Creating the Farm

Sometime in January of 2010, I attended a one week seminar in Cabiao, Nueva Ecija  about Permaculture. Permaculture is a way of planning and creating spaces in nature where the elements are properly designed to create an eco-friendly environment. Well, after the seminar, I went immediately to work and started planning and developing my 2.4 hectare farm lot in Magalang, Pampanga, using the principles of Permaculture design. I've acquired the place sometime in 2006. This land has been left idle since that time. 

When I bought the land, it had quite a wide frontage that was right beside the barrio road in Turu, Magalang. The first few meters of the area apparently had a low elevation, as native kang kong plants grew abundantly. In Filipino, the word "kangkungan" (which means where kangkong grows) has a derogatory meaning as it connotes something that is basically a wasteland and is of no use except to grow kangkong. 

In Permaculture design, however, one makes use of whatever seems to be a negative aspect of the land and transform this into something valuable. The natural lay of the land tells the Permaculture designer how to design the land using its very properties. As it turns out, this "kangkungan" eventually became a beautiful pond where two beautiful islands now exist. Since the place was low and watery, I made use of the natural waterlogged land and excavated it to make way for a lagoon. The land that I excavated from the lagoon was used as additional fillings for the side of the lagoon. I  also used  this filling to create two small islands at the center of the lagoon. Then I planted some golden coconuts on one  island and some hawaiian palms on the smaller island. 

After three and a half years from the time I started excavating, the place has been transformed into a beautiful lagoon with two beautiful islands on it. See the picture below to see how beautiful it is. What used to be a "kangkungan" has now morphed into a beautiful landscape.

Here is a picture of my farm's lagoon with my three sisters on the foreground; from left, Gina, Ating Beth and Cindy. Beautiful skies, golden coconuts on the island bathed in golden sunshine!