Los Baños, Laguna—The Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development of the Department of Science and Technology (PCAARRD) has approved funding of the project for the conservation and mass production of high-yielding and resistant Felcata tree seeds in Mindanao area.
The project, “Conservation and Mass Production of High yielding Falcata Seed Sources in Mindanao,” aims to select the best performing seed sources from the falcata multi-location trials in Mindanao and develop techniques on the mass production of superior seed sources via clonal propagation, Eirene Grace Z. Arcayos of PCAARRD S&T Media Services said.
The Central Mindanao University in Maramag, Bukidnon will implement the project.
The output of this project will be important in the long-term eradication of underperforming or low-quality falcata populations in the country especially those being used or sold widely by tree farmers and wood industries in Mindanao.
These efforts are expected to improve the wood supply in the country and hence the income of farmers engaged in tree farming, Arcayos reported.
The project also aims to develop IEC materials, which will feature protocols on falcata clonal seed orchard establishment and clonal propagation techniques, for dissemination or capacity-building needs of falcata farmers in Mindanao, she said.
The project serves as 2nd phase of the program, “Advancement of Science for the Sustainable Utilization and Conservation of Forest Genetic Resources of Falcata and Yemane.”
It involves selecting information on the best genetic performance from seed lots collected from various sources that will eventually produce superior trees of yemane and falcata.