SALT of the earth and its mission -2

Diversified farming

''Basically, SALT is a method of growing field and permanent

crops in 3-meter to 5-meter-wide bands between contoured rows

of nitrogen fixing trees and shrubs (NFT/S) like Flemingia

macrophylla, Desmodium rensonii and Leucaena

leucocephala.

''The NFT/S are thickly planted in double rows to make

hedgerows. When a hedge is 1.5 to 2 meters tall, it is cut down

to about 40 centimeters and the cuttings (tops) are placed in

alleyways to serve as organic fertilizers.

''SALT is a diversified farming system,'' Palmer says.

Rows of permanent crops like coffee, cacao, citrus and other

fruit trees are dispersed throughout the farm plot. The strips not

occupied by permanent crops are planted alternately to cereals

(corn, upland rice, sorghum, etc.) or other crops (sweet potato,

melon, pineapple, etc.) and legumes (soybean, mung bean,

peanut, etc.). This cyclical cropping provides the farmer harvest

throughout the year.

SALT was developed on a marginal site in Kinuskusan,

Bansalan, Davao del Sur. In 1971, the MBRLC started to employ

contour terraces in the sloping areas of the farm. Dialogues with

local upland farmers acquainted the center with farm problems

and needs which gave impetus to efforts find relevant and

appropriate upland farming systems.

Technologies for the poor

From testing different intercropping schemes and observing

Leucaena-based farming systems in Hawaii and at the center,

the SALT was finally verified and completed in 1978.

Since then, other techniques followed: Simple Agro-Livestock

Technology (SALT 2), in which goat raising is introduced into

the system; Sustainable Agroforest Land Technology (SALT 3),

a food-wood combination of farming; and Small Agrofruit

Livelihood Technology, where fruits are grown together with

other crops.

All the SALT techniques have the one thing in common: simple,

applicable, low-cost and timely methods of farming uplands.

They are technologies developed for farmers with few tools,

little capital and little knowledge in agriculture.

Contour lines are run by using an A-frame transit that any

farmer can make and use. A farmer can grow varieties of crops

he is familiar with and old-farming patterns can be used in the

SALT system.

If farmers leave the SALT farm, like some tribal groups in

Mindanao do, the NFT/S will continue to grow and overshadow

the crop area. By the time the land is reverted to cultivation, the

soil has been enriched already by the large amount of leaves of

the NFT/S and there is no erosion to contend with. In addition,

the trees may be harvested for firewood or charcoal.

Changing lives

A study conducted at the MBRLC has shown that the SALT

system can curb erosion. A SALT farm has an average soil loss

of 4.83 tons per hectare per year. In comparison, the traditional

upland farming system registered an average soil loss of 101.69

tons per hectare per year.

Since its introduction, SALT has changed thousands of lives in

Mindanao.

In 1985, it brought founder Watson the coveted Ramon

Magsaysay Award for International Understanding, often called

the ''Nobel Prize of Asia.'' Other prizes followed, including a

citation from then President Corazon Aquino in 1989 and a

World Food Day Silver Medal from the UN Food and

Agriculture Organization in 1991.

The success of SALT has convinced Isabela Rep. Heherson

Alvarez to file House Bill No. 597 that seeks to grant

collateral-free loans and a 20 percent property tax exemption for

the first five years to farmers who follow the SALT method of

farming.

''Distribution of all crops suitable for programs as well as . . . the

latest in upland technology through research and development

shall also be provided to farmers who use SALT,'' Alvarez said.

Through its affiliate, Asian Rural Life Development Foundation,

workers from the MBRLC have taught SALT methods all over

Asia. More than 3,000 people from Asia, Africa, Europe, the

Middle East and South America have come to the center itself

for training. ''If SALT were applied in all the tropical uplands

damaged by soil erosion, the lives of half a billion poor people

could be improved,'' Palmer said.