweet that is heavy in the stomach – try out their buchi. They come in different flavours. My personal favorite is the matcha buchi.

9. Pica pica fruits

Who said street food can’t be healthy? These pica pica fruits will brighten your inner trying-to-be-healthy self. Stalls usually have fresh mangoes, papaya, singkamas and pineapple.

 

 

 

1. Be committed

You can’t get bountiful harvest by just planting anything and leaving them alone. You can’t just have goals, do nothing and expect success. If you decided to achieve something, do whatever needs to be done until you get the result that you want.

2. Stay positive

In the Philippines we always experience storm every year but we still manage to get agricultural produce. Storms don’t last and the sun always shines. No matter how bad your day, it will soon pass. Try not worry too much. 😉

3. Be kind and gentle

One time I was weeding my plot and I destroyed some of my plants. I realized I was too harsh. The same thing goes to life. Let’s make this world a better place by being a little kinder to yourself and other people everyday.

4. Do your best. Always.

From planting to harvesting if you do your best you’ll have good harvest and if you don’t at least you won’t have regrets. Do not settle in mediocrity. If you know you can still push harder then do it.

5. Keep learning

Not because you already master planting your lettuce you will stop learning. There are other plants to study and even other lettuce variety that might perform differently. Do not let your mind sleep. The world is continuously innovating and you should too.

6. Get out of your comfort zone

Plants being planted in the same location over and over again will eventually have lower yield. And you’ll notice how they grow better when you do crop rotation. Grow better by moving out of your comfort zone.

7. Think out of the box

When we hear the word gardening we always think about the soil in our backyard. But did it ever occur to you to have a garden without soil? Yes you can! Search my previous post on soil-less farming. If you think your idea is impossible, think again. It might be what the world needs now.

8. Do not rush to conclusion

There are seeds that do not germinate right away not because you fail but because they have dormancy that needs to be broken. Sometimes we need intervention for our dormant dream to grow. You are not a hopeless case.

9. Be patient

Mangoes that are prematurely picked or forced to ripe is not as sweet as those that matured slowly and naturally. Sometimes you find that the universe is not conspiring to get what you want. But, what is really happening is that it is just taking a little longer to let everything be in place so that when the time comes you are ready to have that thing you truly deserve.

10. Have a routine

Plant. Water. Prune. They look simple but it will make a big difference with your harvest. Simple routines will become habits (so make sure to have good routines). And will eventually lead to big results. Little by little you’ll achieve greater things.

11. Read

If you have your pack of seeds right now, look at the back and see the percent germination and date it was tested. From there, you’ll see if you will have higher germination rate. Remember to always feed your mind through reading.

12. Speak up your mind

If you know why your neighbors garden is bad, suggest the best way you know how they can improve it. Sometimes we do not speak probably because we are scared what will other people say. If what you think won’t harm others or it is a well-researched fact, then say it.

13. Timing is everything

In Mindoro, farmers plant rice during the wet season and corn during summer because rice will need more water than corn. Do not force a thing to happen. If it is meant to happen, it will happen. 🙂

14. If it did not work the first time then do it again

Did your crop die this season? Plant again and apply what you learned previously. It is okay to fail and do it again as long as you are willing to be better from the mistakes of yesterday.

15. Do not be fooled by appearance

Had you put a lot of fertilizer to your crop because it is yellowing but nothing changed? Maybe because the cause is not fertilizer deficiency. Take a closer look. Examine other symptoms before applying another remedy. Just like what they always say — “do not judge a book by its cover”. Know the facts first and think critically.

16. If you can’t do what you love, then love what you do

You grow kangkong because you like it or you grow them because the people around you like them and you are happy seeing them eating what you reaped. If do not like your 8-hr office work, then you either resign and find your dream job or stay and try to enjoy your work.

My heart is just so happy to know that agriculture is getting more attention right now. And I found these 7 Filipino celebrities who also find joy in farming/gardening. Try to look at their instagram feeds and be inspired to start having your own farm.

1. Neri Miranda

Get ready to salivate with all the good looking dishes on her feed made with fresh veggies from her garden. I am truly amazed by the amount of veggies she could grow. This girl really has a green thumb!

2. Mylene Dizon

This kind mother of Clara in the teleserye Mara Clara is surely enjoying her farm. Watch her happy farming vibe on her IG vid wherein she pulled out of the plant box a big radish for her sinigang dish.

3. Chesca Garcia Kramer

Team Kramer is doing gardening! I first saw them gardening when they moved in to their new house. They started with a few plants but now look at how diverse their farm is. Those purple gardening tools are too cute you might want to start digging right away!

4. Angelina Mead King

I watched her vids driving sports car but what I enjoyed more was when she was driving a golf cart like a sports car inside her garden. Her gardening technique is no ordinary as she grow her crops in tower gardens – it saves space btw.

5. Anne Clutz

People know her as a beauty guru in the YouTube world. She seems like having fun with gardening. In one of her IG posts wherein she is doing agri stuff, she captioned “ME, doing things that make me happy”.

6. Anma Cay

Another beauty vlogger on our list who seems to have passion with plants (specifically indoor plants). She is levelling up her agriculture game as she started her hydroponics set-up.

7. Isha Borromeo

This YTuber known for make-up tutorials is obviously having fun with her crops. Isn’t her smile contagious? According to her post, she is happy to get her bountiful second wave of harvest!

 

Experience the same happiness and start your own garden now!

I know I am still young to share stuff like this but I’ll share it anyway. LOL. So here are 28 unsolicited life lessons  I learned from my own experiences.

1. Be committed

You can’t just have goals, do nothing and expect success. If you decided to achieve something, do whatever needs to be done until you get the result that you want.

2. Stay positive

In the Philippines we always experience storm every year but we still have good agricultural produce. Storms don’t last and the sun always shines. No matter how bad your day, it will soon pass. Stop worrying. 😉

3. Be kind and gentle

One time I was weeding my plot and I destroyed some of my plants. I realised I was too harsh. The same thing goes to life. Let’s make this world a better place by being a little kinder everyday.

4. Do your best. Always.

From planting to harvesting if you do your best you’ll have good harvest and if you don’t at least you won’t have regrets. Do not settle in mediocrity. If you know you can still push harder then do it.

5. Keep learning

Not because you already master planting your lettuce you will stop learning. There are other plants to study and even other lettuce variety that might perform differently. Do not let your mind sleep. The world is continuously innovating and you should too.

6. Get out of your comfort zone

Plants being planted in the same location will eventually have lower yield. And you’ll notice how they grow better when planted to a different place. Stop delaying faster growth by moving out of your comfort zone.

7. Think out of the box

When we hear the word gardening we always think about the soil in our backyard. But did it ever occur to you to have a garden without soil? Yes you can! Search my previous post on soil-less farming. If you think your idea is impossible, think again. It might be what the world needs now.

8. Do not rush to conclusion

There are seeds that do not germinate right away not because you fail but because they have dormancy that needs to be broken. Sometimes we need intervention for our dormant dream to grow.

9. Be patient

Sometimes you find that the universe is not conspiring to get what you want. But, what is really happening is that it is just taking a little longer to let everything be in place so that when the time comes you are ready to have that thing you truly deserve. Besides, mangoes prematurely picked and forced to ripe is not as sweet as those that matured on a tree.

10. Have a routine

Plant. Water. Prune. They look simple but you’ll it will make a big difference with your harvest. Simple routines will become habits (so make sure to have good routines). And will eventually lead to big results. Little by little you’ll achieve greater things.

11. Read

If you have your pack of seeds right now, look at the back and see the percent germination and date it was tested. From there, you’ll see if you will have higher germination rate. Always read. Do not let your mind to go idle for a long time. Remember to always tickle your imagination.

12. Speak up your mind

Sometimes we do not speak probably because we are scared what will other people say. If you think no one will be harmed by what you are about to say, then say it. Wasn’t able to harvest any pechay? Ask your neighbour how did he/she able to grow pechay.

13. Timing is everything

In Mindoro, farmers plant rice during rainy season and corn during summer because rice will need more water than corn. Do not force a thing to happen. If it is meant to happen, it will happen. 🙂

14. If it did not work the first time then do it again

Did your crop die this season? Plant again and apply what you learned previously. It is okay to fail and do it again as long as you are willing to be better from the mistakes of yesterday.

15. Do not be fooled by appearance

16. If you can’t do what you love, then love what you do

17. No direction might mean a redirection

18. Move your body

19. Drink water

20. Eat balance diet

21. Sometimes you need pruning to have better yield

22. Never stop growing

23. Try new things

24. Everything will fall to its proper places

25. Brace yourself with inevitable

26. Persevere

27. Get some sun

28. Trust the process

**Will expound each number everyday. Share your own life lessons in the comment section! 🙂

 

 

Wazzup #FARMily! Do I sound like a YTuber? Nah. LOL. BTW. How’s your farm/garden? Are you enjoying it and now having plans to level up into a larger farm? Or just interested to retire in a simple and quiet farm? Here are some farm lands I went to and personally want to own (but don’t have the budget yet. hehe).

1. Masbate

A 10-12 hour land travel plus 3 hour RoRo boat ride. They have big farm land. Some are hilly some are flat. Perfect to grow rice, corn, and vegetables. You can also grow forages for your grazing ruminants. There are also lots of cow ranches in the area!

2. Mindoro

The weather can be extremely hot and dry or raining hard for days. But the soil is fertile and good for crops like corn, rice, cassava and onion. Just make sure you have water source if you are planning to plant rice during the summer season.

3. Isabela

The first time I went here I was amazed by the large areas planted with hybrid corn. From afar, you’ll think that you are seeing Bermuda grass but when you take a closer look, they are corn. Although lands are dominated with corn production you can still innovate and customise your own farm.

4. Laguna

I specifically want farm land in cold areas in Laguna like Liliw, Nagcarlan and Lumban. Aside from the favourable temperature for high value crops, there are enough moisture and fertile soil needed by plants.

5. Quezon

An area for coconut production but lanzones, pomelo, banana and other fruit trees can also grow well here. There are flat areas where you can grow rice, corn and veggies. You are also near the ocean and seafoods are easy to access.

6. Cavite

Another place to grow high value crops. The environment is favourable to any crop. During my undergrad, we would always have trips to lettuce, bell pepper and tomato farms here and the produce are amazingly good looking and big than the usual I see in public markets.

7. Batangas

A place known for its yummy lomi and best beaches. This place is also a perfect spot for your dream farm. They have nice weather for your crops and animals. You might also consider including coffee (kapeng barako to be specific) and cacao for that early morning coffee and chocolate aroma.

Visayas and Mindanao have their own beautiful and productive farm lands worthy of your investment. I just personally picked those in Luzon because my home is in Laguna and these places are travel-friendly for me.