Books and schools always tell us the importance of eating fruits and vegetables every day. However, a 2016 study revealed that Filipinos, particularly adolescents, consume fewer fruits and vegetables than the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends.
East-West Seed (EWS) Philippines, the market leader for tropical vegetable seeds in Asia, is among the companies that encourage the public to eat more fruits and vegetables.
In line with this, East-West Seed Philippines, together with its subsidiary Farm-Ready GG Seedling Corporation (FRGG), and partner farm Girasoles Farm in Candelaria, Quezon, launched a seedling hub that brings agricultural inputs and farming essentials closer to farmers and gardeners in Southern Luzon.
Read more about the farm here: Wasteland turned into flower farm for agritourism
Opening of Farm-Ready's Seedling Hub (Distribution Center) at Girasoles Farm in Candelaria, Quezon. (From left to right: Candelaria Vice Mayor Ogie Suayan, Girasoles Farm Owner Vivian Dean, Farm-Ready Co-Chair Julius Sulit)
Girasoles Farm owner Ruby Dean says that this initiative “made it convenient and easy for clients to get access to quality flowers, vegetable seedlings, and crop technologies.”
Around 5,000 flowers, including vincas, marigolds, zinnias, gerberas, and sunflowers (after which Girasoles Farm is named) shone the brightest during the event.
Aside from the farm’s famous flower fields and Farm-Ready seedling hub, they also introduced a vegetable demo garden that is planted with unique vegetables such as heart-shaped ampalaya (Heart F1), round eggplant (Guapito F1), green eggplant (Amor F1), butternut pumpkin (Sophia F1), ridge gourd (Primera F1), and short ampalaya (Bonito F1).
Sophia F1 butternut pumpkin.
There, you'll find EWS' grafted ampalaya variety with a patola rootstock that protects bitter gourd plants from bacterial wilt. Apart from being more resistant to soil-borne diseases, this ampalaya has a longer harvest time, lasting up to five to six months, as opposed to conventional ampalaya, which can only be harvested within two months.
Growers can purchase seedlings of these vegetables and flowers that are ready for planting, growing, and harvesting. Seeds, soil media, and other products by EWS are also available on-site.
A drone shot of the one-hectare farm showing lush flower fields and the newly-launched seedling distribution center.
“Good seeds plus better farming practices equals higher productivity and income for our farmers,” said EWS Public Affairs Lead Mary Ann Sayoc.
Moreover, farm guests can enjoy salad dishes in the farm restaurant which are garnished with edible flowers like vinca, kamantigue or garden balsam, and even roses.
Farm-Ready business unit manager Ricardo Reyes says, “The Farm Ready seedling hub at Girasoles Farm is in support of our mission to bring innovative products and services closer to our customers, promote sustainable farming, and improve the quality of life of our customers!”
Interested parties can visit the Farm-Ready seedling hub at Girasoles Farm located in Zone 3, Bypass Road, Barangay Masin Sur, Candelaria, Quezon.
Photos courtesy of Obey Llamas
For more information, visit Girasoles Farm