GOLDEN SHOWERS BLOOM AGAIN ON VALENTINES DAY...

The past year was a very sad one for me. My middle daughter Ancie , who was only 39 years old who passed away during this horrible 2020 year of the Covid19 Pandemic....She left a son who is already 18 years old, and is in deep grief. I cannot describe the intense hurt and pain but if that is what it feels to have my heart was broken, all I can say is, I could not understand why it all had to happen? Is that what is called "denial" when a mother refuses to accept her child is gone from this physical world. I didn't go to my farm for the rest of the year.

I am managing my grief through therapy, and I am really not in the mood to garden, or even cook! I just want to sit alone and cry until I have no more tears. I am not very happy at all to continue with anything. The loss is incomprehensible to those who have not gone through losing a daughter, or child. However, I have met and been comforted by a few mothers who have lost a daughter. They told me that time will create a shell around my heart, but it will never erase the love I have for my daughter. Love never dies, and I feel her sometimes just a breath a away, maybe watching, maybe in the silence of the room, she is sending me comforting vibrations that give me the courage to go on.

I saw the Golden Shower Dendrobium orchids blooming. These only bloom once a year. I remember when Ancie was alive, the flowers were blooming last March, a few months before she passed away. She always loved fresh flowers, not so much cut flowers unless they were from our garden, and would have new blooms again. She loved scented candles too, and I made sure to have a vigil before her urn that is still in our house in the city surrounded by her favorite colors, and photos of her at her prime.

Everyone from her son, to some of her friends, her sisters,our employees at our office, and home , including our nurse have told me how they have dreamt of her. However, for many months, I never did I dream of her, neither did she appear in any dreams of my husband. The other night, I dreamt of her, and I saw her clearly. I even embraced her feeling she was very much alive, warm to the touch, her skin felt smooth, her flesh supple, her cheeks rosy. I hugged her and kept telling her how much I love her. I asked for her to stay in my dream, and then I woke up. The next morning, the golden shower orchids on our giant Narra tree was blooming. I thought of Ancie ...she was still with us, in spirit, and watching, and I could feel her presence. I would be hoping she would be able to go back into her heavenly home, then visit us once in awhile to check on us and as it was Valentine's Day, I felt very calm and peaceful and saw the Golden Shower orchids blooming.

I prayed to Christ Jesus to help me understand--because she had more life to live on this earth and fulfill all her goals. I have no one who can answer my questions as to why, why all this had to happen. And yet, I have to believe in the tender heart of Christ, HIS compassion for the lost, for the grieving, for the sick as HE is Our Redeemer, and so I offer prayers to HIM, and claim HIS mercy and that my daughter is with HIM, the Blessed Mother Mary, the Apostles, Saints, Angels in heaven. I realize Ancie no longer belongs to me, but to the King of Kings. I felt comforted....surrendering her to an Infinite Love, Peace and Happiness and that one day I will see her again...

FOUR-O-CLOCK FLOWERS

The name of this plant explains what time of the day to expect blooms to appear. They are prolific bloomers, and they emit a fragrance in the evening that will last all night. This plant has a root much like a carrot. Once it secures the root system, this plant will begin to spread on its own. It is a hardy plant that will grow in any soil condition be it dry in summer, or soaking wet during the rainy months.

Each flower will produce a seed that looks like a black peppercorn. Gather these and store to give to friends or grow some of these Four O'Clocks in different areas of your garden. Once it sets in, the plant will dominate your garden.

Butterflies love this plant and are not toxic unless eaten by mistake, or chewed on by young pets. Every part of the Four O' Clock is poisonous since they are a member of the nightshade family. This may cause vomitting , skin irritation, nausea, so do not plant it near the house, or playground areas where children could pick them by mistake.

THE INSULIN PLANT

Some time ago, a friend of mine introduced me to her sister who had this insulin plant in her 

backyard.  She told me how eating the leaves dsily  of this plant lowered her blood sugar.

I found it interesting because it seemed here in Asia, there are herbal cures for almost

all illnesses.   She gave me a cutting and I went home right away to find a nice semi-shaded

place for it in my garden.

The Insulin plant is clasified as  a Costus.  The scientific name is, Costus Igneus. 

This plant originated in India, and is used as an Ayuvedic  medicinal  cure for the 

common illnesses like colds, and flue,  diabetes, high cholesterol and fatty liver.  The leaves 

reduce inflammation, and promotes smooth airflow in the lungs, relieving muccus in patients 

with bronchitis, and Asthma. 

The leaves can be crushed and drank as tea, or eaten in a salad. The effect is to reduce

stress and damage to healthy cells, and is good for cancer patients undergoing chemo-

therapy. 

HOW TO PREPARE THIS COSTUS PLANT FOR LOWERING BLOOD SUGAR:

Crush dried leaves of the plant to make a powder. Have half a tsp of this powder twice

a day. 

You can also chew one fresh leaf, twice a day.

Tea can be made by boiling  2 cups of water, and dropping one leaf in the hot water. Let it 

seep in for about 10 minutes, then drink a cup of the tea, twice a day.

Flowers of the Costus Igneus plant:

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Various phyto chemical investigations reveal the presence of carbohydrates, terpenoids, proteins, alkaloids, tannins and amounts of trace elements along with flavonoids. 

Medicinal Uses 

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C.cuspidatus is known as Insulin plant. As it is having the virtue of the promoting insulin by human body. 

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Aqueous extract of this plant would prevent the formation of calcium kidney stones by the inhibitory effect on plant growth of calcium oxalate. 

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The dry leaves of this plant show significant control over blood sugar level in laboratory rats. 

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This plant is used for the reduction of post prandial blood sugar levels during fasting. 

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It is now accepted and widely used as an Ayurvedic medicinal herb. 

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It is possible to consume the leaves by drying and grinding the powder of the leaves. 

Pharmacological Activities [4] 

This plant has been proven to posses various pharmacological activities on diuretics, antioxidant, antimicrobial and anti cancerous

Never Got To Say Good Bye...

The day was just starting to feel warm after the cool season was over. My dog Ariwari came to greet me as usual but there was something about her. I felt inside my gut, that I should take her home with me since my farm's housekeeper was taking a long vacation in her province. A week later I was going to pick her up on a Saturday when I planned to bring the pick up. Ariwari gets car sick and she doesn't like to travel if the windows are not open. She will sit on the back seat with her nose sticking out, savoring all the scents of the air as we pass through the countryside. The week was almost done, it was an early Friday morning that I received a call from my administration worker who had gone to the farm to repair the fence. He asked that I should not go up to the farm to get Ariwari, and then he added that my dog had died...just collapsed in the shed where she and I used to hang out when I am with her outside.

Three months since that time, I have avoided my farm. I realised my dog didn't just die...she was poisoned by robbers who had gone into the farm and stolen electric wires, and an old, but useful manual water pump near the poultry house. I feel very discouraged, hurt and very sad. All the years of my labour and enjoyment at the farm was also because of my animals there. Yet after 25 years, urban sprawl has come in, developers cutting down forests to make golf courses, and subdivisions, and along with those, commercial centers with fast food outlets with their tall signs standing instead of tall narra trees. I never got to say good bye to my beloved Belgian Shepherd, Ariwari. She was my companion , protector and loving friend.

I also did not get to say good bye to my cat Hart, and her two kittens , Nadine and Pia who have also died. Victims of young boys from the area around the creek, who caught them only to slash their necks....what kind of people do these things to innocent animals? No matter how cruel these people are, but I did not go after them because I realize it is pointless. Eventually they will reap karma from their evil deeds. We were told drug addicts in the area were responsible for the rash of robberies and the police are now hunting them down. A neighbour installed electric fences and one night a robber was found electrocuted trying to break in to steal some fighting cocks. I wondered if this man that had been killed on that fence was one of those who hurt my animals? If so, karma came early enough... A lot has been said in the news about the current President going after drug lords, pushers and users. There are truths and also fake news about the President. He is doing a lot of good projects to improve facilities like water distribution, and there is progress especially in cleaning up pollution around beach resorts. This is a beautiful country so neglected by previous administrations who couldn't fix all the problems around the country. This President is trying his best, and as usual, there are haters and supporters...I just hope there will be peace in the land, and cooperation to protect agriculture. I heard from my farm hands that the subdivision next to us has caused a lot of squatters from the big city of Manila to be evicted from prime city land by developers of our country area. Robberies have started to happen to those who owned farms around me. These squatters are poor people from the city slum relocated down the highway from our place. I do not believe that poor people are thieves...but if some of these are into robbing their neighbours, in time, they will be caught and punished. However, I wish the rest of these underprivileged can get jobs, earn an income to better their lives and have their children get an education. It seems our area has turned into a suburb, rather than a rural community because of rapid transition from agricultural land to a multi-zoned area. I am in fact moving back to my own place in the big city of Honolulu, Hawaii. I have since a few weeks ago decided to finally put up my farm for sale, because my animal friends are gone with exception of two old retired horses, 2 old goats, and a few free range chickens. I am ready to leave, and go back to my former home in Hawaii. My children have since moved to California, and married and I have grandchildren now and I want to spend more time with them. Unless there is a change in events, there is little to add to this blog. I think going over what I wrote about the pleasant times I spent in the uplands of Cavite, in the Philippines has made me smile, shed a tear, and also helped me write down a lot of good memories. I won't say good bye, no, not just yet! As we say in Hawaii...ALOHA is both hello and goodbye!

MY CATS...Sadly HART , PIA, and NADINE crossed the bridge into their next lives.

The very first cat I ever had was a white and yellow spotted cat. HART had a heart shaped yellow spot on her shoulder area. She was the only cat that leaped into my arms, and would always greet me when I arrived. She would stay with me, and come when I called out her name. She had a long life of 15 years and populated my place with at least 54 kittens. HART was the matriarch of the farm. Even our dog, a large Belgian shepherd deferred to HART. In fact, since HART was the elder, the dog respected her and in some odd way, tolerated each other.

HART was both the mother, and the great grandmother to all her kittens who then beget more kittens as the years passed. Two of her most recent kittens I named Nadine and Pia, both looking similar to their mother, but all had sort of brown-yellowish eyes, except Pia that had blue sapphire eyes. I neutered Hart, Pia and Nadine, hoping to keep them and bought them each collars with little bells so the chickens and birds would hear them coming.

I felt very sad to know people can be very mean to cats. I knew there were children in the area that tormented cats and HART being very docile and genuinely affectionate, had been abused by farmhands and street people. I describe street people as those passing by who kick or throw stones at cats wandering outside. I saw scald marks often on some of our cats, and I am assuming that HART and her family of kittens and grown ups had wandered into kitchens and had eaten some food they were not allowed to eat. HART was always polite and did not leap up on counters or tables if I wasn't around. Sometimes she just loved to sleep on our granite counter top since the weather was rather warm, and the granite was cool. I miss her, and mourn her passing. This blog has existed for a long time...the story of my farm and all the animals who have lived and passed on have affected me now that I am a grandmother....I am growing older, and find new animal friends, but I can never forget HART, my first beloved cat....may she come again, and let me know she is back! *wink*

GOOD BYE 2017....and farewell my dear friend, a kingfisher named RAMBO.....

Year 2017 Finally Ends

The date : December 31 is eagerly anticipated! I can’t begin to welcome but, perhaps I cannot celebrate the New Year, 2018 unless it is over. I am sure that 2017 was good in one aspect, my family made it through. There were serious health problems of family members, and one of my daughters who lives abroad survived through those horrific fires in southern California. She had to evacuate her home in Santa Barbara City, as fires were surrounding the area nearby. I am grateful to God for all HIS blessings, protection and mercy.

2017 is over in a few hours, and though I am feeling apprehensive about certain circumstances, being sad about these problems that will carry over into the new year is not a good thing. Crying over spilt milk is not something I do. I am just happy me and my family made it through alive, and everyone is doing good.

I do want to mention and honor an animal friend that passed on.... I want to pay my respects, by remembering a beautiful wild and intelligent, kingfisher, named Rambo, that lived on a mango tree in the area where my garden is located. I remember that Rambo always greeted me when I would stroll about at my garden. He recently passed on around October, and my farm hand showed me his lifeless body, with his bright red and incandescent blue coloured feathers still beaming. He was found lying beside the chair I normally sit in to watch him perch on the metal bars of the horse stables.

I will miss him very much like all those animal friends that have passed on, but he like them are part of the good memories I have.

The day I met Rambo, he was a curious little kingfisher, about 12 years ago, when I started a lotus pond at the south end of my garden. I placed the lotus plant in a rubber pot, and set it in the center of the pond. Then quite unknowingly, I added tiny fingerling guppies to keep the water clean of mosquito larvae and other falling insects. I noticed on one of the bamboo plants near the pond, a small, juvenile kingfisher. His parents went fishing in the nearby creek. He did not go with the others of his kind to the other side of the creek. Instead, he watched me. He was like most birds, he trying to understand what I was doing. He would come closer, flying from bush to the bamboo, then stop, cock his head towards me. He was curious as to why I carried a transparent plastic bag filled about 30 tiny guppies floating in air and water. He knew these tiny creatures were fish by their shape and movement. My workers filled the pond with water, and laid the lotus plants in the center. I then lowered the bag of guppies and set them free to swim about, sheltered from the heat by the lotus leaves, and all the fish hid under rocks I provided for them at the bottom of the pond.

Next day, I went to see how the lotus pond was coming along. I heard the piercing shriek coming from the top of my water tank, about 15 feet high, on the northwestern side of the property. I looked up to see the kingfisher poised with wings slightly open to take in the breeze, then it dived down directly towards the ground, picking up an earthworm that made it up from the shallow depths of the compost pile to get air. Well, Rambo swooped up his morning meal, and flew right back up to enjoy his breakfast on top of the water tank grid. He was eyeing the pond, but he knew that I was busy with installing the fixtures and arranging other plants within the perimeter of the pond. Rambo then disappeared into the forest, but he knew there were delicious treats hiding in the soft, damp bedding of the horse stables.

I saw Rambo flying up to the coconut tree beside the stables, and the sun was rising directly over the stables, and squinting, I saw the flash of his stunning, glossy blue wings as he landed on the metal fence of the horse stables. He had swallowed the earthworm earlier that was longer than his entire body, and now he was hungry again. Perhaps he flew away into the fruit trees of my neighbour Magno, and had a family to share his meal? I wasn't sure how much a kingfisher can eat, but a few minutes later, Rambo cocked his head, and was eyeing something on the grounds of the stables. The horses ignored him, like the chickens that were rummaging through the sawdust which was the bedding for the horses, searching for the moth larvae from the giant Atlas moth. The adult moth dies within a week of its life, right after laying eggs that will hatch into caterpillars and grow about 6 inches long. These caterpillars eat the sawdust soaked in the urine of the horses, and they will wiggle out, much to their peril to be seen by predators like Rambo. The caterpillars will live for about as long as they can eat enough to begin to form a chrysalis but won’t emerge at fully formed moths for up to a year. These Atlas moth larvae are easy prey for hungry chickens, and birds that know where to look! Rambo was peeking with his keen eyes on any movement on the sawdust, then seeing the white head of the larvae pop out, he would plunge into the horse bedding, yanking out a very fat caterpillar, clamp it with his beak, then fly off again to the mango tree to eat his meal.

Rambo was aloof to everyone, but he seemed to be an observer of my farm, fascinated that a human like myself actually gave him his very own pond. He would wait for me to arrive and my workers would point at him sitting by the rails of my stables, watching me, and I would sit on the terrace and enjoy seeing him hunt and fly about.

He laid claim to my lotus pond. I was very upset to know that Rambo finished off all the guppies by the end of the month. I did not expect what came next. Rambo had plans for my lotus pond. This intelligent bird amazingly had his own ideas how to use the pond, he would dive in the creek across my garden's south walls, and pluck out a fish from the water. I first observed him flying overhead, and noticed he dropped something into the lotus pond. I did not know why he was doing this about three times that day. I thought, the fish must have accidentally fallen from his beak. Then it became apparent that he deliberately dislodged the fish from his beak and drop it alive into the lotus pond. He was flying up to the water tank grid, and then to the bamboo near the pond to watch the stunned tiny fish fingerlings swim about. He would then disappear into the forest, then come back, only to watch my pond from the safety of the water tank. Eventually, I figured out, Rambo was intelligent enough to understand that his deposits into the lotus pond of fish, was like stocking his very own refrigerator of food, he intended to save for a future date!

Rambo was with me for 12 years, and he continued to stock the pond with his favorite fish. Some even grew about 8 inches long, and matured, to spawn and produced more fingerlings. Rambo would eat the fingerlings, and leave the adults to continue to breed, and lay eggs beneath the rocks. I enjoyed seeing him, swoop down, for grasshoppers, beetles, and a variety of insects, even small snakes. Years passed, and one day, I got the bad news. Rambo's passing was very noticeable. I stopped hearing that familiar shriek that I had come to relay on as a greeting from an animal friend, that I had come to know and love. I knew something bad had happened to him, but my workers said, it was early morning, and they found his remains by my chair. No sign of foul play from the cats, or my dogs. He was 12 years old or more...it was his time.

So, this is one of the many stories of my experiences in my garden. I hope to write more, as I can , because time is cruel, when those animals we have befriended leave us. I can remember all my animals, and the people who made this garden a lovely place to come and enjoy the vanishing countryside. My farm has become my sanctuary, and my place of refuge from the fast enroaching, metropolitan sprawl of Manila.

A New Life For Rex

Today I went to pick up a dog that was recommended for rescue by a friend, Penny who saved an 8 month old puppy dog from the local dog-meat market. She was moving house, and she already has 2 big dogs, and 2 small ones. She was looking for a good home for this dog. She told me that she met this man in her neighborhood. His name was Eloy, and he had several dogs in a small cage, offering them for sale to her or to anyone who would want to adopt these strays he picked up all over town. Only a few people would get these street dogs called "askals" or "Aso'ng Kalye", which when translated into English means "Street-Dog". These street dogs, are usually a hodge-podge of several breeds that after several generations, of mixed breeds makes their original breed features unrecognizable. If these dogs don't get sold as pets to the people in town, this man Eloy will take them to the local dog meat market. Penny then posted the photo of the dog on Face Book, and that is where I saw it for first time.

I responded right away. The dog looked like it was starving. Penny did recognize the dog's features to resemble a Belgian Malanois. She posted that this dog was a one particular dog to be a Belgian Malanois juvenile. The dog was saved, but kept in a cage, for he displayed his teeth, snarled and snapped at anything that was going to touch him. All he wanted was food, lots and lots of food. Penny fed the dog, but noticed during feeding, he would literally snap at the hand that feeds it!

Penny explained that after one week of feeding and talking to him, the dog finally allowed Penny to touch him. I arrived, and saw the dog, and I understood that he would not like me at first, but I wasn't prepared for his fierce nature. I was bringing with me treats, a collar, leash, some puppy toys, and some dog food, a new food bowl, a towel, but all these things did not matter to him. The dog was only interested in eating. He had become savage, wild, totally untrusting of humans.

This is what an 8 month ( more or less) Belgian Malamois looked like--skin and bones...

I saw the dog and immediately my heart was breaking. I knew this dog had been living on its wits, with very little food and clean water. I agreed to take the dog and bring it to my veterenarian to have it tested for parasites, diseases, and to have an overall check up before I would bring it home. I sat in front of the dog's cage, and spent almost two hours tossing it treats, and giving him some chicken heads that Penny already had cooked for him. Rexy was very distrustful of anyone but Penny. What love can do right?

I brought the dog to my vet for 3 days and 2 nights for observation, tests and vaccines. Here are more photos of this rescued dog who I named Rex. He has put on weight, learned to fetch, started eating a proper diet, and had shots, and treatment for heartworms. Generous people helped me pay for his vet fees, and after a month, Rex transformed into a friendly, lovely pet.

He was eventually adopted by the Veterinarian and his family.

AN ORGANIC TIME PIECE..SUNDIALS..

SUNDIALS This blog entry is going to be about TIME!

WHAT TIME IS IT?

I keep hearing the phrases " Oh, time is up," or " there isn't enough time". Keeping time doesn't seem to be possible, but telling time in a natural way, using the sun is the best way to know where to plant the next crop. I want to add on my "wish list" , a sundial for my Christmas present. I also want $1Million dollars, so if Santa Claus is reading blogs this season, these are the two items I really want!



THE RIGHT TIME :

I've been tilling in my garden and this is the time to plant. We have such a difficult time getting things moving with the late rains, but we have to get the seeds in the ground soon.

My eggplants , tomatoes, beans, cucumbers have to be planted now. Lettuce seeds in the nursery, and herbs should be re potted.

My new Hawaiian orchids that came from the greenhouses in pampered farms in Waimanalo, Ohau, are now feeling the heat. These plants must have realized, they are not getting the pampering they are used to. I am always watching any sign of rot from the recent rains, or heat exhaustion... they are not having such a hard time, but I do see a bit of shrinking in their stems. This means that their stored water supplies are near empty. They will need a good soak.



WHAT A HECTIC TIME OF THE YEAR..

Till then, the hectic time is Christmas season. I avoid stores as much as possible. Christmas for me is a religious festival, and having 2 grand children, I love seeing their smiles on Christmas when they open their presents. My older grandson of 12 says, he rather know what we are getting and enjoy the gift, than to open his presents on Christmas day and find out he is disappointed.

Oh well, as I said, Christmas is for kids...teenagers and pre-teens take the opportunity to hit us grandparents with items their own parents won't or cannot afford to buy them. Well, I am spending all my holidays in the rapture of being near my plants and animals ...

Till next time..

.MERRY CHRISTMAS TO EVERYONE!

Fragrant Hawaiian Orchids

I have acquired a few new orchids for my farm. All the orchids originate from Hawaii, and I was delighted to see these were adult size, and already in bloom. I purchase these pampered plants from their growers, who raise them in greenhouses, and feed them chemicals. I do the reverse...I allow these plants to go and live in the tropics, in their natural environment on my farm. If they make it, I am very pleased, but if these plants cannot cope without the attention they are used to in the greenhouses, then they will collapse and die. However, even in death, these plants can suddenly come back to life, and produce new shoots, to start life over again in a more natural setting.

CATTLEYA FROM HAWAII

CATASETUM ORCHID

TEMPERATURE AND LIGHT ARE THE MAIN CONSIDERATION IN HAVING A HEALTHY ORCHID PLANT

My garden is located in the highlands of Cavite, in the Philippines. The weather can go from extreme heat of 100F to a cool 63F. Our weather in the Philippines is very hot during summer months beginning in early March, to late May, then the climate can change to very damp, and soggy, as the monsoon rains start in June and end sometime October. The hurricanes that normally come in from June to late September, can bring strong winds, heavy rainfall, dark skies during the day. There may be periods of hot and humid days during breaks in the monsoon rain. In summer there will be radiant sunshine in the morning, to scorching heat in the afternoon.

"PELE" RED CHERRY CATLEYA ORCHID

Silang and Tagaytay, has salty air because it is near the China sea . The monsoon months, have heavy rainfall for weeks at times. Even during the rainy months, the evaporation of water from the China Sea and Laguna de Bay, and Taal Lake causes the high humidity. factor In these parts of the Philippines, there are many elevation changes – many within very close proximity to each other. So one variety of orchid will do better for you than others, in one area , so it just depends on how much vegetation you have in the garden. Large trees planted around my home, keep my gardens cool all year, and prevent strong rains from directly drenching my orchids that I place on the terrace.

SPIDER ORCHID

I have noticed that I have different climate areas in my garden. Full sunlight will be the hottest area near the cement wall, where the heat is absorbed by the concrete. Orchids like the coolness of gravel stones on the ground, or red lava rock on the floor in greenhouses. Orchids also love to be preched on tree trunks, or on driftwood displays. These plants cannot stand very hot weather with full exposure to the sun. There has to be some shade, and they can tolerate the warm air in summer provided they are watered very early in the day. The other areas in your garden may have a cooler temperature in summer, or in the rainy season, areas to be avoided are those with full shade. Orchids like to be cool with sunlight hitting their leaves in the morning, and during the hot afternoons, they prefer semi shade. Some ground orchids can tolerate full sun, but most prefer to be hung on trees and like absorbing humidity from the air.

I find that I like quite a variety of different orchids in different areas of my garden. I observe them closely, and monitor the way their leaves look, and that in itself will give you clues how they are doing. Their stalks are their water reservoir. The leaves must be plump and green. The commercial growers will tell you to feed weekly or monthly with chemical fertilizers, but I am lucky if I remember to feed them a special mix of a “tea” made with bird manure gathered from leaves of my large hardwood trees!! I know that it may be difficult to locate bird dung, but leaves usually has residues of bird droppings, especially fruit trees. Orchids that used to thrive in the wild, are fertilized by bird droppings and they still flower in abundance when rain dissolves the high phosphorus content of the droppings off the leaves of trees where these orchids hang with roots firmly anchored on the bark.

One of the biggest things I have learned is to be sure to water at least once a week, and more than just spraying moisture in the air. They actually want some warm water – just do not let the roots sit in water, soaking. The water should not pool in the pot, and one has to make sure they are in an area where their roots will dry out. Watering during the week, should be at least 20 minutes of drenching the roots, because the leaves are very sensistive to too much water, and can cause fungi growth that will soften and rot the leaves. There must be a potting mix for the orchid, that allows the roots to drain out, because they tend to also soften. Roots must feel firm to the touch.

GOLDEN SHOWER ORCHIDS

Orchids are not that hard to grow and these plants will bloom naturally 1 time during their preferred season.

Deluge Monsoon Season August 2013

I had a lovely weekend, despite the monsoon rains with my girlfriends who stayed over in my little farm in Silang. We had lunch in Marcia Adams, at a new little restaurant in Alfonso, Cavite. We stayed at the farm, just chilling and experiencing the peace and quiet of the upland Cavite countryside. I am glad we all came down late afternoon, Sunday, because that evening, the monsoon rains started to fall in sheets! How timely our return to Manila. We missed the closure of the Southern Luzon Express (SLEX) by a few hours. Southwoods exist towards SLEX, is always a shorter route back to Manila However, Sunday evening, the monsoon rains flooded the exit. Had we come down any later, we would have been stranded !

( Photo from ABS CBN News, August 19, 2013) Government isn’t concerned about saving the rainforests in the uplands of Cavite, or protecting small farms from being a target of elimination ever since the SLEX was extended towards Calamba and Batangas. The political leaders have even encouraged urban sprawl towards the South to increase the earnings of the province from tax revenues . The land in the agricultural areas have been converted to commercial/residential. Shopping malls, cemeteries, and subdivisions have replaced the idyllic mango groves, and miles of rice paddies that lined the highways leading to Tagaytay. The big 8 lane expressway, or “ SLEX” did not exist in my younger days. I have been posting for so long how the hills of the uplands of Silang have been deforested, and the large mango farms and orchards, coconut plantations are gone. Those huge trees hold water in their roots, and keep the soil from being eroded...these floods have happened before but very few people were affected . The government has more maintenance costs in these highways...not to mention the many who are living in those subdivisions who are now stranded not being able to go to work in the Metropolis! The government of the Philippines, should set their priorities straight. This is going to cripple the economy eventually. Unless the rainforests and agro lands are protected, the people in the main city of Metro Manila and the neighboring provinces will just have to get used to closure of all businesses due to the flooding of major highways during the monsoon season!

Rainy Season 2013

Rainy season automatically raises my flowers up from their sleep, and my little farm is now ablaze with color! I don't have a manicured property...in fact right now my project is to scatter flowering seeds on the big field, and just let it bloom wild! yehey!

Summer Harvest 2013

I know it has been years since I came to blog something about my farm. I was devastated about being infested with pythons. The town where my farm is located has suddenly become the center of urban development. Everywhere it seems are these new projects for subdivisions and shopping malls.

The town of Silang is not yet a city, but the population is growing by the thousands of rich people settling in swank subdivisions. The poor are following, by squatting    on the roadside and around creeks and rivers.  The people are  streaming in from squatter areas of  Metro Manila being relocated in low cost housing built in the saltbeds of Tanza, and Cavite City.  Industrial districts  have opened up new factory sites on what was once sugar cane fields. Local farmers are giving up trying to plant vegetables on smaller plots that render their income as negligible considering they had access to more lands that were cheaper to rent.  Silang is bordered by Tagaytay City in Cavite, and Santa Rosa, Laguna, and Metro-Manila.

Silang was this quiet town, with coffee plantations, coconut lands, orchards, forests, and  grazing cows The .area was a good area to buy fresh produce.   The 300 hectare Riviera Golf and Country Club was already the first development whereby it was necessary to  cut down one of the oldest standing virgin forests in Silang, Cavite and replaced it with a subdivision and golf courses.

  We no longer can draw water up from our wells, even at the depth of 300 feet...there is no water!This area is considered the watershed with abundant under ground rivers that supply my farm with fresh, sweet water. Water is now being syphoned by the millions of gallons to provide tap water to subdivision homes.

In my small little farm, I practice organic farming methods. I grow vegetables from non-GMO seeds. I have culinary herbs and spice trees growing abundantly. Recently I had my summer harvest of tomatoes, spinach, pole beans, string beans,   alugbati, okra, cucumber, sweet corn,  eggplant, peppers.  We also harvested rambutan, and  sweet santol off my trees.

I can watch butterflies all day!

I was canvassing the internet on blogs that are about my favorite insect...the butterfly. I also love bumble bees! The Bumble Bees are huge, black and they love to pollinate my flowers! They don't harm me but sometimes they get all excited and fly right for my face! I just have to freeze, stay calm, and they excuse themselves and go right back to the flowers!

SWALLOW TAIL BUTTERFLY

GIANT CARPENTER BEE

ADMIRAL BUTTERFLY

BIRDSWING BUTTERFLY 

POSTMAN BUTTERFLY

FRITTARLY

CABBAGE BUTTERFLY

BIRDSWING 

PAINTED LADY

PAPILLION 

SULPHUR BUTTERLFY

SPOTTED JUDY BUTTERFLY 

ROSE BUTTERFLY

LEMON EMIGRANT BUTTERFLY

Rice Fields

I was traveling around my province of Cavite and it was still drizzling. Uncommon during this time when we are about to get into our tropical summer season. I stopped to admire farmers harvesting rice, and ready to plant a new crop while the rains still were coming in very regularly.


There is that song I learned in grade school, that keeps playing in my head when I am near a rice field..it goes something like " Planting rice is never fun, bend from one to setting sun "



Anyway....these muddy fields were side by fields with tiny rice stalks already planted

The tiny rice plants are actually monocots...or grasses that bear the staple starch food of Asians..

And then the harvested rice stalks are all cut and passed through the grainary to produce at least a few sacks of rice.....

What a beautiful scene...like an Amorsolo painting...the rice fields with the spire of a Church in the background and the tropical sky above!