The old methods of farming, used several centuries ago, are being revived by Ifugao planters, ethnic residents who are determined to save the centuries-old rice terraces in Banawe, northern Luzon, a tourist attraction.
"If the project will succeed, we can say the old way is still the best way to preserve the rice terraces, which is one of the eight wonders of the world," said David de Vera, head of the Philippine Association for Inter-cultural Development.
"They think it is the best way to save their farms and the rice terraces as well," he added.
Many environmentalists have been observing the revival approach being implemented by the local leaders of the Ifugaos in Banawe.
"Right now, we are trying to revive the indigenous way of the Ifugaos (a northern ethnic group) in upland farming," said Angelito Dulinayan, former Kiangan vice mayor and project coordinator of the Ifugao rice terraces and cultural heritage office.
Last week, he led a ritual which began with the preparation of the rice fields. Gov. Teodoro Baguilat Jr., together with two high priests, danced and dug several paddies on the fields, in preparation for the planting of rice in a ritual called bolnat.
Another ritual called "lukya" started earlier, when the rice fields were cleared. Next week, the same priests, planters and local government officials will perform "hipngat," when vegetable mounds are placed on the rice fields.
Soon, the Ifugaos will plant a native rice variety, which their ancestors used before, on 100 rice paddies in Julungan and Nagacadan villages.
This part of the planting season is called panal, when the seeds are laid in the seedbed. At this time, native high priests will chant their rituals as Ifugao women start planting tinwon, a variety of native rice which is being revived for planting on the rice terraces.
The season is followed with weeding, slope clearing, waiting for the rice grains to mature, the harvest and the post harvest.
After the harvest, rice paddies also serve as planting areas for alternate crops through organic farming, Dulinayan said. The rice paddies, which look like ribbons waving at the edge of tall mountains, have continuous source of flowing water.
This kind of engineering feat, created by the ancestors of the Ifuganos more than 1,000 years ago, is believed to protect the vegetables from pests and diseases. The community will be performing the planting rituals annually for a good harvest, said Dulinayan.
Earlier, Unesco declared the villages with endangered rice terraces as world heritage sites.
For five years, foreign and local experts have been trying to solve the problem of erosion which could destroy the rice terraces. The rice-planting activities will serve as a test if the indigenous way of farming can be restored and will prove effective in preserving the rice terraces, Dulinayan explained.
He also objected to critics who said the ongoing revival of the rituals for the planting season is meant to romanticise the ethnic culture and not to promote a scientific way of farming on the rice terraces. The aim of the provincial government is to restore the old farming practices that had built the rice terraces, said Dulinayen, adding that the old way "must have a scientific basis".
"We are trying to inculcate in our people here the fact that the old way of farming is still the best despite the introduction of agricultural modernisation," said Dulinayan, who said he will lead the information campaign on the wonders of the old ways of farming.
Blaming the modernisation of the old planting system as the culprit in the deterioration of the rice terraces, Dulinayan said, "The rice terraces started to deteriorate when the modern ways of planting rice were implemented."
The project is funded by the P50 million ($943,396) grant which was given to the provincial government to restore and preserve the rice terraces in four towns: Kiangan, Banaue, Hungduan and Mayoyao towns.
Gulf News 2003
