By MARS W. MOSQUEDA JR.
March 9, 2010, 3:54pm
Manila Bulletin

CEBU CITY – At least 7,000 hectares of farmland planted with corn in Cebu are reported to be affected by the dry spell brought about by the El Niño phenomenon, the Department of Agriculture (DA) in Region 7 said Tuesday.

Tomasita Cadungog, Manager of DA's Central Visayas Integrated Agricultural Research Center (CENVIARC), said 7,159 hectares of corn fields in Cebu have already been affected by the dry spell.

"Cebu is slightly affected by the dry spell but not all areas are dry," said Cadungog during last Tuesday's 888 News Forum at the Marco Polo Plaza Hotel in Cebu City.

By the classification of slightly affected, Cadungog said that 1 to 25 percent of the plants of the affected farmlands have already started to wither and die.

Another 65 hectares of corn fields in Cebu have already been classified as moderately affected, which means 26 percent of the corn in the affected farms have already turned yellow to brown.

Cebu's corn fields take up the bulk of the 7,309 hectares of corn fields around Central Visayas that have already been slightly affected by the dry spell, Cadungog said.

Rice farms have also been affected as Cadungog said a total of 198 hectares of rice fields, mostly in Negros Oriental, have already been classified as moderately affected, with 314 hectares placed under the slightly affected category.

Some 77 hectares of vegetable farms have also been moderately affected by the dry spell, Cadungog said, and 113 hectares more are slight affected.

Cadungog stressed that a number of farmlands are now empty following the harvesting season on the fourth quarter of last year and most farms are in the rejuvenation state, in preparation for the planting season.

But she said that if the rainy season will start in June instead of May, the planting calendar will have to move too. At present, she said, DA is distributing open-pollinated variety (OPV) corns and other drought resistant seeds to farmers so they can have something to plant even during the dry spell.

"Considering that Cebu is devoted more to corn planting, we are planning the distribution of OPV corns and flower inducers for mango and vegetable seeds to our farmers," said Cadungog.

The DA is also working on the rehabilitation of irrigation areas to ensure the flow of water to farmlands., she said.