IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2015) 6-2

Research articleerd

Farm Machineries and Equipment Needs Assessmentof the Corn Block Farming in Dagohoy, Bohol, Central
Philippines: Basis for Financial and Support Services
MARINA A. LABONITE*Bohol Island State University, Bohol, Philippines
Email: mtalabonite@yahoo.com.ph

DENNIS B. JOMOC
Bohol Island State University, Bohol, Philippines
Received 28 February 2015

Accepted 30 November 2015(*Corresponding Author)

Abstract To increase production, land productivity, and farming efficiency in the cornproducing municipality of Dagohoy, Bohol, Central Philippines, the Candelaria Multi-Purpose
Cooperative of the locality in collaboration with the Department of Agrarian Reform haveproposed corn block farming involving the Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries (ARB’s) from twoAgrarian Reform Communities (ARC’s) in the area. Funding agency of the proposed projectrequired the needed number and type of machinery and equipment for a productive andprofitable corn block farming in Dagohoy, Bohol ARCs. Thus, an in depth assessment on thefarm machineries and equipment needs of corn block farming in the area was done based on thecharacterization of its natural and physical resources, as well as the size of the potential area forcorn block farming. A set of participatory rural appraisal techniques were adopted in theassessment process. After the thorough analysis of the data collected, corn block farming was
found to be suitable in the proposed project site considering soil types, climatic condition,availability of water, infrastructures, and other required facilities. The project site had 724
potential hectares for corn production. However, full mechanization was not possible due toexisting moderate slopes (8-18% slope) in some areas. Traditional farming methods atproduction stage could be integrated considering that some of the fields do not favor fullmechanization and the farming methods could also provide employment for the displaced laborin some farm operations. Due to high investment requirement, pilot production among others
could be started in a 30-40 hectare portion to be managed by the Candelaria Multi-Purpose
Cooperative.
Keywords corn block farming, needs assessment, Agrarian Reform Communities (ARCs),
common service facilities, corn machineries

INTRODUCTIONAgriculture provides food and livelihood to the people. This sector represents 1/5 of the total economy
and generates 1/3 of the Philippines total employment (Philippine Climate Change Commission, 2010).
This great contribution to the national economy communicates the government to provide the needs
and addresses the identified gaps for continuous and more contributions. Because the poverty incidence
in Bohol, Philippines was significantly reduced in 2012 after achieving 100% rice self-sufficiency level
including some other commodities, (PGBh ELA, 2011-2013), the provincial government is thrusting toincrease agricultural production for food security and economic stability in the island. The governmentis interested on mechanized farming for timely production and postharvest operations to increase yieldwith better quality products. Hence, to minimize production cost while maximizing efficiency of farmmachineries and equipment, block farming is introduced through the support of the Department ofⒸISERD172

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2015) 6-2

Agrarian Reform (DAR) Program. In Bohol, corn block farming is proposed by Candelaria Multipurpose Cooperative (Candelaria MPC) in the municipality of Dagohoy to maximize the utilization ofthe 380 hectares out of its aggregate land area of 2,302 hectares. To attain a timely production,
however, financial assistance, associated farm machineries and technical support services are highly
needed.
Based on the Sugarcane Industry Development Act of 2014 of the country, infrastructure, funding
for farm mechanization and modernization, capability trainings, and other support services areprovided for block farming. Musaba et al. (2014) also affirms that focusing access on better production
inputs will improve farm efficiency. Moreover, Asadullah et al. (2005) states that household/farmers’
education significantly reduces farm production inefficiencies, thereby, increasing productivity.
Accordingly, providing the needed input supports associated with the adoption of block farming
practice may ensure farm efficiency and productivity. To realize, and for the efficient implementationof the corn block farming project in Bohol, the Candelaria cooperative needs the information on the:number, kind/type, and specifications of the machineries and equipment which are to be used in thisimportant block farming venture. This study was conducted as commissioned by DAR.
OBJECTIVESThis study was conducted to assess the farm machineries and equipment needs of Candelaria Multipurpose Cooperative for corn block farming in a 380-hectare area in Dagohoy, Bohol, Philippines. The
objectives were specifically aimed to characterize the natural and physical resources of the community
for suitability to corn production; to determine the size of the potential area for corn block farming; todescribe the corn production and postharvest practices of the farmers; and to identify the existing farmmachineries and tools of the farmers and those needed in the operation of the corn block farming in theARCs.
METHODOLOGY
Pre-assessment activities were done through a series of consultations with the Municipal Agrarian
Reform Officer (MARO) and Chairman of the Cooperative, preparation, and revision of data collection
materials, as well as the orientation of the Research Team on the mechanics of the study. The needs
assessment used a set of tools from the participatory appraisal approach. The techniques and the data
sources were triangulated. The employed techniques were the collection and analysis of secondary datafrom the DARPO, MARO, and the Cooperative; the semi-structured survey questionnaire-aided
interview answered by the officials and members of the cooperative as well as barangay officials. Inaddition, a focus group discussion for a group interaction was conducted to obtain detailed information
on particular issues, gaps and problems regarding their needs for farm machineries for their corn block
farming enterprise, which was led by the cooperative. Descriptive and quantitative data analysis wasadopted to obtain the needed information from the different tools used.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Soil suitability of the area to corn block farming: The edaphic condition of the ARCs in Dagohoy isdominated by two soil types namely: Ubay clay and Ubay clay loam. Ubay clay covers 8,266 hectares(66.16% found in the central part of the municipality) and Ubay clay loam in the northern and easternsides, with the remaining 4,229 hectares (33.84%) of the total land area, including the south-westernborder of the municipality. The 380 hectare-corn block farm of Candelaria ARC is located at thecentral to the south-western border, (Figs. 1 and 2). These types of soil are suitable to all kinds of crops
including corn (DARPO, 2003). The most desirable soil for corn production is deep, medium textured,ⒸISERD173

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2015) 6-2

well drained, and with high organic matter and water holding capacity. Soil types with thesecharacteristics are loam, silt loam, and silty clay loam (PCARRD,1981). Hence, the soil conditions in
the ARC are very suitable for corn production but thorough land preparation remains a requirement,
which is the reason for the need of efficient farm implements and machineries.

Fig. 1 Connectivity map showing the ARC’s and ARB’s corn areas by barangay

Fig. 2 Soil Map of Bohol showing the Ubay Clay and Ubay Clay Loam soil ofthe Municipality of Dagohoy, Bohol
Climatic suitability: Most of the country’s corn-producing areas are rainfed. A good cropping of corn
is highly dependent on sustained rainfall, especially during the critical stages of the crop development(Reyes et al., 2009). It also requires fair soil moisture and warm climate. The municipality of Dagohoy
is classified as under Type IV climatic condition, characterized by more or less stable distribution ofrainfall throughout the year with moderate rainy season (kidlat.pagasa.dost.gov.ph). The averagetemperature is 28.60C with the coldest months having average temperature of 24.40C from November
to January. The relative humidity is more or less uniformed throughout the year. The area is rarely hit
by a typhoon and has high precipitation from July to November (DARPO, 2014). Hence, farmers
commonly plant corn in May for the first cropping and the second cropping in September.
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Water resources: Groundwater is the main source of potable water in the municipality. There are 3water supplies: Level 1 comprising of 618 water wells; Level 2 including communal piped watersystem; and Level 3 serving for the water system reaching respective households. There are several
springs and small creeks in Barangay Caluasan and Candelaria apart from the three rivers, namely
Wahig-Pamacsalan River, Malitbog River, and Hamoog River, which are considered potential sources
for irrigation water (DARPO, 2004). It is believed that these resources can already support corn crops
as the plant requires 4 to 5 mm of water per day. During critical periods like silking and soft doughstages, the requirement could be as much as 6 to 8 mm/day. It is estimated that the most critical point
falls around 55 days after planting (Lansigan, 2004). Literatures have stated that water should beavailable at 40 DAP during the start of flowering and reproductive stages (Reyes et al., 2009).
Slope: Most of the agricultural lands, 30-75% of the total land area, in the ARCs of Dagohoy are fromflat to undulating 0-15% slope (DARPO-DARMO, 2013). The topography of ARC Candelaria ranges
from level to rolling where 1,286 hectares have 0-3% or level to nearly level; 790 hectares have 3-8%
or gently sloping to undulating; 226 hectares with 8-18% or moderately sloping to rolling. Theseranges of slope are suitable for upland crops like corn (DARPO, 2004).
Potential production area: Barangay Candelaria, Caluasan, and Malitbog of Dagohoy have anaggregate area of 2,302 hectares of land in which 1,889 hectares (82%) is agricultural lands including
365 hectares for cornfields (DARPO, 2014). The 2013 survey found that all of the respondent-ARBs
had a total land area of 107 hectares with 38 hectares planted with corn (Fig. 2). The respondents were
only 10% of the total number of ARBs in the community. Correspondingly, the data imply that thecurrent cornfield utilization is almost similar to the one in the year 2004 with a derived value of about
380 hectares. Thus, the expected total area covering the project is 380 hectares. Data from the MARO
and CMPC show that Dagohoy has a total potential area of 724 hectares planted with corn by 34.25%(512hectares) of the ARBs. Some of the corn fields are owned by non-ARBs. There are also areas in
the ARCs that have been previously planted with cassava potentially turning to corn fields.
Average yield: Survey results of DAPRO (2013) show that the average yield of the corn fields at theARCs is 2.89 metric tons(Mt)/ha with an average production of 2.66 Mt per cropping costing anaverage of ₱5,000.00 per unit area. This production rate conforms with the average national production
rate of 2.83 Mt/ha (DARPO, 2004). The production cost is observed to be ₱6,000/ha providing anaverage income to the farmer-respondents of ₱38,000 per hectare per cropping.
Market: Corn farming in the ARCs in Dagohoy can be classified as subsistence and market driven.
Seventy percent of the respondents who own only 0.60-1.00 ha corn area belong to the subsistencegroup, as their production is intended for food security of household. Being influenced by marketing
campaigns and given supports, other corn growers evolve themselves by adopting high-yielding hybridcorn technology. The market of their hybrid corn products owns a feed mill and operates a commercial
scale hog and poultry farms (DARPO, 2013). This market driven corn farming has assured an
immediate market of its products.
Rural infrastructures: All barangays are accessible through the road networks constructed out ofgravel and limestone with about 17.0 km stretch within the ARCs. Few areas are not passable during
heavy rainy season due to sticky/muddy/slippery situations. The Pilar Irrigation System of the National
Irrigation Administration is functional and serving 440 hectares of agricultural areas in themunicipality. Gridlines for electrical source are also available to the majority of the areas. This facility
is needed in any electrically-powered stationary corn processing machineries and equipment. Means ofcommunications are also available to facilitate delivery of information to any farmer-officials andmembers (DARPO, 2004 and DARPO, 2013).
Production and postharvest practices of the corn farmers: The subsistence corn farmers in theARC employ farming methods for both production and post production operations in the same way asⒸISERD175

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2015) 6-2

the market-driven producers. There are a number of processes during production operations. Farmers
select seeds of their preferred improved varieties; hybrid; do thorough land preparation with 2-3
plowings and furrowing using carabao-drawn plow; manual planting; use commercial complete
fertilizers or do not apply any kind of fertilizer; conduct off-baring and hilling-up at knee-high stage;
perform weeding, bolo and scythe are used in traditional hand weeding; and sometimes spray chemical
pesticides for pest and disease management. Post-production activities include manual harvesting anddehusking; shelling used dull bolo or shredder; while wooden-toothed sheller or motor-driven cornshellers in shelling kernels for seeds. Sun drying in buri mats, tarpaulin, nets or drying pavement arevery common but the cooperative has mechanical drying services. Farmers deliver small volume ofcorn grains in wooden sled or motorcycle-service to buyers in the local; but corn ears in bulk are
picked-up by private feed mill operators.
Existing farm tools, equipment and machineries: The total farming households in the ARC own 621
draft animals and a total of 822 moldboard plow for land preparation (DARPO, 2004).
Table 1 The quantity, type of machineries, equipment, its specifications neededin the corn block farms in Dagohoy, Bohol with an area of 380 hectares
based on the assumptions
Quantity

Image

Technical Specifications
Front Wheel Assist (FWA), Four-wheel tractor-diesel engine,
Drawbar-96Hp (min), 172 Hp (min) PTO (includes with 6-60I disk
plow implement and an offset harrow)

5 units

Model 2BYF-3, Tractor-drawn, 3-row corn planter/seeder withfertilizer applicator

5 units

CTN Size: 1700x1620x1100 mm
1 unit13 units

No image

Self-propelled corn seeder/planter with fertilizer applicator, 3 ha
field capacity daily
Self-propelled harvester, Model 4YW-2C, 20HP, with storage tankvol (1cu.m)
CTN Size: 3200X1300x2800

The study found that the cooperative has a multipurpose drying pavement and a mechanical dryer(DA-distributed flatbed) with a shed commonly utilized in drying rice, and corn ears/grains during
inclement weather; farmers have traditional farming tools and equipment such as moldboard plow,sharp/dull bolo, scythe (long), wooden sled, home-made shredder, home-made wooden-toothed sheller
for corn grain production and buri mat. Tarpaulins were used by the majority of the farmers in corn
production and post-production.
Machineries and equipment needs and assumptions: Corn production cycle analysis was used todetermine the machinery and equipment needs of the farmers for corn block farming. The analysis
considered the current production area of 380 hectares, existing production, and post-production
practices of the corn farmers in Dagohoy, Bohol. Some assumptions were made as follows:corn
production is fully-mechanized; land preparation will be done using 4-wheeled tractor travelling at 8kph having 6-60 cm disk plow with offset, and effective width of 1.8-2.0 m.; land preparation will bedone for 30 days which includes one plowing and two harrowing operations; post-production
operations (harvesting to shelling) will be done for 15 days; tractors will be used for seeding/plantingⒸISERD176

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2015) 6-2

and fertilizer applications; self-propelled corn planter has fertilizer application function; and selfpropelled corn harvester has a capacity of 1.0 ha a day.
CONCLUSION
Considering the overall requirements of corn crop, the agricultural uplands of the municipality ofDagohoy are very suitable for corn production in terms of soil types, availability of water source
subsuming well-distributed rainfall during the year, and the weather condition which favors for its
growth and development. In a view of the field conditions, due to existing moderate slopes (8-18%) insome areas of the Municipality of Dagohoy, Bohol, only partial mechanization is possible. Engaging
into corn block farming, the Candilaria Multipurpose Cooperative needs a big investment based on theidentified machineries, equipment, technical support services, and skilled manpower required for
efficient and timely operation of the planned agri-enterprise.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Expression of deep and sincere gratitude is due to the Department of Agrarian Reform-Provincial
Office, the Municipal Agrarian Reform Office and the Candilaria Multipurpose Cooperative and theDagohoy respondent-ARBs.
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