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Philippines: Growing strawberries in Cainta allows a homemaker to supplement their family income

The former private tutor decided to become a full-time gardener during the pandemic.

“It gave me a reason to look forward to tomorrow. It helped my family with our expenses and made the pandemic bearable.”

By Vina Medenilla
Manilla Bulletin
Sept 7, 2021

Excerpt:

“When the pandemic broke out, I was faced with the challenges of not being able to go out for groceries and food. The shortage of food gave me the green light to start my rooftop garden,” Alonso says.

In a 50 square meter space, she grows strawberry varieties including Sweet Charlie, Honeoye, Totchiotome, Akihime, Fronteras, Pineberry, Fort Laramie, and Festival. She also tends to mulberries, 30 fig varieties, blackberries, cherries, grapes, and various ornamental plants.

Alonso initially put up the garden so she could grow food for the household, but she turned it into a livelihood to continually support the family financially amid the pandemic.

Alonso sells strawberry runners from P90 to P120 while the other types of berries can be bought from P200 up to P3,000. Because of this, she can generate as much as P15,000 a month from the business.

Read the complete article here.