We checked out the agri-aqua fair at the Maasin plaza the other day. Dubbed Pabulhon, it’s an annual event showcasing the best from the city’s 70 barangays. I didn’t go last year so I was pleasantly surprised to find the emphasis had shifted from ornamentals to more garden produce, including herbs and spices.
It was opening day and predictably crowded. It did not help that we took the entrance where the “agri chandeliers” were displayed (see top photo), so everyone was angling for a picture, those things were so creatively put together (I believe those chilies below the santol are ghost peppers). Jenny has a photo of another arrangement here.
An hour after opening and a number of the plants and harvested fruit were already “reserved.” The spices and herbs, not so much. It bears noting that the only herb regularly available at Philippine public markets is tangad or lemongrass (that’s if you deem ginger a spice). Mint and basil are regarded as medicinal rather than culinary, so they’re next to impossible to find save in big chain supermarkets — almost often overpriced and not always at the peak of freshness. I grabbed the first pot of mint I saw, still unaware there were lusher and cheaper specimens further in, but at ₱30, I can’t complain. Two stalls away, more mint (spearmint). Then I parted the leaves and there on the other side were row upon row of basil!
I ought to visit local fairs more often (and early), then I would get to know fellow herb enthusiasts like Tessa Ramos. She lives in Eva’s neighborhood (more Eva’s sister’s, actually, but near enough). Besides several cultivars of mint and basil, she had turmeric, parsley, coriander, chives, lettuce — and a vine she did not know the local name of, just by the scientific name Gynura procumbens, supposedly good for controlling blood sugar. We talked shop — how difficult it is to grow coriander from seed; how to care for turmeric (loose soil, not too much sun); etc. She knows her stuff. If you’re interested, check out stall #13 (or 14, I’m not too sure).
At the far end we came across repolyawo, a cabbage that only appears at the market on weekends when beef is available (they go well together). At ₱50, a steal, considering you just need a few leaves at a time, and its stems make for easy propagation. Some people refer to it as “native” cabbage — it looks the part, anyway — but it is originally from the Channel Islands in the United Kingdom, where it used to be cultivated for livestock fodder (the leaves) and making walking sticks (from its long stem, which is said to grow as tall as 20 feet). It is variously known as Jersey cabbage, walking-stick kale, and tree cabbage (Brassica oleracea longata).
Other interesting finds: some robust karabo (oregano), sibujing (a cultivar of chives, I think, but smaller), oyster mushrooms, various chilies, and bay laurel. I also found a citrus plant that the sign next to it said was biasong, although I suspected it was really samuyao. In any case, I couldn’t be sure without seeing some fruit.
Overall, the variety on display was a vast improvement over the previous years’, if still not varied enough. If you want to see more next year, do your part to support local growers by letting them know that there is a market for their produce. No amount of “likes” on Facebook is as valuable as when you appreciate their efforts in person. The fair runs until August 15. Make time.
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