A Glimpse Into Our Farming Life: As full-time farmers whose primary livelihood depends on agriculture, we don't simply consider ourselves fortunate or unfortunate, but we enjoy working on the land and love what we do.

Hello to all the amazing and hardworking fellow farmers out there!

I hope you're all doing well and in good health. Today, I’d like to share a glimpse of our life as full-time farmers here in the Philippines.

Here in the Philippines, where we only experience two seasons, we usually have to wait 3 to 4 months before we can harvest our crops or vegetables. That’s the only time we earn money—and even then, it depends on the market price. Sometimes we earn well, but other times, we barely make enough.

However, the waiting time before harvest can vary depending on the location, mainly due to differences in climate. In warmer areas, crops tend to grow faster and can be harvested earlier. In cooler areas, like here in Benguet, the growing period takes a bit longer. For example, carrots and potatoes usually take about 3 to 4 months to mature, while cabbage typically takes around 3 months—depending on the size of the cabbage heads.

While waiting for harvest season, we dedicate our time to maintaining the crops. This includes applying artificial fertilizers to help ensure a good-quality harvest, as well as regularly removing weeds—which, if left unattended, can grow even larger than the cabbage or carrots. We also need to apply pesticides, insecticides, or fungicides, depending on the specific needs of the crops. Farm monitoring is a constant and essential part of the process.

We don’t limit ourselves to just one type of crop. Here, we grow cabbage, carrots, and potatoes, and sometimes we also plant broccoli, Chinese cabbage, and onion leeks. We plant them in rotation or depending on the season, to maintain soil health and ensure better harvests. Since farming is our main source of income, we work hard to plant a variety of vegetables to help maximize our earnings.

Relying on just one crop is risky, as market prices change constantly sometimes even by the minute, hour and day. To make sure we can at least earn enough to cover our needs, especially food and expenses for the next planting season, we make sure to plant only what we can manage and monitor properly within our capacity.

Sometimes, if we have free time, instead of wasting it, we reach out to landowners to ask if they have available farmland we can cultivate. In this arrangement, they provide the funding, we handle the planting and maintenance, and after the harvest, we split the income 50/50 after deducting all the expenses involved in farming.

Truly, farming is not an easy job. It can leave you exhausted, with body aches after a long day of work—sometimes under the scorching sun or during heavy rain. But all the hard work becomes worth it when your crops grow well, especially if market prices are good. One of the great things about being a farmer is having fresh vegetables on the table, straight from the farm—for free. Farming is a real and essential job. Without farmers, we wouldn't have vegetables to eat. Only fellow farmers can truly understand this kind of life.

Thank you for taking time to read my farm vlog.

*Note: photos are mine, edited in canva.