Hortikultura 2017 set February 3-15 in Quezon City

• Source: http://newsbits.mb.com.ph/2017/01/18/hortikultura-2017-set-february-3-15-in-quezon-city/
• Friday, January 20, 2017

By Zac B. Sarian

The annual garden show, Horticultura 2017, of the Philippine Horticultural Society will be staged at the Flower Garden at the Quezon Memorial Circle in Quezon City on February 3-15.

The event will be highlighted by plant as well as landscape booth competitions participated in by different individuals and garden groups. Another feature is the commercial booths where the gardening public can source their favorite plants and gardening supplies.

Garden shows are a means of promoting the ornamental plant business which is an important source of livelihood, especially for micro and small entrepreneurs who grow plants for sale, each catering to niche markets.

Many of the participants in the show are plant business entrepreneurs but there are also some who are considered hobbyists. Many of these hobbyists eventually become commercial growers themselves as they come to realize that there is money in growing and selling plants.

In a garden show, visitors get to know the latest developments in the plant business. They come to know about unusual ornamentals, flowers and new technologies in production and marketing.

Besides the daily lectures on timely gardening topics, there are other highlights such as the art exhibit on waling-waling by Bimbo Vergara. In the morning of February 4, a Saturday, there will be an on-the-spot painting competition for kids as well as adults. On two Saturdays, Feb. 4 and 11, there will be agribusiness consultancy in the morning and plant clinic in the afternoon. In the afternoon of February 11, there will be story telling for kids, parents and teachers.

For the whole duration of the show, the Bureau of Plant Industry will put up a One-Stop Help Desk where they can assist in plant export and import, plant quarantine and provision of domestic transport permit.

Meanwhile, here is the schedule of daily lectures:

Feb. 3 at 2 to 4 pm, Easy Carnivores for the Tropics by Dr. Kurt Tan; Feb. 4, 10 to 12 am, Import and Export Permit Requirements by BPI; 12 noon to 2 pm, Growing Cacti and Succulents by Lino Rom; 2 to 4 pm, Selection Techniques for Ornamental Crop Breeding by Rey Pimentel.

On Feb. 5, Sunday, 9 am to 12 noon, Livelihood Training on Water Lily Weaving by Rhoda Lodronio; Ecological Solid Waste Management in Las Piñas by Robert Villaron of Villar Sipag Foundation; 2- 4 pm, Strengthening the Aroid Breeding Activities in the Philippines by Nanding Aurigue Jr.

Feb. 6, Monday, 2-4 pm, Introducing Tillandsia Hybrids in the International Market, by Doreen Dofitas; Feb. 7, Tuesday, 2-4 pm, Living Walls in the Urban Environment by Zayra Bulawan; Feb. 8, Wednesday, 2-4 pm, The Promise of Hibiscus (breeding, propagation and marketing) by Dr. Francisco San Diego and Joseph Bautista of the International Hibiscus Society. Thursday, Feb. 9, 2-4 pm, Orchid Conservation Strategies and Utilization for the Floriculture Industry, by Mark Angelo Pagdato. On Friday, Feb. 10, Dr. Carmela Española will lecture on Philippine Biodiversity: Know Our Natural Heritage.

On Saturday, Feb. 11, 10-12 noon, Adela Ang and Pearl Banaag will conduct a lecture on the benefits of Ashitaba. On the same day from 2-4 pm, Louie Tabing and Dr. Candida Adalla will talk on Virgin Coconut Oil Making Opportunities & Extraction of Essential Plant Ingredients. On the same day at the Stage Area, 10 am to 12 noon, Dr. Lolita Viyar and Michael Angelo Ragasa will conduct a mushroom growing and processing seminar.

On Sunday, Feb. 12, from 10 to 12 noon, Zac B. Sarian will talk on growing exotic fruit trees. In the afternoon, BMB-DENR will discuss CITES and non-CITES plants. On Monday, Romeo Bello Marbella Jr. will talk on Grape Growing Primer: Philippine Experience.