getting back on track…

COVID knocked us sideways in more ways than one. We recovered, our resort business here on Siquijor Island is again doing well, and we are reviving the fruit & tree farm in Ytaya Valley.

One challenge with regards to the farm is to find local hands and minds interested in farming, nature conservation, and outdoor labor. Tourism is now booming on the island, and everyone – understandably – wants a piece of the pie and in on the expected quick, big bucks.

Most people, not least the young, are (perhaps not surprisingly) more interested in serving or drinking coffee in a cute café, beach partying, sporting tattoos, taking selfies, and checking smartphones, than in pulling weeds or pruning fruit trees.

Farming and fishing have long been considered low status occupations, and environmental concerns seem to have gained little traction. I naively thought that COVID and climate change awareness might alter that and become a wake up call, but no . . .

On the farm we have recently planted ‘tinik’ and ‘butong’ varieties of bamboo as bio-fencing, cleared old coconut palms and replaced them with dwarf varieties (so the risk of getting hit by a falling nut is gone), cultivated an area with sweet potatoes, and planted black pepper vines around pruned mango trees that serve as trellis. Due to past bomba spraying our mangoes are not producing fruits but they can still serve as trellis and support for vines.

The intention is to keep planting fruits and native hardwood trees so that the farm is both a farm and a wildlife habitat. Plans for farm tourism, internships, and workaway opportunities are on hold. Now seems not the right time. Maybe within a couple of years. Fingers patiently crossed . . .