Farmer Junior Ople and landowner Susie Sy harvest “burlas” flowers in barangay Sirao, Cebu City to offer to family graves for All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day.
(CDN PHOTO/JUNJIE MENDOZA)
Cut flowers from the mountain backyard of Cebu City are in demand for this solemn weekend’s visits to family graves.
Elber and Nelinia Bontilao were busy packing yellow Chrysanthemums on Thursday to meet bulk orders by vendors in Freedom Park, Cebu City.
Like neighbors in sitio Tawagan in barangay Sirao, the Bontilao couple started to harvest their flower beds on Monday to deliver bulk orders for the All Saints’ and All Souls’ Days.
“Amo lang pahimuslan ang kusog nga palit karon kay mag huwat na sad mi ani sa December usa maka halin ug usab (We have to take advantage of the demand because the next demand will be in December yet),” Elber said.
While the couple worked in a small shed along the road, their children – Dorena – 7, Apple – 5, Genesis – 3 and Roxanne – 2 played nearby.
“Kinahanglan gyud maningkamot kay upat ka bata among gi-atiman (We have to work hard because we have four children to take care of),” said Elber, 33.
The couple tills a 5,000 sq. meter flower farm which they share with Elber’s parents.
They grow yellow Chrysanthemums which they sell for P70 per dozen. Celosias locally known as “tapay” come in red, orange, yellow and pink and are sold at P15 to P20 per dozen.
The prices triple when their flowers reach vendors at Carbon Market to cover the cost of transportation, market fees and middlemen.
Elber said that growing flowers is not easy.
They spend at least P10,000 as capital per square meter of their flower beds. Their expense includes the purchase of seedlings, insecticides and fungicides.
Elber said that they have to also wait about four months before they could start their harvest.
Flowers are in demand during the months of January, November and December.
On Thursday, they harvested 500 dozen crysanthemums for a vendor in Freedom Park flower.
Close to the Bontilao farm is a smaller farm of celiosas owned by Susie Sy of barangay Talamban.
Sy was at the farm on Thursday morning to pick the blooms to bring to family graves at Cempark and those that she would give to friends.
“I like the yellow and the cross breed flowers,” she said.
Sy’s caretaker, Junior Ople, 60, said a buyer from Bacolod City visited the farm on October 27. The remaining Celosia flowers planted on about 10 more beds are being set aside for a buyer who wanted these shipped to Manila.
Ople said he grows flowers for harvest especially during the Nov. 1 and 2 celebrations. On other months, he would grow ginger and vegetables.
Along the Transcentral Highway, several roadside stalls are set up from Busay to Sirao for people who wanted to get fresh flowers from its source. For a fee of at least P100, they can have their flowers arranged for a basket or a vase.