The Philippines has many places serving as haven to numerous rare and economically important flora and fauna.  One of these is Don Mariano, a town in Misamis Occidental in Mindanao.  Three of its barangays, Mansawan, Gandawan, and Lake Duminagat, house endemic, rare, and economically valuable plants.  As an offshoot of a previous research by Amoroso and Arances in 2002, Amoroso et al. (CMU), together with the Wageningen University in the Netherlands, led a project that identified, evaluated, and mass propagated endemic plants by establishing a nursery, greenhouse, and community garden involving the local community as an ex situ conservation strategy.  The project ran from June 2003 to May 2005.

Findings

• Wildlings and other plants identified as rare or valuable rainforestation species included 'almaciga' (Agathis philippinensis), 'kalingag' (Cinnamomum mercadoi), Medinilla sp., and running clubmoss (Lycopodium clavatum).
• The local community actively participated in selecting priority plants, wildlings, and seedlings from the forest.  Wildlings potted in various potting media including Mansawan garden soil, showed no significant difference in percentage survival.  This indicated that the wildlings could grow well even in Mansawan garden soil with low organic matter content.  Wildlings planted along the road and tails also showed high percentage survival thus, proving these could be easily propagated as rainforestation species.
• Cuttings of two ornamental plants, Medenilla sp. and Lycopodium clavatum, had high percentage survival when potted in Mansawan garden soil.  Likewise, germinated spores of Diplazium esculentum showed high percentage survival, forming sporophytes when inoculated in spore culture medium + 2% glucose.  These plants were included in the established nursery and community economic garden that had become livelihood projects for the community.

The study led to the drating of barangay resolutions: 1) in Mansawan, an area in the barangay will be selected as a site for reforestation.  The local community will participate in the tree planting activities, and 20 pasturing of animals along the trails and roads where the wildlings have been out-planted will be prohibited.

Source:Philippine Council for Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resources Research and Development.  Highlights 2005. Los Baños, Laguna:  PCARRD, 2006. 167p.