Davao City to save cut-flower industry

July 28, 2022

The City Government of Davao will be promoting the cut-flower industry during the Kadayawan Festival next month to bolster its dwindling production.

Davao City’s symbolic icon flower, the Waling-Waling, has also been dwindling in number as flower growers have shifted to more profitable markets like that of the cacao industry.

City Agriculturist’s Office (CAGRO) head Edgardo Haspe, during the I-Speak media forum on Thursday, said the market price of cut-flowers, such as orchids, is not as attractive as the prices of other produce like cacao beans and corn.

“Sa among monitoring, limited na lang kayo ang nag-engage ana. Isa sa hinungdan ana kay daghan nag-shift into other industries kay dili na kayo ingana ka-attractive ang market. But we still have to preserve it ‘no kay mao kini atong ginapasigarbo, especially ang Waling-Waling, dinhi sa Davao City (In our monitoring, farmers that engage in the industry are very limited. One of the reasons for this is the shift to other industries because the market is not that attractive anymore. But we still have to preserve it because this is what we take pride in, especially the Waling-Waling in Davao City),” Haspe said.

Haspe, however, said the flower market continues to thrive with the introduction of new species. He said that during the pandemic, Dabawenyos went into gardening, and in turn introduced new varieties of ornamental plants and flowers.

“Daghan na man pud nagsulod na variety or species sa tanom na gikawilihan pud sa mga ‘plantitos’ and ‘plantitas’. Unlike before na didto sila sa mga cut-flowers; naa didto ang orchids nato (There are a number of new varieties or species of plants that entered the city because of the ‘plantitos’ and ‘plantitas’. Unlike before when cut-flowers were on trend; that is where our orchids are),” Haspe said.

The CAGRO head added that the city’s production of roses remains strong as the flower’s popularity continues.

“Isa na sa nagpabilin na daghan pa ang roses nato. Naa ta diri sa Tugbok, sa Calinan, parts ng Toril (One of the flower varieties that remain strong is our roses. We have them here in Tugbok, Calinan and some parts of Toril.),” he said.

To preserve the endemic cut-flowers in Davao City, the CAGRO plans to include flower-growers into their training programs. The office’s training program provides farmers with technical and skills education on the latest farming technologies.

“Next time no, isulod na namo sa among training programs kanang sa flower industry (Next time, we will be including the flower industry in our training programs),” Haspe said. CIO