SULTAN KUDARAT, Philippines --  Would you believe that a once-landless land reform beneficiary is now a millionaire several times over after 15 years?

That’s exactly what happened to Nelson Taladhay, 46, who was given in 1995 two hectares of rolling land in the mountains of Brgy. Masiag, Bagumbayan, Sultan Kudarat.

What did he do to become rich? In 1996, he planted 1,000 rubber trees on his two hectares. While the trees were still young he planted hybrid corn between the trees which pro¬duced marketable ears in less than four months.

Hybrid corn was immediately profitable because it yielded higher than the native varieties planted by many farmers in Mindanao then. One hectare of hybrid corn could usually yield five tons of grains with a moisture content of 14 percent. Although the price then was only P8 to P9 per kilo, it was profitable because the cost of production was just about P10,000 per hectare. So he was able to make a net of P30,000 per hectare. Usually he planted two crops a year.

Nelson was wise enough to reinvest whatever profit he made from corn growing. He was able to buy more land so that today he owns at least 15 hectares. But only four hectares of the 15 hectares are devoted to corn. Nevertheless, he plants no less than 50 hectares to the grain crop twice each year. That’s because 50 hectares of other farmers’ land are mortgaged to him.

In the rolling terrain of Masiag, the system followed in planting corn is the so-called zero tillage system. The land is simply cleared of weeds (easily by herbicide) and then the seeds are dibbled in the ground. The appropriate fertilizers are applied two times to support the production of high yield.

Because corn can be produced in Masiag throughout the year, Nelson has programmed a continuous planting schedule so that he could have something to harvest and deliver to his big buyer every month. That way, he will have a continuous cash flow year-round.

He employs 10 to 15 workers who plant for him every day. He says that 10 workers can finish planting one hectare in five hours for which they are paid P1,500. That means each worker gets P150 for five hours of labor.

Aside from the cash payment, Nelson provides his workers breakfast and snacks to make sure they are motivated. That’s one way of ensuring that there will always be willing planters to work for him.

Rubber is also a big money maker for Nelson although it takes about six years before he could get any income from the trees. The 1,000 rubber trees that he planted in 1996 have been providing him good income since 2003. In the beginning, he was getting only 500 to 700 kilos of cup lumps a month. Today, he gets anywhere from 800 to more than a thousand kilos each month.

Nelson is very happy about his rubber trees because the price has gone up substantially. A few years back, the price was P60 per kilo or lower. Today, the current price is P88 per kilo.

Two years from now, Nelson expects to double his income from rubber because by that time his four-year-old trees planted on six hectares would start producing latex.

Nelson is a popular figure in Bagumbayan, especially in his barangay of Masiag. For two times now, he topped the election for the barangay councilman. He receives an honorarium of P8,400 as a councilman of Masiag. He has been us¬ing his honorarium to pay for the expenses of eight high school scholars.