First Issue Vol.1, No.
1 ISSN 2094 - 1765
UNIVERSITY SPEARHEADS PLANT DATABASE
FOR HORTICULTURAL SCIENTISTS AND FARMERS
by Norberto R. Bautista
Computers are now a indispensable
tool in bio-informatics and agriculture
October 2008
Plant information and farming
techniques for specific crops or plant varieties
are oftentimes difficult to find. Cultural
requirements of plants often change from one
place to another since climate, pests, and soil
vary from place to place. An example would
be growing techniques for vegetables in
Laguna is different from Tarlac. Vegetable
varieties planted in Baguio differ from those
in the lowland plains of Bulacan. Different
farm practices and planting techniques vary
from place to place, like for example, the
different cultural practices for coffee plants in
Cavite is different from those in other areas.
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 With these problems at hand, the Rizal Technological University (RTU) at
Mandaluyong City has initiated the move to document the farming practices of
Filipino farmers and the plant varieties they use in an electronic database, called
HORTIVAR. The project is being funded by the Food and Agriculture
Organization of the United Nations (UN-FAO), located in Rome. As of present,
RTU as the principal HORTIVAR Partner, has already trained a lot of other
possible HORTIVAR partners here in the Philippines like Isabela State
University, Benguet State University, Bureau of Plant Industry in Baguio, and
Tarlac College of Agriculture. By the way, the database actually has an
international coverage, and it has a lot of members from different countries
around the world as well.

HORTIVAR is FAO's database on performance of horticultural cultivars in

relation to agro-ecological conditions, cultivation practices, the occurrence of
pests and diseases and timing of the production. It covers six categories of
horticultural crops, namely: fruits, vegetables, roots and tubers, ornamentals,
mushrooms, herbs and condiments.

The Database allows users to identify cultivars and cropping practices

adapted to their specific requirements and environment. It is an easy tool for
quick retrieval of information related to horticulture cultivars around the world. It
also has a digital picture database so that the appearance of the plant can be
identified. It has a standard methodology of data recording of cultivar trials, with
a source of data analysis and extrapolation. The database output can be made
as a Most of the description
template and cultural
for educational requirements
purposes of these
in college Philippine
and grown vegetables
universities. The plantand
fruits are now available at Hortivar.
data entries also shows the HORTIVAR partner who encoded the data their
contact information, thus, growers can consult plant researchers and resource
persons through email. It is also a tool for quick retrieval of information on seed
sources or planting material.

URL Address of the Hortivar Website

The project addresses the needs of crop producers, the public and private
sector, seed companies and also horticultural research centers for information
management related to horticultural crop cultivars in different agro-climatic
environments.

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 Anyone can actually participate in the HORTIVAR project in two ways.
One could be just an ordinary researcher, who looks for plant information (data
retrieval), or as a resource person or partner who enters plant data into the
database (data entry). Access and use of the database is FREE of charge.
Anyone who has background in computing or knows how to access the internet
can retrieve data from the HORTIVAR Website by searching through the sorted
files according to various parameters such as crop species, cultivar, country of
origin, geographical references, pest resistance, eco-zone and production
systems.

People living in remote areas in the Philippines can access the plant
database, as long as they have electricity and an internet signal. The database
is also accessible through CD format and printed format. It is time to help our
farmers by providing the much needed information for them to produce food
crops of our ever growing population. Interested persons can contact The RTU
Research & Development Center at http://www.plantbiotechlab-rtu.com or the
HORTIVAR team at http://www.fao.org/hortivar .

OCTOBER IS THE BLOOMING SEASON OF THE WALING-WALING

The WALING-WALING Orchid, or
scientifically known as the Vanda
sanderiana is one of the most important
and popular Philippine orchid species
from Davao. It is now seldom seem in
the wild, but through conservation
efforts, it has been mass-produced by
orchid tissue culture laboratories in the
Philippines to cope up with the demand
for both local and international market.
It was intended to replace our
national flower – the Sampaguita, which
originated from India. Our Waling
The Waling-Waling is considered the “Queen of
Waling is found only in the Philippines.
all Orchids” due to its majestic appearance. It
The plant is now being as a parent in all
blooms in August to October, usually after 3-4
vandaceous hybridazation works,to give
weeks of continuous rain. The bloom usually
full, round, large flowers.
last for almost 2 weeks.

The Urban Gardener is an official electronic publication (in PDF Format) of the Plant
Biotechnology Project, Research & Development Center, Rizal Technological University,
Boni Avenue, Mandaluyong City, Philippines. It is published monthly. For more
information, please inquire thru email: rdc_rtu@yahoo.com or plantbiotech_rtu@yahoo.com
and landline (+632)534-8267 Local 135 or Fax (+632) 534-9710.
The Plant Biotechnology Project Committee is composed of: Alexander B.
Quilang, Norberto R. Bautista, Jovita A. Anit & Carnette C. Pulma.

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Blooming of the Rare Alba form of the Vanda sanderiana

October is the flowering

season of the majestic Vanda
sanderiana or locally known as Waling
Waling. One orchid which is rarely
seen in Garden shows is the albino or
yellow form of the Waling-Waling or
scientifically known as Vanda
sanderiana var. albata which was
previously described by Prof. Heinrich
G. Reichenbach in the Gardeners’
Chronicle in 1887.

It is similar to the ordinary

Waling Waling,. But the growth habit
and flower size are just a little smaller
than those of the species. The normal
Waling-Waling has pale pink dorsal
sepal and petals with some dark
spotting toward the center, the lateral
sepals greenish brown with darker
brown tessellations. However, the rare
alba form has yellowish green lateral
sepals instead of the usual greenish
brown. The plant commands a high
price compared to the usual Waling
Waling.
The rare albino form of Waling Waling.

The plant was reported to originate from Davao del Sur and South Cotobato on
Mindanao Island where it grows as an epiphyte at elevations to 500 meters. This variety
is extremely rare in its natural habitat. Because of its rareness, orchid collectors usually
willing to pay twice the price compared to the common Waling-Waling.

This orchid is rarely seen now in the wild, but various orchid laboratories are now
mass-producing this very important Philippine species so that it will be readily available
and the plant be conserved. The plant is also used in orchid hybridization to produce the
modern vandaceous hybrids of today.

The plant is actually easy to grow, though it is slow growing and will take 5 years
to flower from seedlings.

How to Grow this Plant.

Light. The plant will prefer a partly shaded location and protected from full sun.
The plant will prefer exposure to morning sun and could tolerate direct sun, but must be
protected from it during very hot months. Sunlight can be filtered using 2-3 layers of net
8 feet above the plants during the summer period.

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 Watering. This plant prefers and tolerates a little bit drier condition. Water the
plant once a day or even less, like once every other day, and keep the surroundings and
companion plants moist to provide high humidity.

Ventilation. Provide the plant with a slightly breezy location, but protected from
very strong winds. Air movement will prevent the plant from rotting specially during the
rainy season.

Potting Media & Potting Technique. Vanda sanderiana potted on plastic or

hardwood baskets (hanging), tree fern slabs, or in drift woods, with their root well
exposed. They can also be grown in coarse brick and charcoal mix-tures in pots on
benches, or hanging, in which case they can also be grown in hardwood baskets with
little or no pot-ting mixture required. The roots are thick and will grow out of the pot or
other container; hanging plants often develop a mass of pendent aerial roots. Such
plants do well, but must be kept moist. This can mean misting the plants several times
daily, since without pot-ting material to retain moisture, the plants will dry out rather
quickly. They will not tolerate wet roots, but do well when hung over wet rather than dry
ground.

Fertilization. Use foliar fertilizer, and spray recommended dose once every
week usually after watering, or more often as long as the dosage is reduced. A teaspoon
of balanced orchid foliar fertilizer in a gallon of water and sprayed once a week, specially
in the morning is sufficient.

Pest & Diseases Management. Waling waling plants are susceptible to sucking
insects like mites, aphids and scales. Spray a dilute solution of Perla soap to protect the
plant from insects or spray Lannate or Sevin insecticide if heavy infestation occurs.
During rainy season, spray plants with dilute solution of Captan or Dithane fungicide to
protect plants from rotting due to water-borne fungal diseases.

Propagation. This plant can be propagated by top cutting. Sterilize all cutting
instruments first by washing with soap and water and squabbling with isopropyl alcohol
before using to prevent transfer of viruses. Top-cuts are repotted on plastic or wooden
baskets or clay pots with charcoal. Seal wounds with fungicide paste and do not water
top cuttings for 3 days to prevent rotting. Water afterwards to induce establishment of
roots. New shoots will usually sprout from the severed stem. Fertilized with foliar fertilizer
to make plants healthy.

It can also be propagated by seeds. Flowering season is August-September, and

with this, flowers can be pollinated in order to produce fruit capsules with seeds which
will usually be ready for harvest at about 5 months after pollination. Seeds from fruit
capsules can be sown inside the laboratory, in sterile artificial nutrient media, using
embryo culture techniques. Selected forms can also be micropropagated using meristem
culture or culture of young inflorescence.

The Urban Gardener is an official electronic publication (in PDF Format) of the Plant
Biotechnology Project, Research & Development Center, Rizal Technological University, Boni
Avenue, Mandaluyong City, Philippines. It is published monthly. For more information, please
inquire thru email: rdc_rtu@yahoo.com or plantbiotech_rtu@yahoo.com and landline
(+632)534-8267 Local 135 or Fax (+632) 534-9710.