San Pablo City has been known around the Philippines for its majestic Seven Lakes. Today, it is also well known as the location of Ato Belen’s Farm, dealer and propagator of high-value fruit tress and farm produce.
Our interest in farming started when a family friend asked us to help him get 5,000 pieces of coffee seedlings. Instead of looking for a supplier we decided to sow fully ripe coffee berries and transplant them. Needless to say, we were able to supply him with the seedlings that he required. The City Mayor heard about it and also ordered 3,000 coffee seedlings. We started with a seven hundred peso capital and a parcel of land with frontage along the barrio road which was lent to us by my father-in-law. There we propagated coffee, rambutan, guava, langka, and others. Scions of grafted planting materials of high-value varieties of fruit trees like rambutan, durian, lanzones, mango, pommelo, and others are obtained from our own land which is planted with these outstanding crops. And the rest is history.
Buyers started coming from nearby provinces to grafted planting materials. Later on, when the trees that they bought from us bore fruit, they were very pleased with the quality of the fruits that they began recommending our nursery to friends and acquaintances. Many of our present clients are well known celebrities from the entertainment industry, army generals, government officials, businessmen, and other ordinary farmers and enthusiasts.
The Department of Agriculture Regional Agricultural and Fishery Council – Region 4 gave us recognition for “unselfishly searching ways and means to improve the generic quality of farm products”. These products become sources of quality seeds-germplasms for increased production and farm profitability. We were also awarded as the Best farmer by the Philippines Councilor’s League. In 2001, we were also given recognition by the Provincial Government of Laguna for being the Outstanding Farmer – Small Scale Category and in 2004 as the Outstanding Farmer for High Value Commercial Crops.
We had been featured in various magazines and newspapers including the Manila Bulletin, Agriculture Magazine, MARID Digest, and Panorama Magazine. We were also featured in the television program Ating Alamin hosted by Mr. Gerry Geronimo and had various radio interviews with Radio Mindanao Network as well as with DZMM’s “Sa Kabukiran”.
Realizing the need for low-cost but very efficient farming methods, we decided to go into organic farming two years ago. We are judiciously improving ways on how to maximize our farm’s by-products and utilize them as materials for our organic fertilizers. Currently, we use our very own organic concentrate or effective microorganism (LactoBac LAS-1) and composting materials (LAS-1 Activated Compost, and Vermiculture). We are proud to say that organic farming not only lessened our operational cost but it boosted the quality of our farm produce even more.
