Amidst a rice field in Barangay Bucanan, Magalang, Pampanga, a fruit farm can be found where tourists can visit and experience picking mulberries and grapes. The farm is managed by Michael Miranda, who is also a rice farmer and a farm machinery operator. *Michael Miranda, owner and manager of Miranda’s Grapes and Mulberries Farm holding a cluster of freshly harvested grapes. (Miranda’s Grapes and Mulberries Farm)* Miranda’s Grapes and Mulberry Farm is a part of the 2-hectare rice and corn farmland owned by Miranda’s father. With permission granted by his father, he took a portion of the rice field to plant mulberry, grapes, and flowering ornamental crops like cosmos, morning glory, and sunflower. *Visitors with their artistic masks posing with the cosmos flowers. (Miranda’s Grapes and Mulberries Farm)* At first, Miranda grew mulberry cuttings and grape seedlings for their family consumption only. He never thought that his mulberries and grapes would gain public interest. Because of the many inquiries he received about his farm, he finally decided to open the farm to the public in February 2019. *Visitors take photos in the middle of mulberry trees with the view of Mt. Arayat in the background. (Miranda’s Grapes and Mulberries Farm)*

Activities to enjoy

More than 200 mulberry trees and 130 grape vines are planted inside the farm. Mulberry fruits are available all season, but grapes will take four months to harvest from flowering, so they may not be available during some months. *Visitors posing with their harvested mulberry fruits. (Miranda’s Grapes and Mulberries Farm)* Aside from picking fruits, tourists are welcome to visit the farm to enjoy the view and take pictures with the beautiful Arayat Mountain in the background. Some customers have rented the place for events and photoshoots. *Farm visitors using harvesting scissors to pick grapes. (Miranda’s Grapes and Mulberries Farm)* Because of his Facebook page, there have been visitors that come from Metro Manila, Davao, and Cebu. Some of them wanted to experience fruit picking, while others wanted to purchase planting materials from his collection of different grape varieties. *Grapes hanging in the wire trellis are starting to ripe. (Miranda’s Grapes and Mulberries Farm)* The entrance fee is P20, but for those who want to pick fruits, they only have to pay P50 per cup for the mulberries and P200 per kilo for the grapes. Miranda recommends visiting the farm in the morning or late in the afternoon to avoid the heat from the sun.

Planting materials for those who want to try grape and mulberry farming

Miranda is a collector of different grape varieties. Currently, he has Bikonour, Niagra, Bikonour, Catawba, Red Cardinal, Brazilian, Shine Muscat, and Everest varieties in possession. Seedlings of these varieties can be purchased on his farm. The price ranges from P150 to 1500, depending on the variety. *Cuttings of grapes placed in sawdust to form calluses and roots. (Miranda’s Grapes and Mulberries Farm)* It is easy to buy planting materials online, but Miranda advises everyone to be vigilant because online sellers might be selling a different variety than advertised. This is why many of his customers still visit the farm to check the legitimacy of the plant variety they want to purchase instead of just buying randomly online. *Grape seedlings available for purchase. (Miranda’s Grapes and Mulberries Farm)* For beginners, Miranda recommends the Catawba and Brazilian varieties. These two varieties are affordable and resilient to the Philippine climate and diseases. Later on, if they decide to change to other varieties, Catawba and Brazilian varieties are good rootstocks for grafting the scions. *Visitors may take their photos in the middle of the pond using a bamboo raft. (Miranda’s Grapes and Mulberries Farm)*

Fruit-bearing plants as a source of additional income

A large portion of the land is still planted with rice and corn, which serves as their main crop. However, there are times when these crops will fail due to typhoons and insect damage. During these times, the income from the mulberry and grapes helped Miranda numerous times pay his monthly bills and purchase agricultural inputs. *Cluster of green unripe Bikonour grape variety. (Miranda’s Grapes and Mulberries Farm)* Miranda plans to expand the production area for his fruit-bearing plants. He also wanted to add other crops, such as apples, to add more fruit selection for his visitors. Visitors often ask if they can copy the idea of the farm, and Miranda will always gladly say yes. “I never thought of them as competitors. They can do whatever they want because it is their farm. No farms are exactly alike. Farm goers can choose whatever farms they want to go to, and they would come back if they enjoyed their visit.,” he said in Tagalog. For inquiries, visit [*Miranda’s Grapes and Mulberries Farm.*](https://www.facebook.com/aguevarra1219) *Photo courtesy of Miranda’s Grapes and Mulberries Farm* [*Read more about farming and gardening at agriculture.com.ph*](https://www.agriculture.com.ph/)**