Time is gold. So don’t lose time. If something new that you think you can do, don’t procrastinate. You will be happy you didn’t. Just like our good friend Pio Rodriguez of Valenzuela City. He is in the tractor business but he is also interested in fruit trees. When he heard about what we did about our custard apple (we completely defoliated the tree last December to induce it to bear fruit off-season), he immediately applied the technique on his atis tree.

What has happened? Well, he reported the good news that his atis tree is now laden with at least 50 fruits. In several more weeks, he will be enjoying his luscious atis fruits.

More than 20 years ago, he saw a big planting material of a duhat tree at a Quezon City nursery. He immediately bought it because he had a place in his compound to plant the same. The good news is that up to this day, the tree has been giving him bountiful harvests of those purple fruits. He brought a bucketful for tasting at the radio program “Kaunlaran sa Agrikultura” last Sunday. Had he dilly-dallied in acquiring the planting material, he would not have that fruitful duhat tree today.

We also admire Candido Joaquin and his wife, Judge Pelagia Joaquin, of Camangyanan, San Jose del Monte City. Immediately after they were gifted with 1.9-kilogram fruit of a Golden Queen mango, they didn't lose any time. They immediately went to buy a couple of grafted Golden Queen so they could plant them in their property. Their friend Primo Salgatar of Marikina had bought a grafted Golden Queen five years ago from Teresa, Rizal. The tree has been fruiting for three years now and one of the 30 fruits that the tree bore this year was the 1.9-kilo fruit given to the Joaquin couple. For acting immediately, the Joaquins can expect to harvest from their Golden Queen trees in three or four years.
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LOS BAÑOS GARDEN SHOW. If you love flowers and other garden plants, make sure to visit the Los Banos Flower and Garden Show which opens tomorrow at the Seniors’ Social Garden at UP Los Baños. This will run through May 2. Going there is not as difficult as it used to be because the South Luzon Express Way is almost finished. Only a few finishing touches are being made..
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ORCHID MICROPROPAGATION SEMINAR. The Philippine Orchid Society is conducting Thursday and Friday (April 22-23) a seminar on Orchid Micropropagation at the Orchid Laboratory of the Rizal Technological University on Boni Avenue, Mandaluyong City.There will also be a field trip to Los Baños on April 25 to visit the Los Baños Flower and Garden Show, among others. You can contact the POS at philorchidsociety@yahoo.com.