LA TRINIDAD, BENGUET?The province has sustained its annual vegetable production average of 500,000 metric tons despite abnormal weather changes attributed to climate change.

Agriculturists, however, admit they are now alarmed by the unusual growth of pests that could ruin future harvests.

?Due to climate change, we now have pests that grow outside their normal cycles,? said Lolita Bentres, provincial agriculturist.

Bentres cited the case of the army worm, a pest that thrives on rice and vegetables. ?The pest now grows fast and infests gardens early,? she said. Other pests appear to have emerged out of season and this would mean trouble for other crops the province is known for, like strawberries and cut flowers, Bentres said.

Good practice

In response, the Department of Agriculture (DA) and local agriculture bodies have collaborated to teach farmers a planting module called Good Agriculture Practices (GAP).

The DA said GAP provides mechanisms for seed control and quality, integrated pest management, proper soil and water conservation measures, organic farming, integrated soil nutrient management and the development of disease-resistant crop varieties, which farmers could use to shield their lands against destructive pests.

Thrips, mites, leaf miners and army worms are the most common pests that destroy the province?s vegetables, rice and strawberry farms.

Changing times

Bentres said the farmers previously indicated they had no problems controlling pests because their cycles allowed them to predict when they may attack the fields, giving farmers time to deal with them.

?The army worms now appear even before the planting season for rice in areas dependent on rainfall. Usually, they appear during the planting season in June to August. Today, they are already there as early as summer,? she said.

While GAP can offer farmers common strategies to beat the pests, the province needs its own data bank to record and study the new growth cycles of pests because of changes in the weather.

The provincial agriculture office also noted that the rapid deterioration of forest covers and the extensive use of chemical farm inputs have worsened the effects of climate change on the growth of pests. The burning of forests destroyed the habitat of predators or beneficial insects that are used to fight harmful pests, Bentres said.

Immune pests

Massive pesticide use on the soil also gave harmful insects time to render evolved immunities, allowing them to survive and multiply with impunity, she said. ?It appears that climate change has made beneficial pests lose to harmful pests,? the agriculturist said.

In San Ildefonso, Bulacan, vegetable producers said the province may be reeling from an oversupply of crops, due ironically to the long drought in the first half of 2010 and the government?s response to last year?s freak typhoons.

Because no storms disrupted planting, most farms produced an abundant supply of eggplants, string beans, green pepper, bitter melon, okra, squash and tomatoes that now flood the markets.

Cheaper goods

Daisy Duran, a farmer of Barangay Baswit and president of the San Ildefonso Vegetable Growers Association (SIVGA), said farmers have agreed to sell at low prices to recoup some of their investments.

She said only tomato commands a high price of P70 a kilo these days. Eggplants and bitter melon sell for P35 to P40 a kilo, while a kilo of green pepper sells for P5 a kilo. Delmar Cariño, Inquirer Northern Luzon and Carmela Reyes-Estrope, Inquirer Central Luzon