With a wooden leg, American gymnast George Eyser won two golds, silver, and a bronze in the 1904 St. Louis Olympics, Missouri in the United States.

Minus the global prestige and the giant stadium, Kalim Lamug, 52, a TCP 4 cooperator in Brar, Maguindanao is an equally impressive human being. He does not have a left leg, yet he makes it big in vegetable production. Kalim is now one of the most sought-after vegetable producers in the Dalican Public Market in Brar.

New “foot” from TCP 4

In 2007, facilitators saw the determination of Kalim to learn during their sessions in the Farmers Field School (FFS). It does not surprise them that he is now an established vegetable producer. JICA likewise noticed his achievement and gave him a wooden left foot.

But then again, TCP 4 gave him more than just a wooden leg. It gave him a crutch essential for life: farming knowledge that is now giving him thousands of pesos every harvest.

Bitter gourd is Kalim’s “sweet” bestseller. He experienced earning P40,000 from it.

Technologies that indeed work

Pests coexist with Kalim’s vegetables. For bitter gourd alone, the fruit borer is a headache. At times he is left with no choice but to cut the damaged fruits and dispose them far from his vegetable area.  The insect pest has enough instinct to resurface and start devouring the other fruits again.

Kalim wraps young bitter gourd fruits with plastic to ward off wasps. He also uses light traps to catch insect pests. At night, he places a basin of water mixed with pesticide and a kerosene lamp near his vegetables. Or, he resorts to using attractants: muscovado sugar + pesticide spread over small plastic sheet that he hangs in the trellises. Fruit borers find it hard to resist the attractants, he said. He also wraps the bitter gourd fruits with banana leaves making sure that the uppermost part is covered, as it is the favorite entry point of borers.

Instead of using plastic trays for seed sowing, Kalim uses banana leaves rolled into a cylindrical container held together by a rib of the buri palm. This is very common among ARMM farmers.

Competitive farmer

It usually takes one day before his vegetables reach the market. To remain fresh, he places them on the table and sprinkles them with icy cold water. Sprinkling must be done thrice or more until around 7 pm to maintain the original color of the vegetables. At night, there is no need to sprinkle water.

Come next day, he pays someone to drive his padyak (muscle-powered tricycle) to bring his produce to Dalican market. Before, he just displayed his produce with no target buyers. A store owner in Cotabato City Public Market noticed his vegetables and was amazed with their quality. The guy bought his merchandise, and from then on, always places his orders ahead.

House and other dreams realized

Kalim is now building his house out of his income from vegetables. From a shanty, flimsy structure, he is slowly piling up the hollow blocks for a more “war-enduring” house.

Moreover, his children are now going to school. One of them, who plans to go abroad, is attending high school in Manila to whom Kalim sends P3,000 monthly.   

Farmer with a heart

Kalim, at the time of interview, was found staying at the FFS “classroom”. His relatives were staying in his house, as 2 weeks ago they were displaced by war. He decided to stay in the FFS classroom instead to make sure that it won’t get damaged by his relatives.

Kalim and his wife are likewise active in humanitarian activities. His wife facilitates distribution of relief goods to families displaced by war.

Kalim has lost his left foot, but what he has so far achieved will render many two-legged men stunned. He is an extraordinary man living and walking his dreams for himself and for his family with the “crutches” that he got from TCP 4. Surely, his is a life worth emulating.