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SOIL REQUIREMENT
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The soil should be fertile, deep,
well drained, and with good aeration. Sandy, loamy or
clay loam soil which is high in organic matter is the
most ideal.
Heavy clay soil and marginal soil can be improved by
digging bigger planting hole and mixing the top soil
with rice hull, sawdust or sand and carabao manure or
compost to improve fertility and to promote aeration.
Land Preparation
Plow and harrow the soil until it is
pulverized. Do not work the soil when wet because the
soil structure will be destroyed making the clay soil
more compact. To completely eliminate weeds especially
cogon, plowing should be done during the dry season or
at least 2-3 months before the rainy season.
Place stakes in the areas where the trees shall be
planted. Distancing shall be based on the growth
performance of the cultivar. Before removing the stakes
when digging, the hole must have another guide mark or
planting board to make sure that the trees shall form
straight rows when planted. Put a 6-inch stake on both
sides of the hole as planting board. Locate it 1 1/2 to
2 feet from the middle of the hole. This will be the
guide where the tree shall be planted which shall be at
the middle of the two small stakes.
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If your soil is heavy clay, dig 2
feet x 2 feet x 2 feet. The poorer the soil, the
bigger the hole should be. Loam black soil, on the
other hand, can be smaller up to 1 foot x 1 foot x 1
foot
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For heavy clay and poor soil, mix
it with two sacks of rice hull, sawdust or sand and
one sack of carabao, horse or cow manure. Mix
thoroughly.
Note: Do not use fresh chicken
manure because it will produce methane gas during
decomposition damaging the roots of the cultivars.
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