A NEW technology allows fruit trees to survive drought.
Lawyer Anthony Partoza of Mindanao Fruit Industry Development Council (MinFruit) uses a technology in his personal farm called Multiple Rootstock to help fruit-bearing trees grow healthy despite having to suffer drought.
Partoza said he first learned of this technology from Dr. Bernie Dizon, a fruit expert and also a farmer of fruit-bearing trees.
Multiple Rootstock, also known as multi-root system, “is the growing of plants with two or more rootstocks” to help the plant suck in more nutrients from fertilizer and water.
This technology can be used for any long-gestating fruit trees. This technique had been practiced in other countries like Taiwan, Thailand, and Australia.
In the Philippines, farmers from Cebu, Zambales, Nueva Ecija, and Pangasinan have already benefited from this technology.
More than the multiple absorption ability that this technology provides the tree, it also ensures better root anchorage which is helpful for trees to resist strong winds during typhoon.
The gestation period of young trees is also shortened to half of the average waiting time. The normal 8 to 10 year-old fruit tree would take only around five years for a multiple rootstock.
This technology can also be a solution for the ever growing demand of our exported fruits to other countries because it assures earlier yield.
“The tree will yield early, therefore producing off-season quality fruits which command higher price. The tree becomes non-seasonal due to its reinforced nature,” as written on Dr. Dizon’s official website.
Department of Agriculture Davao Regional Director Ricardo Oñate expressed interest and considered to conduct training to educate farmers of this technology at the Regional Training Center 11, Manambulan, Tugbok District.