View
My Guestbook |
Benguet’s calla lilies |
|
|
By
Frank Cimatu, Philippine Daily Inquirer, November
14, 2001 Benguet farmers earn extra cash from selling these lilies for All Saints’ Day and for various occasions, especially for wedding ceremonies. But not all calla lilies are destined for the cemeteries, altars and tabletops. Lately they have become the stars of international flower trade fairs. Since 1999, the King Louie in Benguet, which is one of the biggest flower farms in the country, has been exporting 200,000 to 300,000 calla lilium bulbs to The Netherlands every year. King Louie buys the bulbs at two pesos each from farmers and then package and ship them to The Netherlands, the acknowledged "flower capital of the world." Even the Benguet State University is getting into the act. Dr. Leoncia Tandang, head of the Highland Agriculture Resources Research and Development Consortium, said they have acquired 10 varieties of liliums and are propagating them through tissue culture. "We have tested these varieties and are now establishing the protocol for their mass propagation," Tandang said. Dr. Ben Ladilad, executive director of Regional Research Development Council, said the future for calla lilies is in the varieties of colors one can develop from them. "If you only have the white calla lilies, your profit will not grow as much. There are many producers of white calla lilies and you are only flooding the market and your profit might decline," Ladilad said. "But if you have calla lilies in different colors, you will surely profit." Ladilad said the advantage of calla lilies is their hardiness. "They are one of the easiest crops to manage. You only plant them in swampy grounds with minimum fertilizer," he said. |
Back to Benguet Coffee index