Tips on growing your own onions, okra, and siling labuyo

With market prices shooting up, Filipinos are left counting their coins just to afford even the most basic goods.

One thing to consider during these tough times is growing some of these goods yourselves.

In a segment of GMA News and Public Affairs' Good News, horticulturist Russell Andaquig demonstrated how simple it could be to plant your own onions, okra, tomatoes, and even the recently infamous siling labuyo.

Onions

You only need matured onions to be able to plant your own.

Slice off the top and bottom of the onion, and then submerge it in water for a week until it grows roots and sprouts.

When the sprout is green, the onion can then be transferred to pots filled with garden soil, and placed in an area where it can get sunlight.

The sprouts must be watered once a day.

In three months, fresh onions may be harvested.

Onions cost P20 per kilo in the market—zero if you plant your own.

Okra

Cut out the seeds from ripe okra and dry them out in the sun.

The seeds must then be planted in a soilless potting mix placed in a seedling tray.

Once the seeds have sprouted, they may then be transferred to pots filled with garden soil.

Place the pots in sunlight and water the plants twice a day.

The okra can be harvested in three to four months.

From P10 for 8 pieces of okra, consumers now pay P10 for only 5 pieces. This way, they don't need to spend at all.

Tomatoes

Similar to okra, the seeds must be cut out of ripe tomatoes and left out to dry.

Plant the seeds in a seedling tray filled with soilless potting mix, and transfer them to bigger pots once they sprout.

Water the plants twice a day.

After four months, the tomatoes can be harvested. You would no longer need to pay P100 per kilo of tomatoes in the market.

Siling labuyo

With rising sili prices making headlines, many are turning to planting their own peppers.

You need only to get the seeds from ripe sili, place them on a tissue, and dry them out in the sun.

Plant the seeds in a seedling tray filled with a soilless potting mix and transfer them to separate pots after five to seven days.

Harvest is after two to three months.

According to the report, onions, okra, tomatoes, and siling labuyo are annual crops, which means the plants will die once they bear fruit.

Filipinos are urged to plant plenty so they may be able to harvest plenty as well. — Jessica Bartolome/BM, GMA News