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Supplying the growing world population with food, particularly in developing countries, is the overwhelming challenge of the future. It is known that in almost all of these countries consumption of vegetables is far from being sufficient. Growing vegetables is particularly suited for small farmers and their families because they can best meet the special cultivation requirements. Yet farmers need to be encouraged to move to new and more profitable crops. Additionally, careful management of the natural resources soil and water is necessary to prevent the decrease of the amount of usable land.

Bukidnon is a highland province in the island of Mindanao in Southern Philippines. In general, it offers good prerequisites for successful vegetable production since it is located outside of the typhoon belt and has favourable temperature conditions. The soils have good physical properties with fast drainage even after heavy rainfalls but with adverse chemical attributes such as low soil pH, low contents of available phosphorus and low cation exchange capacity and low levels of organic matter. A further constraint is lacking agricultural knowledge on management strategies for sufficient water supply during dry season.

The objectives of this research study consist in developing economically and ecologically sustainable vegetable production systems applicable and suited for small farming families by overcoming the above-mentioned horticultural restrictions. The research activities are based on the following approaches:

To integrate the production of vegetables into the prevalent corn cropping systems on the basis of a tomato-corn-legumes (mungbean, vegetable soybean) crop rotation pattern. To overcome low soil fertility by application of organic fertilizers in combination with optimum amounts and sources of mineral fertilizers. To optimize production of high quality tomatoes for fresh market and processing during dry season by use of…

Schlagworte

Vegetable production, Gemüseanbau, Small farmers, Kleinbauern, Sustainable, Nachhaltigkeit, Philippinen, Mindanao, Agrarwissenschaft