The Ilocos Times

Green chili and pechay for sinigang , eggplant for torta , and lettuce for your samgyupsal are just some of the vegetables you can literally grow even in a small living space. Yes, space and resources are not limitations in having your own harvest. How? Reuse plastic containers  Try container gardening! Reuse empty plastic bottles, baskets, tetra juice packs, cans, and basins as containers in cultivating edible plants, instead of growing directly on the ground. Apply waste as organic fertilizer For starters, commercial mixtures of garden soil and organic materials are usually the first option. However, this will cost you more especially when you are planning to expand your garden. You don’t have to buy soil all the time. It is wiser to convert your waste into organic fertilizer. Wastes from kitchen such as vegetable and fruit peels are fast decaying matters. Other sources may just be around your neighborhood. Rice hulls from ice stores, coco peat or coco coir dust,

Laoag City —The Provincial Government of Ilocos Norte (PGIN), through the Provincial Education Department (PED), opened the Competency Assessment Assistance Program (CAAP) for 350 senior high school (SHS) Technical–Vocational–Livelihood track graduates.   The CAAP will finance the assessment fees of beneficiaries as aid in applying for Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) Assessment and Certification. “ Sa mga SHS natin, kung gusto nilang magkaroon ng National Certificate II, the Provincial Government can fund that,” Ilocos Norte Governor Matthew Joseph M. Manotoc stated during his “First 100 Days Report” on October 8, 2019. Matilde Nery, PED officer-in-charge, also explained: “ Napagalaman kasi natin na ang national certificate ay napaka-importante pala para sa mga senior high school upang maging eligible sila for work. Sabi ni governor na ‘urgent matter’ ito [CAAP] at gusto niyang ma-implement agad-agad . “However, benefits vary. D

Tallo a traktura ken uppat a hauling truck ti naibunong kadagiti agrarian reform beneficiaries organization babaen ti Climate Resilient Farm Productivity Support Program ti Department of Agrarian Reform-Ilocos Norte. Indauluan ni Engr. Leandro M. Caymo, baro a regional director ti DAR Region I, ti pannakaibunong ti tallo a traktura ken uppat a hauling truck kadagiti agrarian reform beneficiaries organizations wenno ARBOs iti Ilocos norte. Inpalgak ni provincial agrarian reform program officer II Vic M. Ines a dagiti ARBOs a naikkan ti tractor ket dagiti sumaganad: San Cristobal Multipurpose Cooperative ti Sarrat; Bomitog Multipurpose Cooperative ti Banna; ken Sansa Nagcamarinan Irrigators Association ti Burgos. Dagiti met recipient ti hauling truck , kuna ni Mr. Ines, ket ti Catangraran Agrarian Reform Cooperative ti Solsona, Tambidao Multipurpose Cooperative ti Bacarra, Namnama ARBs Multipurpose Cooperative ti Piddig ken Catuguing Multipurpose Cooperativ

By Leilanie G. Adriano Staff Reporter LAOAG CITY—The Department of Trade and Industry here has cautioned once again buyers of Christmas lights to properly observe products safety. “We strongly advice the public to look for the Philippine Standard [PS] mark when purchasing Christmas lights to be assured of the product safety when used according to instructions,” said DTI acting provincial director Rosario Quodala. In time for the celebration of the National Standards Week, the DTI monitoring and enforcement team is currently monitoring retailers of Christmas lights in this city and neighboring San Nicolas town to ensure they are compliant with the law. “The retailers were also taught how to verify authenticity of ICC stickers using the latest application which can be downloaded from the Playstore of android phones,” she explained. As of this posting, the DTI were able to confiscate more than a hundred Christmas lights which are substandard. When buying Christ

By Bernardo B. Ver II Contributor Laoag City —Ilocos Norte artists joined together to share their arts thru wall-painting of the SIRIB Walk located at the university belt along Ablan Avenue here. Angelie Maranan Banaag, a rising artist in the country, said that they are doing this to add more excitement for the students who pass through the catwalk and to encourage the younger generation to be more creative and artistic in their way. Angelie believes that art is a form of expression that was stored in our minds. It is a top-down type of communication and the approach to the receiver depends on how he will depict it or analyze it. Now, their group is planning to have more artworks to be displayed in the entire city. Note, not for vandalism but to put colors to the gray and dirty-white sides of the place. Angelie added that these artworks must be respected and the people that pass more often to the place must take good care of it. The wall paintings are

Laoag City —With an aim to increase tobacco growers’ productivity and income, the provincial government of Ilocos Norte (PGIN) with the National Tobacco Administration (NTA) spearheaded a multisectoral collaboration through a meeting-workshop on “Tobacco Contract Growing System” at the Sangguniang Panlalawigan Session Hall on September 4, 2019. With officials from the NTA national and provincial offices facilitating, participants included mayors, agriculture officers, representatives from buyer firms, and other stakeholders of the agriculture sector. According to NTA’s data last year, the province’s farmers planted tobacco in more than 2,000 hectares of land and yielded 2.89 million kilograms. “I would like to encourage everyone to push our farmers to plant more tobaccos. If they [farmers] move to [planting] tobacco, we can support them better through the RA7171,” Ilocos Norte Governor Matthew Joseph M. Manotoc emphasized. Among Ilocos Norte’s front liners in

Laoag City —To set an example for the whole province, Ilocos Norte Governor Matthew Joseph M. Manotoc released a memorandum last month, directing all Provincial Capitol departments and agencies to strictly observe practical energy-saving measures.  PGIN employees should “strictly comply” with the memorandum including a 15-minute rule of switching on and off the air conditioning units (ACU) mandating that all departments should turn on the ACU 15 minutes after official start of office hours and it should be turned off 15 minutes before the end of office hours. Instead of using compact fluorescent lamp (CFL) and incandescent bulbs, offices are also advised to maximize the natural daylight and use energy-efficient light-emitting diodes (LED). Moreover, office equipment such as computers and monitors should be set to energy-saving modes; while kitchen equipment such as refrigerator and water dispenser should be turned off every weekend or when not in use.     Mr. Manotoc is h