Onions are not among the crops grown in Palawan since most of the local farmers claim that onions do not thrive well on the island’s soil. But a former barangay captain in Puerto Princesa City proved them wrong as his experiment in his farm can show.
Former barangay captain and now city government employee Jessie Rublico of Barangay Inagawan-Sub said that his experiment in his hectare-wide planting site yielded some 90 kilos of onions locally known as sibuyas.
“Mabubuhay ang sibuyas sa Palawan. Dapat hindi lang sya aabutan ng ulan,” Rublico declared.
“Maganda yung sibuyas. Hindi na pwede pag abutan ng tag-ulan. Palagay ko pag kasagsagan ng init, mabubuhay talaga (ang sibuyas),” he added.
He said that he started planting onions last April 9, 2020, and harvested these from June 11-15, 2020.
Rublico said that he was encouraged to plant onions because their partner, a trader of agricultural products based in Mindoro province, offered to assist local farmers in Palawan so that they will plant onions, garlic and other crops. He further said that some farmers in Aborlan and Narra likewise experimented on producing onions in their respective farms.
The trader advised them to do the land preparation between the months of October until November, so that the planting of onions can commenced by January each year, therefore, the crops are harvested before the onset of rainy days.
He explained that rice farmers will gain an income of P100,000 in one hectare of rice land, producing onions are promising since this will yield at a maximum of 15 to 45 tons per hectare, and a farmer can earn more than P1 Million in one-hectare of onion farm alone. Rublico also chaired a farmers’ cooperative based in Barangay Kamuning, engaged in rice farming and rice trading.
“Kung sa palay may P100,000 ka sa isang ektarya, sa kanya (onions) million eh,” Rublico said.
He said that onions fetch 80-120 per kilo, while this jumped to 180-200 per kilo during November-December each year.
Onions grow well in friable and well-drained loam soil with good water holding capacity and pH between 5.8 – 6. Onions are grown notably in Nueva Ecija, Leyte, Cotabato, Isabela, Ilocos Norte and Mindoro.
In a recent interview with officers of the Department of Agriculture (DA) specifically in Palawan Agricultural Experimentation Station (PAES), they said that their agency is on the process of studying and experimenting if onions are indeed suitable in Palawan.