Planting mangoes and making them productive and profitable is no easy job. It takes very close supervision of the farm, observing what is going on so that every problem that crops up could be attended to immediately with the appropriate action. In other words, don’t just leave your trees to Mother Nature after planting them.

That in brief is just a part of the assessment of Rene Florencio who admits his own mistakes and frustrations in developing his 20-hectare mango orchard in Tarlac City. Now, he has learned so many things after 13 years, and for the first time he is going to make a good profit from his mango trees. This weekend, he will be harvesting some 40 tons of good quality fruits which were bagged. By next month, he expects to harvest 60 to 70 tons more from the next batch.

A corporate executive before getting into farming, he admits he knew nothing about fgrowing mangoes when he started his orchard. The very sad part was that he got the wrong advice from the start. The supplier of seedlings had recommended the distancing of five meters apart. That was a most expensive mistake. The crowded mango trees did not bear as many fruits as he expected. That is why he had to cut down more than one thousand of the trees, just retaining over 900.

He also hired a consultant with hands-on training. Monitoring what is happening on the farm is very important, according to him. For instance, one time he observed so many plant hoppers in a portion of his farm. He had to act very fast. They trees had to be sprayed with the right combination of pesticides immediately.If he had delayed spraying by two days, his entire crop would have gone to naught. And that is why he stresses that the needed chemicals should be stocked on the farm so that they are readily available when an emergency arises.

Read more about how he turned around his problem farm in the April issue of Agriculture Magazine.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS. This afternoon, March 6, will be the invitational opening of "Expressions," the annual exhibit of Ikebana International Manila Chapter 108 at the Atrium of Edsa Shangri-La Plaza Mall in Mandaluyong City. The event will be open free to the public tomorrow through Sunday, March 9. Aside from the exhibit of floral arrangements, there will be lecture-demonstrations by certified Ikebana teachers from 4 to 6 p.m.

On Saturday, March 8, from 9 to 12 noon, Raymond Rubia will conduct a lecture on vermiculture and organic production of lettuce and other salad greens. Another resource person will teach how to make different kinds of salad dressings. This will be held at the AANI Herbal Garden and Livelihood Center at the Quezon Memorial Circle in Quezon City.

Also at the AANI Herbal Garden, on Saturday March 8, from 9 to 12 noon, a seminar will be conducted on strategies in organic fertilization of rice, corn, sugarcane and fishpond, and step by step method in containerized gardening. This will be conducted by Bert Salido.