Around the World with Felicidad Orchard & Garden Organics Farm - Agri Tourism and Innovations in GenSan!

I'd like to take you on a virtual farm tour of Felicidad Orchard & Garden Organics Farm in Gensan! Captain James Reamon has a wealth of experiences in aviation (former commercial pilot), technological inventions (inventor and winner of numerous awards here and abroad for 6 products) and farming (organic) so if you have time to spare, I suggest you spend a few days here to immerse yourself in agriculture and to chillax at the same time =) This farm, not only is a pioneer of vermiculture in Mindanao, it is also the first to be accredited as a Farm Tourism Site by the Department of Tourism in Soccsksargen (SOX Region 12) and a School for Practical Agriculture accredited by the Agricultural Training Institute of the Department of Agriculture. Mr. Reamon is also the president of the SOX Farm Tourism Association! When you go here, you'll see and hear technology-based natural farming - science in convergence with agriculture and tourism! Imagine the DOST, DA and DOT all working together with farmers living in a region filled with culture, bountiful harvest of fruits and natural resources ;)

How to Make Vermicast, Simple Vermicomposting Tips, Itik Pinas Housing and Planting Rice at Felicidad Organic Farm in Mindanao

Let’s learn how to make vermicast fresh off African night crawlers from the pioneer of vermiculture in Mindanao! Captain James Reamon was kind enough to do a demo for us at his ATI-accredited School for Practical Agriculture - the Felicidad Orchard and Garden Organics in GenSan. He also showed us his new project that will make easier feeding of Itik Pinas ducks. And, we were in for a surprise when he let us experience planting black rice first hand in his paddies! No hard work, no dinner! Hahaha.

Things to Do in Lake Sebu Overnight Itinerary and Other Nearby Places in South Cotabato - Centro Ultimate Water Tubing, 7 Falls, Sebul Farm, Blooming Petals Sunflower Fields and Tupi Fruit Market!

If you've just booked that GenSan plane ticket and considering where to go, you can head to South Cotabato for a road trip and use this as your guide itinerary! It is still part of Region 12 (SOCCSKSARGEN), which is blessed with nature, farms, fruits, traditions of the T'boli weaving, waterfalls and fish. For our trip, we first headed to Sebul Farm where we stayed for the night, then some of our mates tried the newly opened Centro Ultimate Water Tubing experience! We weren't able to have interactions with the T'boli people since we ran out of time but you can also arrange to add that as a memorable cultural experience. Check out my first Lake Sebu trip here where we got closer to the lake. For when to go, September to November are the season for durian, mangosteen and marang if you'd like those hehe. Check out other places below:

Sebul Organic Farm in Lake Sebu, South Cotabato

I returned to the Land of Dreamweavers this week in Mindanao. Recently, Lake Sebu and the indigenous people of South Cotabato the Tboli was put in the spotlight again after Ms. Universe Catriona Gray's promotional video but still, people are apprehensive to go there. I remember being a novice blogger in 2011, I bravely went to Davao first then went back to GenSan for The Soccsksargen Experience Tour. We went to Gensan, South Cotabato and I even hopped on a bike to Sarangani. That time, it was always fish, as the highlights were the the tuna festival, the salmon tour and the fish port tour. This time around, I came back for the 10th season of the Organic Agriculture experience hosted by the Agricultural Training Institute (ATI) of the Philippine Department of Agriculture! These experiences slowly endear me to this often feared southern part of the Philippines. We specifically went to SOX or SOCCSKSARGEN, which is part of Region 12 and comprises of South Cotabato, (North) Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Sarangani and General Santos or Gensan. The region is rich in tradition, cultural assets, natural resources and farmers who are very passionate about organic farming like Mr. William Enriquez Sy and Ms. Mayette Sy of Sebul Farm in Lake Sebu! By visiting ATI-accredited organic farms, you get to see different farming methods and even get lots of tips and best practices from the owners ;)

Some of you may not know yet but the ATI is a very important branch of the Department of Agriculture. They reach out to farmers and equip them with technical know-how (farming, skills, marketing and even communication) so that these farmers may help out other struggling farmers in their community. ATI also helps in identifying and accrediting outstanding farms to Learning Sites, Extension Service Providers, Schools for Practical Agriculture and Farm Tourism Sites so that other people can go there and learn first hand. Like me, you can also tour around the Philippines and visit organic farms (read all the way to know how, check out my label Organic Journey to see where I've been since 2012)! Wouldn't you want to have this view?

ASEAN Training Talk on Blogging about Organic Agriculture and the New ATI Learning and Discovery Center in Quezon City!

One of the most fun and self-learning experiences I've had so far this year was speaking for fellow Asians at the Agricultural Training Institute of the Philippine Department of Agriculture. This particular training was conducted here as part of the agreement and participation of the Philippines with the ASEAN. It's surreal and the opportunities keep evolving - what all that travel blogging has taken me so far. I would like to take this opportunity to thank ATI for my organic journeys around the Philippines. My life was truly changed from that moment you introduced traveling to farms to me. For a bite of that experience here in Manila, let me just tell you guys that they've just opened the ATI Learning and Discovery (LeAD) Center for students and the public at their compound in Quezon City. Some of the farms and farmers we went to are featured there and there are dioramas related to Philippine agriculture and dissemination of agri information in the country.

 

Philippine Raspberry Sapinit Picking, Lipote and BK Valley Natural Farm Tour with Mr. Dion Pullan in Dolores, Quezon!

When I hear "Quezon Province", I think about the colorful Pahiyas Festival and the Pancit Lucban (to which you pour one of my favorite condiments - vinegar haha). Now, my head is filled with ice-cold Organic Raspberry Shake... partly because I could probably never forget my first time in Quezon just last month! :D We had a wonderful time walking around an isolated valley, checking out oyster mushrooms and picking raspberries (then putting 'em directly into our mouths) at the Bangkong Kahoy Nature Retreat & Field Study Center in Dolores, Quezon with environmentalist Mr. Dion Pullan. I've never had fresh raspberries before and I never knew there are local raspberries called sapinit - which were tested to have higher anti-oxidants than their foreign counterparts.

Mountain Farm Retreat near Manila, Visiting The BK Mountain Lodge and Finding Oyster Mushrooms at the Bangkong Kahoy Valley in Dolores,Quezon!

I'm having an unbelievable streak this year of going to places (in the Philippines) that I've never been to and heard of before! Haha. Folks, this is about a protected area, an isolated valley, a retreat place and mountain lodge at the BK Valley in Barangay Kinabuhayan, Dolores, Quezon! As we are nearing Holy Week, would you want to consider an alternative to climbing Mt. Banahaw or Mt. Cristobal - like sitting on a wooden bench with the view of the holy mountains, getting close to nature and learning about the sustainable efforts of the community who live around it? Say hi to environmentalist Dionisio Pullan - a descendant of Agripino Lontok (known as the first hermit of Mt. Banahaw) who found his way back to the Bangkong Kahoy Valley and pushed for eco-tourism. Spend some time in this 21-hectare private property (also bird-watching haven) and don't forget to eat organic food (think raspberries and mushrooms...) to your heart's content! More importantly, this is a field study center and a big classroom - where we can immerse ourselves fully and learn about the land, the community, the environment, our ecosystem and the important role that certain species play.