Saturday, July 14, 2007

DepEd Teaches Unique Skills For Makato OTOP

By Angelda T. Baylon



Photo shows thick biomass of Centrocema that eliminates weeds at rice farm of Bartolome T. Baylon in Tina, Makato, Aklan. Mun. NFS Coordinator Arglou B. Tagala with AT Reynaldo Lamahan and ACC Arceli V. Villaruel of LGU – Makato examine/monitor how Natural Farming System (NFS) technology brings the soil back to its original form where nature works for the production of its needs.


DepEd Makato District headed by environment – friendly public schools district supervisor Lucy D. Gomez, informed the teachers about the unique skills to produce Makato One-Town-One-Product (OTOP) which is organic rice. This is in relation to War on Waste (WOW), School Inside a Garden (SIGA) and Nutrition Month celebration this July. She revealed it during their monthly district meeting held at Makato Integrated School last month.
Producing organic rice involves not only rice farmers but a competent body to coordinate and harmonize with nature’s laws and adopt proven technologies for every specific agro-ecologic zone. Teachers are considered a competent body to develop skills in primary education of youth as well as adults of the community.
Some of the unique skills that Ms. Gomez mentioned are: keeping mungo crop year round for continuous multiplication of bio-nitrogen as indigenous microorganism (IMO) for effective microorganisms innoculant (EMI) and to have sufficient seeds for crop rotation of mungo as 3rd crop after two crops of rice at lowland farms; maintaining improved grasses intercropped with legumes and fruit trees at upland farms. These crops are among the best sources of good quality organic matter as it keep a living soil rich of IMO/EMI. The soil manufactures organic fertilizers night and day for farmers to produce sustainable organic rice; and by maintaining mushroom vermin-compost production.
The SIGA and WOW of Tugas–Dumga Elem. School had availed of some planting materials like improved grasses and legumes for their vacant lot as requested by Head Teacher III, Mrs. Consolacion T. Tang. Mrs Sol T. Aragon eagerly planted the Guinea grass which she appreciated so much. She was excited to produce fresh milk and high – quality meat from their forage garden. Ms. Aragon requested some reading materials from LGU-Makato under earth-friendly mayor Hon. Ramon S. Legaspi, Jr. who firmly believed that his town is rich of organic materials from its vast agricultural land abusively pastured by "pasaway" livestock raisers.
The Municipal Agricultural Services Office (MASO) of LGU-Makato hopes that uninformed farmers be enrolled by DepEd to learn unique skills to restore/revive and conserve and or keep the soil fertile for a sustainable organic rice, the OTOP of Makato. /MP

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