24 September 2016, Siniloan, Laguna. 21 outstanding Students & Volunteers for the Environment (SAVE) planted 200 indigenous Malaruhat* seedlings at the Sierra Madres mountain range, the longest mountain range in the Philippines. Running in the north-south direction from the provinces of Cagayan to the north and Quezon to the south, the mountains form the eastern backbone of Luzon Island, the largest island of the archipelago. It is bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the east. Some of communities east of the mountain range and along the coast are so remote they are only accessible by plane or boat.
Coming mostly from in and around Metro Manila, FEED also welcomed two students from as far as Pampanga province, altogether sharing the same values of giving back to nature, restoring Mother Earth and helping to support scholarships for underprivileged children and livelihood development for local communities who were/are involved in the site preparation to enable successful reforestation efforts between the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB) and FEED.
Thanks to all SAVE Participants Certified on 24 September 2016 (incl. Carmi Mora)!
Certificate Awarding
FEED Photo Journal
*The Philippine “Malaruhat puti” (scientific name Cleistocalyx operculatus/Syzygium bordenii) is the name of a species in the genus Syzygium from the family Myrtaceae. Syzygium is a genus of flowering plants that belongs to the myrtle family, Myrtaceae.
The genus comprises about 1200–1800 species, and has a native range that extends from Africa and Madagascar through southern Asia east through the Pacific. Its highest levels of diversity occur from Malaysia to northeastern Australia, where many species are very poorly known and many more have not been described taxonomically.
Most species are evergreen trees and shrubs. Several species are grown as ornamental plants for their attractive glossy foliage, and a few produce edible fruit that are eaten fresh or used in jams and jellies. The most economically important species, however, is the clove Syzygium aromaticum, of which the unopened flower buds are an important spice. Some of the edible species of Syzygium are planted throughout the tropics worldwide, and several have become invasive species in some island ecosystems. Several species of Syzygium bear fruit that are edible for humans, many of which are named “roseapple”. Fifty-two species are found in Australia and are generally known as lillipillies, brush cherries or satinash.
Contact FEED for more information on your tree-planting activities: info@feed.org.ph and +63 (0)917 552 4722; or to join Students & Volunteers for the Environment at our next tree planting event (every last Saturday of the month during rainy season.
(c) FEED, Inc.