PHILIPPINE COFFEE: OUR COFFEE HERITAGE

Coffee's Rich History in the Philippines The Philippines is one of the few countries that produces the four varieties of commerciallyviable coffee: Arabica, Liberica (Barako , !"celsa and #obusta$ %limatic and soil conditions in the Philippines - from the lowland to mountain re&ions - make the country suitable for all four varieties$ 'n the Philippines, coffee has a history as rich as its flavor$ The first coffee tree was introduced in Lipa, Batan&as in ()*+ by a ,panish -ranciscan monk$ -rom there, coffee &rowin& spread to other parts of Batan&as like 'baan, Lemery, ,an .ose, Taal, and Tanauan$ Batan&as owed much of its wealth to the coffee plantations in these areas and Lipa eventually became the coffee capital of the Philippines$ By the (/0+s, Batan&as was e"portin& coffee to America throu&h ,an -rancisco$ 1hen the ,ue2 %anal was opened, a new market started in !urope as well$ ,eein& the success of the Batan&e3os, %avite followed suit by &rowin& the first coffee seedlin&s in (/)0 in Amadeo$ 'n spite of this, Lipa still rei&ned as the center for coffee production in the Philippines and Batan&as barako was commandin& five times the price of other Asian coffee beans$ 'n (//+, the Philippines was the fourth lar&est e"porter of coffee beans, and when the coffee rust hit Bra2il, Africa, and .ava, it became the only source of coffee beans worldwide$ The &lory days of the Philippine coffee industry lasted until (//4 when coffee rust hit the Philippine shores$ That, coupled with an insect infestation, destroyed virtually all the coffee trees in Batan&as$ ,ince Batan&as was a ma5or producer of coffee, this &reatly affected national coffee production$ 'n two years, coffee production was reduced to (60th its ori&inal amount$ By then, Bra2il had re&ained its position as the world7s leadin& producer of coffee$ A few of the survivin& coffee seedlin&s were transferred from Batan&as to %avite, where they flourished$ This was not the end of the Philippines7 coffee &rowin& days, but there was less area allotted to coffee because many farmers had shifted to other crops$ 8urin& the (49+s, the Philippine &overnment, with the help of the Americans, brou&ht in a more resistant variety of coffee$ 't was also then that instant coffee was bein& produced commercially, thus increasin& the demand for beans$ Because of favorable market conditions, many farmers went back to &rowin& coffee in the (40+s$ But the sudden proliferation of coffee farms resulted in a surplus of beans around the world, and for a while importation of coffee was banned in order to protect local coffee producers$ 1hen Bra2il was hit by a frost in the (4)+7s, world market coffee prices soared$ The Philippines became a member of the 'nternational %offee :r&ani2ation ('%: in (4/+$

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Today, the Philippines produces ;+,+++ metric tons of coffee a year, up from <;,+++ metric tons 5ust three years a&o$

Coffea is a &enus of flowerin& plants whose seeds, called coffee beans, are used to make coffee$ 't is a member of the #ubiaceae family$ They are shrubs or small trees native to tropical and southern Africa and tropical Asia$ %offee ranks as one of the world7s most valuable and widely traded commodity crops and is an important e"port product of several countries$ %ultivation and =se ,everal species of Coffea may be &rown for the beans$ Coffea arabica accounts for )9-/+ percent of the world7s coffee production, while Coffea canephora accounts for about <+ percent$ The trees produce red or purple fruits called >cherries> that look like drupes, but are epi&ynous berries$ The cherries contain two seeds, the so-called >coffee beans>, which ? despite their name ? are not true beans$ 'n about 9-(+@ of any crop of coffee cherries, only a sin&le bean, rather than the usual two, is found$ This is called a peaberry, which is smaller and rounder than a normal coffee bean$ 't is often removed from the yield and either sold separately (as in Aew Buinea peaberry , or discarded$ The traditional method of plantin& coffee is to place <+ seeds in each hole at the be&innin& of the rainy season$ This method loses about 9+@ of the seeds7 potential, as about half fail to sprout$ A more effective method of &rowin& coffee, used in Bra2il, is to raise seedlin&s in nurseries that are then planted outside at si" to twelve months$ %offee is often intercropped with food crops, such as corn, beans, or rice durin& the first few years of cultivation as farmers become familiar with its reCuirements$ 1hen &rown in the tropics, coffee is a vi&orous bush or small tree that usually &rows to a hei&ht of ;D;$9 m ((+D(< feet $ Eost commonly cultivated coffee species &row best at hi&h elevations, but are nevertheless intolerant of free2in& temperatures$ The tree of Coffea arabica will &row fruits after three to five years, and will produce for about 9+ to 0+ years (althou&h up to (++ years is possible $ The white flowers are hi&hly scented$ The fruit takes about 4 months to ripen$

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Air Layerin Applies to !any Her"aceo#s an$ %oo$y Plants

Air layerin , also called marcottin&, marcotta&e, %hinese layerin&, pot layera&e, circumposition and &ootee, is a ve&etative method of plant propa&ation which involves the rootin& of aerial stems while attached to the parent plant$ 't is one amon& the various special methods of layerin& which also include tip layerin&, simple layerin&, compound or serpentine layerin&, mound or stool layerin&, and trench layerin&$ This propa&ation method applies to many trees, shrubs, bamboo and herbaceous plants$ The followin& fruits and plantation crops have been successfully marcotted: &ell fr#it, 'ater apple( or ta)"is (Syzygium aqueum , "lac* pepper (Piper nigrum , cacao(Theobroma cacao , cashe' (Anacardium occidentale , citr#s (Citrus spp$ , coffee +Coffea spp,-( rape (Vitis vinifera , #a.a (Psidium guajava , /ac*fr#it (Artocarpus heterophyllus , lan0ones or lan sat (Lansium domesticum , lychee (Litchi sp$ , )an o ( angifera indica , )an osteen (!arcinia mangostana , pili n#t (Canarium ovatum , sapo$illa or chico or chic*le tree ( anil"ara zapota ,starapple or cai)ito (Chrysophyllum cainito and ta)arin$ (Tamarindus indica $ Factors Affecting Regeneration The formation of adventitious roots durin& air layerin& is induced by various stem treatments$ These &enerally involve the &irdlin& or woundin& of a small part of the stem, resultin& to the interruption of the downward movement of or&anic materials such as carbohydrates, au"in and other &rowth factors from the leaves and shoot tips$ These materials accumulate close to the treated area and rootin& follows$

%ontinuous moisture, sufficient aeration, and moderate temperatures in the rootin& 2one affect the formation of roots on layers or marcots$ These conditions can be provided by usin& a loose rootin& medium with hi&h water holdin& capacity such as a spha&num moss$ 't has been observed also that the rainy season favors rootin& rather than the hot, dry season$ The application of rootin& hormone to the in5ured stem is sometimes effective$ This can be applied in powder form, lanolin, or as a dilute solution$ #ootin& success likewise depends on the plant species$ 'n &eneral, plants which can be propa&ated usin& stem cuttin&s will also root throu&h air layerin&$ Prostrate stems of some plants which naturally root at the point of contact with the soil indicate that these plants can be easily rooted usin& this method, as with stem cuttin&s$

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'n monocot plants such as bamboo, a&laonema, dieffenbachia and dracaena, the roots emer&e from the node$ Advantages Compared to Other Vegetative Propagation Methods ($ #ootin& success is more ensured throu&h layerin&, includin& clones which will not root easily$ <$ Air layerin& or marcottin& is relatively simple to perform$ 1ith a small number of plants, it can produce more layers with less skill, effort and eCuipment$ ;$ Lar&er plants which are readily mature can be produced in faster time$ Disadvantages Compared to Other Vegetative Propagation Methods ($ Air layerin& or marcottin& is laborious and therefore e"pensive$ <$ :nly a small number of layers can be produced from a parent plant than when the same plant is used as source of cuttin&s, buds, or scions$ ;$ A wider area is needed to &row stock plants to be able to produce a &reater number of layers$ *$ Bi&&er layers need special care to establish them independently on the pottin& containers$ !arcottin or air layerin&, an ase"ual or ve&etative method of plant propa&ation, can be easily performed with less skill$ Air layerin& is 5ust sli&htly different from other methods of layerin& such as tip layerin&, simple layerin&, compound or serpentine layerin&, etc$ 'n all these methods, the induction of root development is usually done by woundin& the part of the plant to be rooted$ 'n this layerin& method, roots are induced to form on the part of the plant while it remains aerial (above&round , hence the term air layerin&$ But in other layerin& methods, the same plant part is rooted on the &round with stem usually by bendin& it downward$ The follo'in practical )etho$s are co))on in propa atin plants "y )arcottin : 1, Plant an$ 2hoot 2election A shoot with plenty of leaves is chosen from a healthy plant$ The si2e of the stem at the part to be rooted is &enerally about that of an ordinary pencil, but this is not essential$ Both the thickness and len&th of the stem vary dependin& on the plant part to be layered (trunk, branch or twi& , the intended si2e of the air layer to be produced, and the plant species$ 'n roses, the stems used in marcottin& are normally thinner$ 'n comparison, in herbaceous plants like a&laonema and dieffenbachia, the stems are thick$ 3, Gir$lin an$ 2crapin This is uniCue in marcottin&$ Fowever, this procedure is skipped in bamboo and herbaceous plants$ -or trees, shrubs and semi-woody plants, a strip of bark is first removed from around the portion of the stem to be rooted$ This involves pressin& of a sharp knife a&ainst the bark preferably as close as possible below a node, movin& the knife in circular motion around the stem$ A similar cut is made &enerally about < cm to 9 cm below the first cut, but it can be wider with lar&er stems$ The two cuts are then connected by a strai&ht cut and the bark is pried loose and removed$

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The debarked portion of the stem is then scraped to remove the phloem and cambium, that slippery coatin& on the wood, to prevent the wound from healin& and the upper and lower barks from reconnectin&$ 4, 2littin an$ %e$ in 'n herbaceous plants, an inward cut is made startin& from below a node and sli&htly upward$ The cut has to traverse the hori2ontal line that marks the node at the point about halfway of the thickness of the stem and terminate above the same node$ 'n other words, this slantin& cut must be able to severe the hori2ontal connection of the node$ %oir dust, spha&num moss or a piece of wood or any other suitable material is then inserted into the wound to serve as wed&e$ The purpose of this wed&e is to keep the upper and lower cut surfaces apart and prevent healin& 5ust like in &irdlin& and scrapin&$ 5, Placin an$ 2ec#rin the Rootin !e$i#) A sli&htly moistened spha&num moss or coconut coir dust is placed around the debarked stem and wrapped with a piece of plastic sheet$ A transparent plastic sheet is preferred to be able to see later if roots have developed$ 'n many plant species, however, the stems can be marcotted even with pure soil$

The rootin& medium may be as thick as ( inch (<$9 cm from side to side or bi&&er dependin& on the earliness to develop roots and si2e of the stem$ The lon&er is the time reCuired to induce rootin& and the bi&&er is the stem, the thicker should be the rootin& medium$

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Both ends of the plastic sheet are &athered and tied securely a&ainst the stem, with one end 5ust under the bottom part of the debarked stem (lower cut and the other a short distance above the upper part (upper cut $ 't is important that the upper cut should be covered with the rootin& medium because it is from this cut that roots form$ As an alternative, the plastic sheet may be placed first on the stem with one end tied 5ust below the lower cut$ The rootin& medium is then inserted &radually and the upper end of the plastic wrappin& is tied securely to the stem$ This techniCue is more convenient and applies with any rootin& medium which crumbles if not held by the hand$ To prevent breakin& of the stem with bi& and heavy rootin& medium, it is tied to another branch or to a stick attached to the parent plant$ 'n stems which are more or less erect, the rootin& medium can be held by any container such as broken or halved pots, cans or plastic cups with open top$ -or bi& containers, a support is needed to prevent them from droppin&$

A container can be made also with a relatively thick plastic sheet with the bottom &athered and tied 5ust below the lower cut and the top is e"panded to form a shape like that of a funnel$ The sides are overlapped and stapled$ 'n plants which easily root like #icus and croton or san francisco (Codiaeum variegatum , this funnelshaped container can be made out of some thick leaves$ The sides are secured in place by piercin& with a stick$ The container is then filled with rootin& medium which is kept moist by re&ular waterin&$ 6, 2eparation of the Air Layer or !arcot Fro) the Parent Plant The rooted shoots are severed from the parent plant when plenty of roots have developed$ At this time the rootin& medium becomes hard and rou&h when touched$ Aew shoots will also have sprouted from the portion of the stem immediately below the rootin& medium$ 'n many plant species this occurs at least (9 days from marcottin&$ 7, Pottin The marcotted shoot is immediately potted into suitable container$ The intensity of care that will ensure the successful establishment of the layers will depend on various factors such as si2e of the shoot, si2e

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of the rootin& medium, and profuseness of roots$ -or ma"imum survival, the newly potted layers are kept under partial shade and hi&h humidity$ ,u&&estion: try it on croton (or san francisco or balete (#icus spp$ $ By actually doin& it, you will reali2e very shortly how easy it is to propa&ate plants by marcottin&$

#!-!#!A%!, AB!LLAA:,A AL, PAGA FE$ (4/)$ 'ntroduction to %rop ,cience$ %E=, Eusuan, Bukidnon: Publications :ffice$ <*9 p$ FA#TEAAA FT, H!,T!# 8!$ (4)9$ Plant Propa&ation: Principles and Practices$ ;rd ed$ !n&lewood %liffs, A$.$, =,A: Prentice Fall, 'nc$ p$ *99-*)0$ (Ben B$ Bare5a$ <+(+

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