thousand mt, followed by Northern Mindanao with 20.2 percent, and SOCCSKSARGEN (South Cotabato, Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Sarangani, and General Santos City) with 13.5 percent. Data also showed that more than half or 51.4 percent of the total production of banana was of the Cavendish variety.
The increase in production can also be attributed to the bigger bunches harvested from the banana farms which have applied technologies and better inputs to improve their production. One such group that applied new inputs and technologies to their plantations is the Manuel Guianga Multi-Purpose Cooperative (MGMPC) in Tugbok, Davao City.
Banana, particularly the Cavendish variety, requires intensive labor and better inputs to grow to a profitable volume. Erratic weather conditions, like the El Niño and La Niña phenomenona, affected the growth of banana plants, causing the yellowing of leaves. This causes production losses and deterioration of the banana plants, leading to poor quality of the fruit. To address the concern, the group used Amino Plus Foliar Fertilizer or APFF.
The application of APFF was done on a weekly basis during normal weather conditions, and every 15 days during the rainy days. During the dry periods, they cannot apply ground support to their plantation, which requires the application of foliar fertilizers. In the six months of the dry season, plants were able to survive the harsh weather, which resulted in the better condition of the banana leaves and the plant growth itself. This also helped the banana plants become sturdier, and they eventually produced bigger banana bunches. On the recovery side, they were able to attain between 30 and 40 percent.
For the proportions of input applicationfor ground support, the group uses Suzuki organic fertilizer (about 60 percent) in tandem with APFF (25 percent).
For every hectare, their plantation can accommodate at least 2,200 banana plants. It was learned that they got a harvest where a box could be filled up to 13.5 kilos each, and the bananas were export quality at that.
But they had to be extra careful to maintain the quality of their produce, where the work begins from land preparation to planting of the bulbs, protecting the banana bunches from the effects of strong winds and pest infestations, including extreme weather conditions. And when harvest time came, the MGMPC workers had to pick, sort, pack, and maintain the quality of the bananas until they reached their export destinations.
Damage to agricultural crops due to weather disturbances can be prevented or minimized with the proper application of farm inputs, like organic fertilizers and other related products. Plants sprayed with APFF are more resistant to diseases and other stresses in the field like drought or flooding. When sprayed, it effectively adheres to the plant’s surface and provides quick supplementation. APFF boosts the growth and productivity of banana plants and other crops like rice, corn, vegetables, fruit trees, and ornamentals.
This appeared in Agriculture Monthly’s June 2018 issue.