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The Green Manuring

Since ancient time, green manuring has been known to its positive role in crop production. This soil ameliorating practice expands its importance in recent years because of the high cost of chemical fertilizers, environmental pollution and necessity of sustainable cropping systems. Green manuring supplements the use of compost. When you need additional organic matter and readily available nutrients, you can use green manures. Green manuring is the practice of turning under the soil living plants at the peak of their growth. This peak is reached right before flowering. Young, leafy part of trees can also be used as green manure. All the plant materials recommended for composting can also be used in green manuring. Wild sunflower is a favorite green manure in Benguet. Legumes, plants that can take in nitrogen from the air through the bacteria that live in the roots, are a favorite material for green manuring.

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The Big Leap of Elephant Grass.

Napier is best grown in warm, tropical and subtropical regions. In the Philippines, it has shown itself well adapted to climate and soil. Farmers uses this grass as fodder crop. It is fed directly to cattle or made into sillage or hay. They also used this as an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) strategy. It is grown along the cro(in rows or borders) to reduce insect pest population. It is also used as fence or bordera for it is good at protecting main crops from too much wind. In marginal land and slopes, it is planted to increase soil fertility and reduce soil erosion. In Bacolor, Pampanga there’s a large plantation of “Super Napier” and they are using this to produce renewable electricity for their meat factory (Pampanga’s Best)

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The Sugar Substitute Plant: Stevia

An alternative source of sweetness, a unique food ingredient that originated from Paraguay and Brazil and being cultivated in certain part of Asia because of its value – stevia. This is a plant also known as Stevia rebaudiana from the Araceae family together with daisy and ragweed. It is non-nutritive sweetener and herbal supplement. Also, the world is using it as an alternative for sucrose or sugar.

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