How to Grow Cantaloupe or Melon from Seeds

July 14, 2019July 15, 20194 Comments

Let me give you a little background about what Cantaloupe is because when I was doing my research, I used the term “Melon” and it brought me to pages and pages of watermelon instructions. That’s when I found out that what we know as “Melon” here in the Philippines is more properly called Cantaloupe in general. Here’s what a Cantaloupe is according to Wikipedia:

The cantaloupe, rockmelon, sweet melon, or spanspek is a melon that is a variety of the muskmelon species from the Cucurbitaceae family. Cantaloupes range in weight from 0.5 to 5 kilograms. Wikipedia

Scientific name: Cucumis melo var. cantalupensis

Family: Cucurbitaceae

Higher classification: Muskmelon

Order: Cucurbitales

Subspecies: C. melo subsp. melo

Rank: Cultivar

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#MyGreenCDO – In Support of CDO Bloggers 2019 Social Media Advocacy

June 27, 2019August 17, 20193 Comments

This will be a very short and sweet blog post as I am running a little fever today. I guess all those sleepless nights have caught up with my poor human body and realized that I am not a robot, that I get drained too. I actually should be resting right now. I really did go to bed 4 hours ago after sending an email to my client saying I’m sick because I was already shivering. I was so looking forward to slumber and waking up feeling all better and refreshed because I got a ton of work to do but our 3-year-old kept rolling all over me urging me to play with him. I, of course, reprimanded him, several times, to no avail. I didn’t want to be stressed further and I didn’t want my toddler to get sick too so I got up, sat here in my little office where he usually leaves me in peace when he knows I’m on work mode. I turned my Kenko back massager on and was planning to sleep upright but then I couldn’t sleep. You know that feeling when you’re so very tired, your bones feel like they’re shaking from overfatigue but you could not sleep? It’s such a bummer! So I thought I might as well do something a little productive. I did promise myself that day I ranted about being a sleep-deprived mom that I’ll blog every day no matter how short. This is after all my online diary and more than a blogger, I am a diarist.

So having said that, I just want to share here with you the CDO Bloggers Group’s latest social media advocacy for 2019 — #MyGreenCDO, which I am really happy and excited about! Continue reading →

Haciendera Mode On: Tuscany Highlands Virtual Farm Tour

October 29, 2018December 13, 20196 Comments

People would always ask us if they can visit our farm. They could if they really want to. But because it’s such a far away place to go to being situated on top of a mountain where the roads are not yet paved, and the weather can be erratic, I’m going to just give you a virtual tour of our farm instead. You can click this link to begin your tour: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYpJ-u3yNtA&feature=youtu.be Or watch the video below…

Tuscany Highlands Farm is a set of scattered farmlands totaling to 8 hectares. These are mostly lands of Mahal’ parents, 2 hectares of which are personally awarded to Mahal by the Dept. of Agrarian Reform.

We have yet to fully develop the lands so what you’ll see are mostly corn fields, coffee forests, mountainous grasslands and the parcel of land (about 3-4 hectares where we are currently planting our green leafy vegetables, mushrooms, bell peppers, chili peppers and corn.

Come with me as I show you our farm…

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How to Rise Above a Negative Mental State – Here are 6 Steps Based on My Own Experience as of Late

September 2, 2018September 4, 20181 Comment

I don’t want to make any excuses for not being able to post here when I said I would. But what I will do instead is to tell you the truth.

I’ve been feeling OVERWHELMED… and BURNT OUT as of late… I was aware of this state I was in but I didn’t want to further magnify it by telling people how I just found myself crying out of the blue, how I suddenly just felt so depressed and ungrateful, how I’ve thought of leaving Mahal and Tuz… I didn’t mention anything about it on social media or as it was happening. But now that THAT PHASE is over, now that I think I have overcome those negative thoughts and feelings for the most part, perhaps it would be helpful for others in the same boat to let them know that they’re not alone and that no matter how bad those feelings can get, there is always a way (or ways) to overcome it and come out better than ever. Continue reading →

How to Grow Peppers the Easy Way

May 31, 2018June 3, 20182 Comments

Growing peppers (sili) from seeds use pretty much the same method as growing tomatoes. I actually planted my hot pepper seeds the same time I planted my okra seeds, eggplants seeds, and tomato seeds.

Refer to this post to know what you should do to prepare your mini vegetable garden: How to Make a Mini Vegetable Garden

By the way, I’m actually on the 23rd day of my very own self-imposed 30-day blog post challenge which also propelled me to restart doing other things I love and one of them is planting vegetables (obviously!)

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Farm Life in the Philippines – What is It Like? (Part 2)

May 16, 2018May 17, 20183 Comments

I’m now on the 8th day of my very own self-imposed 30-day blog post challenge which also propelled me to restart doing other things I love and one of them is actually living at the farm. This is Part 2. If you missed Part 1, you can read it here: FARM LIFE IN THE PHILIPPINES – WHAT IS IT LIKE? (PART 1)

OUR FARM LIFE TODAY

Tuz and I came to the farm with Mahal last Saturday. I honestly thought that we’ll only be here for the weekend, just to catch some fresh air and enjoy the view, because, you know, I can be high maintenance like that. Lol. Seriously though, it’s because of the following reasons:

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Farm Life in the Philippines – What is It Like? (Part 1)

May 15, 2018May 18, 20182 Comments

I’m now on the 7th day of my very own self-imposed 30-day blog post challenge which also propelled me to restart doing other things I love and one of them is actually living at the farm.

DISCLAIMER

This is going to be a long blog post, hence the two parts. So prepare some popcorn and enjoy the first one… ^_^

BACKGROUND

What I’m going to blog about with you today is my life here at the farm to give you all a glimpse of what farming is like here in the Philippines, at least in these parts of Northern Mindanao. I used to vacation at my grandfather’s farm in Bukidnon when I was younger but of course, it’s not the same. My grandfather is a typical haciendero with all his drivers and helpers; has 2 nice farm houses complete with all the amenities of modern living and he doesn’t farm… he just orders around people to do the job and collects money from all his harvests while here, at Mahal’s farm, it’s really back to basics – no running water, no proper toilet, no proper housing and we also do the planting ourselves. There goes my expectation of being a typical haciendera down the drain. Hahaha! Work and sacrifices first before enjoying our harvests. Continue reading →

Farming is Like Mothering (A Mother’s Day Post)

May 12, 2018May 13, 20183 Comments

It’s Mother’s Day today, Philippine Time (I am perpetually on US Time Zone) and I’d like to greet everyone, especially my mom, a Happy Mother’s Day!

I’m now on the 4th day of my very own self-imposed 30-day blog post challenge which also propelled me to restart doing other things I love and one of those is enjoying our farm and doing farm stuff.

I don’t have any special blog post planned for this. I thought I could think up of something but having been sleepless the past week due to work, Tuz’s fussiness, body aches coz I started working out again, and that one small fight I had with Mahal that brought me chest pains and sleeplessness, my body caved in this weekend and I slept for 11 hours straight! It helps that we are at the farm, Mahal and I kissed and made up, the weather is so cold even without air conditioning, the air is so fresh with crickets and frogs singing in the background, it really made me fall into a long slumber. And then I woke up to this beautiful view of a hidden sunrise, who wouldn’t feel so rejuvenated and refreshed? So as the sun continues to rise in the horizon, I figured I will try to make a Happy Mother’s Day blog post.

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