When is Cassava Poisonous?

There are two kinds of cassava: the sweet and the bitter kinds. The ordinary kind sold in the market is the sweet kind, and the one made into laundry starch is the bitter kind.

The manner of planting, whether horizontal or upside down has nothing to do with its poison. Cassava naturally contains hydrocyanic acid, which is poison to both man and animal. The bitter kind contains more of the poison, but both kinds have it.

In the sweet kind, the poison is concentrated on the bark or skin of the crop, not so much on the flesh or meat. In the bitter kind, the poison is spread out on whole crop.

Weather and environment also have something to do with the cassava's poison content. When there is much nitrogen in the soil, there is more poison in the cassava where potassium in the soil is high, the poison in the cassava is low.

A long dry season increases the cassava's poison content: wet soil as during the rainy season lowers its poison content. Because of this, it is said that cassava contains poison in Summer.

According to scientists, cassava's poison contains more or less 30-150 mg of hydrocyanic acid (a milligram is one part of a thousand grams). If the hydrocyanic acid content is less than 50 mg it will not be harmful to eat. If it will exceed 100 mg. the poison content could be dangerous.

In the ordinary way of cooking, the poison disappears in the sweet kind but in the bitter kind, about 20 mg per kilo remains in the fresh peeled cassava.

According to experts, the amount of hydrocyanic acid in cassava is poisonous from one-half mg (.5 mg) up to 3.5 mg per kilo of the person eating the cassava. Thus, a person who weighs 50 kilos will be poisoned if he consumes one and one-fourth (1 1/4) kilo of bitter cassava. When his stomach begins to ache and he starts vomiting, or his mind becomes confused after eating cassava, then he has been poisoned.

The poison in cassava disappears during cooking, so, cooking cassava as suman is a safe way of eating cassava. Besides, suman preparation entails removal of bark, grating, extracting the juice, before cooking. Grating and extracting the juice already removes the poison, and it is further evaporated during cooking.

Other ways of removing the poison in cassava are: chopping, soaking in water, heating up to 57°C, and exposing in the sun. It is best not just to steam it but to cook it well. Even the bitter kind loses its poison when cooked well.

But it is always better to buy the sweet kind. This is known if, upon removal of the bark, the flesh is sweet. The meat of the sweet cassava tastes sweet!

Source: Greenfields December 1980, photo courtesy of www.arafood.com

Radish Farming

Almost every part of the radish plant is useful. The leaves and roots may be eaten raw or cooked as vegetable, or cooked with meat or fish.

Besides its use as food, radish is also used in many other ways its oil doesn't dry up like ordinary oil. This is used in soapmaking the meat after juice extraction is used as fertilizer. Radish is also medicine for diseases of the liver and spleen.

There are two kinds of radish. One is planted for its crop and the other for its leaves and roots. The different varieties we have are:

Japanese radish -- big and long, late harvested

Chinese radish -- fine, smooth and white, productive and has moderate length of time for harvest

White icicle -- early harvest, rounded, long with small roots.

Bombay, 60 Days and others -- can harvest within 100 days from planting, and mature 30 days from germination.

Land Preparation

1. Plow and harrow the field lengthwise and crosswise, and leave it for seven days to allow the uprooted weeds to rot and their seeds to grow.
2. Plow and harrow as before, repeat a third time but deeper.
3. Make elevated beds about one-half meter away from each other.
4. Put fertilizer where plants will be grown mix this with the soil by means of a rake.

Planting

A hectare of land would accommodate about 100 grams of seeds. Apply a kerosene can of compost before planting (see no. 8)

1. Treat the seeds first in growth regulator like "Seet Treat."
2. Mix one teaspoon Orthocide 50 WP per kilo of seeds to check whatever diseases they may have.
3. Prepare the planting of the seeds. To make them evenly apart, use a string attached to both ends -- one at 10 cm, a second at 40 cm, etc.
4. With the aid of a pointed stick, make a hole one and a half (1½) cm deep and 10 cm apart,following the distance of the string.
5. Drop two seeds in each hole and cover with fine soil. Water with fine spray so as not to dislodge the seeds or remove the top soil.
6. Cover with straw about 5-10 cm thick between the rows of plants, with space of about 5 cm from the plant. Don't cover the seed especially if it has not germinated. Keep away chicken from scratching the seeds away. The straw or dried leaves serve to protect the plants from strong rain or intense heat, and from growing weeds.
7. Water morning and afternoon in the first three (3) days after planting don't allow them to get dry. When the seeds germinate, water only in the morning. Ten days after all have germinated, water only in the afternoon when the ground is dry.
8. Dig a canal around the plot about 30 cm wide and 40 cm deep to where the water will run in case of heavy rain.
9. Before planting, mix a can of compost to every 2 sq. meters of plot. If animal manure will be used, apply this after the first plowing: one can per sq. meter. If chemical fertilizer will be used, have the soil analyzed first at the Bureau of Soils Laboratory. If not, the National Food and Agricultural Council recommends 8 bags of ammonium sulfate for every hectare of radish plants.

Maintenance

When the soil around the plant becomes compact, loosen it especially when the roots are beginning to grow. Be careful not to hurt the roots. If in spite of putting straw or dried leaves, weeds continue to grow, remove them manually.

Pests

To control insect pests, spray any of the following: Orthene 75 SP, SD, Tamaron 600 EC, Phosdrin 1.5 Ec, Hostathion 40 EC, or Vegetox, following instructions on the label, at an interval of 7 days. Trapping by means of light helps to control insect pests.

Diseases

A soil-borne or seed borne disease of radish attacks the new plant when the soil is very wet. As mentioned earlier, treat the seeds with orthocide or Spergon Fermate or Zerlate -- one-half teaspoon per gallon water. The black rot disease has a V-shape on the leaves. The leaves turn yellow then fall off. There is a black ring around the body when the leaf is removed.

Harvesting

Different varieties have different times of maturity, from 30 days from germination to 100 days after planting. Thus, it is good to know the variety to be planted, or try ten plants first. When overmature, radish is fibrous, porous and doesn't taste good. Pull up the crop when harvesting in early morning or late afternoon. Don't harvest when the sun is hot because it will wilt immediately. Wash, bundle and bring to market first hour in the morning. Don't pile them too high so as not bruise the crops, and to avoid heating for the crops under the pile.

Seeding

Get seeds only from healthy plants. Let these flower and bear seeds. Apply 2 grams ammonium sulfate, and water daily. Maintain with care until the fruits turn yellow. Select good seeds from good plants. When the pods are over mature, these will burst open. Dry the seeds in the sun to kill pests or disease. Before storing them, mix a little DDT or Orthocide 50 WP before packing. Put in a jar with fine charcoal at the bottom and over it a piece of cardboard with holes. Label jar. Seal the cover with masking tape until the next planting season.

Source: Greenfields November 1992, photo courtesy of www.nandyala.org, and www.greenharvest.com.au

Lemon Juice: Potential Abaca Fiber Bleach

Abaca, popularly known as Manila Hemp, is primarily used in the manufacture of marine cordage,pulp and paper products, nonwoven fabrics and disposable items. Many cottage industries utilize the best grade abaca fibers in the producton of quality items. Best grade fibers meet the standards for tensile trength, color, texture, luster and cleanness. Obviously,items produced from quality fibers (whitish in color) command a high price than those made from poor abaca (brownish in color).

People engaged in cottage fibercraft industries procure abaca fibers in bulk which are often improperly storedfor some time. Under this condition fiber discoloration occurs. To improve the color of abaca fibers, a bleaching treatment is applied. A study aimed at determining the best bleaching method for abaca fibers was conducted at the Visayas Stage College of Agriculture (VISCA). Abaca fibers from the middle sheaths of Linawaan variety were treated with chemical bleaches (sodium perborate, sodium hypochlorite, and chlorux with 10%, 20%, #)% and 40 % concentrations each) and natural bleaches (fresh mature camias leaves, camias fruit juice, and lemon juice at concentraitons of 20%, 40%, 60%, and 80% each). Fibers subjected to chemical treatments under a 30-minute heating at 85 f, while those treated with natural bleaches were soaked for six hours. Immediately after these treatments, the samples were thoroughly rinsed in cold water and then air-dried at room temperature.

Color

Untreated fibers (control) were ecru in colr which could be attributed to the darkening of the puld and the adhering impurities. When the samples were treated with chemical and natural bleaching agents, the color chaged. Fibers treated with lemon and camias fruit juices turned to light ivory and light ecru, respectively, in all treatments. Camias leaves produced a light cream color, except in one treatment with chemical bleaches which produced lemon frost fibers.

The change in color when treated with natural bleaches could be attributed to the acid contents of the bleaching agents-oxalic in camias and citric in lemons.

Texture and luster Texture of the fibers may either be soft, medium soft, medium coarse, and harsh or coarse. Among the natural bleaches, the treatment with lemon juice at 80% concentration produced medium soft abaca texture- the best result in this category. However, among the chemical bleaches, sodium hypochlorite solution gave soft abaca fibers - a performance better than that of lemon juice.

Tensile strength and elongation

A significant difference in tensile strength occurred amongthe various levels of concentration (10%, 20%, 30% and 40 %) using sodium hypchlorite solution. However, the stronger the concentration of sodium hypochlorite, the weaker the fibers become. This was also true with lemon juice. No significant differences in ellongation was observed among the four treatments using both the natural and chemical bleaches.

Cost benefit analysis

Cost benefit analysis showed that natural bleaching agents are cheaper to use than chemical bleaches.

Source: PCARRD Monitor Feb-Mar 1989, photo courtesy of img.alibaba.com

Creative Innovations from Tree Roots

Traditionally, materials used include premium hardwoods such as narra, tindalo, akle and ipil. These species used to abound in the Philippine forest.

Because suitable wood materials are scarce, there has been a shift to the use of minor forest products for furniture manufacture. These minor forest products include rattan, bamboo and buri.Surprisingly, furniture made from these materials were accepted easily both in the local and foreign markets. However, due to overexploitation, these forest resources are likewise depleting. Thus,exploration for other prospective raw materials continues.

Several wood species are being used in the manufacture of these novelty products. Dau, balete, kakawate, and tan-ag are preferred for sala sets. Balete, acacia, pili and antipolo are used in the manufacture of bar sets.

Processing Techniques

There are several steps in the manufacture of these novelty items. These are the following: digging, transporting, cutting, debarking, scraping, drying, bleaching, sanding and preservative and varnish application.

Digging of the stumps is done in logged-over areas in Tayabas, Gumaca and Sampaloc in Quezon Province. After digging, these are immediately transported to Pansol, Calamba, Laguna for processing is easier when the raw materials are still fresh.

Upon reaching Pansol, the stumps are cut into the desired sizes; after which these are debarked, scraped and sundried for about five hours.

Sundrying follows after scraping. Then, coarse sanding, bleaching and fine sanding are done; after which preservative treatment is applied to the product.

The last step is the application of varnish or lacquer to the finished product to enhance its appearance. A great number of the buyers of these novelty products come from Taiwan, Japan and as far as Saudi Arabia.

Source: PCARRD Monitor, Feb-Mar 1989, photo courtesy of kikaysjunk.com

Care of Farrowing Pigs

For new raisers of pigs, it is advisable to consult veterinarian in the care of mother pigs and their piglets.

1. Some delivering mothers may need more attention during delivery of their piglets when the interval between piglets gets longer than 20 minutes. Give more care to the last piglets to come out because it is here that most piglets are born dead.

2. Take care that the piglets do not lose oxygen during birth.

3. Take care that the mother pig does not suffer from exhaustion or lose strength during delivery so that she can nurse the piglets well.

4. One way of facilitating delivery is by giving prostaglandin injection, especially when the mother pig is getting old.

5. Giving oxytocin also facilitates delivery and reduces the birth of dead piglets.

6. A reminder to the one assisting at the pig's delivery is to keep his hands and arms clean, and to use jelly as lubricant in pulling out the piglet. Without this, there is danger in hurting the pig's genital and thereby cause infection, which could result in delivering dead piglets.

7. A newly born piglet is enveloped in a thin membrane. This must be removed to facilitate breathing. Piglets born weak cannot emerge from this, and so need help lest they suffocate.

8. Clean the newly born piglet; after about an hour cut off the umbilical cord, leaving about 5 cm; apply tincture of iodine where it is cut.

9. With the help of pliers, nip off the small teeth close to the gums (8 in all); apply tincture of iodine on the wound.

10. Also cut off the tail (with the help of scissors) apply iodine on the wound; unless the piglet is intended for breeding.

11. Help the piglet find its mother's teat even while the mother is farrowing. Keep the piglets and the whole brood clean and dry.

WHY ARE SOME PIGS BORN DEAD?

It is rather common that some pigs are born dead. But if this happens often with a particular mother hog, there must be reason. It must however be ascertained if the piglet is born dead or just die soon after birth, which could have been saved if immediately noticed. Sometimes certain piglets are born so weak, that they are unable to overcome the membrane in which they are enveloped, and so get suffocated in it; or perhaps were chilled soon after birth, causing their death.

The piglet born dead in its mother's womb at the beginning of pregnancy is hard and deteriorating.

The piglet that died before birth looks normal except for its sunken eyes. To be certain if the piglet was born dead or just died soon after birth, slice a piece of the piglet's lung and place it in a pail of water. If this floats, it means that the piglet had breathed before death (because of the presence of air in the lungs) so, it was alive when it emerged and nothing can be done to save it.

1. There are more piglets born dead among multiple farrowing, usually the fifth or the last three piglets. This is perhaps because of the length of the womb and the umbilical cord. For about one meter of the cord to be borne by the piglet, (while it is normally only 70 cm long) in its length of passage, the cord is stretched and cut and so the last piglets lose breath before they are able to emerge.

2. It could also be due to the aging mother, (which may have farrowed five or six times). Usually, delivering dead piglets start from the fourth to the seventh farrowing. The next farrowing can be seen in the piglets that have been delivered.

3. Other causes could be the stress borne by the mother pig before delivery -- perhaps she has had a fight or had undergone much difficulty in the last weeks before delivery.

4. Fat mother pig have difficulty in delivery.

5. If the mother is anemic or lacks Vitamin E, the piglet cannot survive its delivery because it also lacks Vitamin E.

6. Death of the piglet could also be due to the mother pig's lack of Vitamin A in her diet, months before delivery.

7. If the mother pig's meal becomes contaminated with molds, it will deliver weak or dead piglets.

8. If at a certain time several mother pigs delivery dead piglets infections or sickness could be the cause. There are diseases for instance that are transferable from cats to pigs, but seldom vice versa. If the mother pig gets contaminated while the piglet is still in its womb, this could result in abortion. But if the infection comes about at the latter part of the pregnancy, the piglet will be born dead.

9. If the pig pen lacks proper ventilation, and much more when there is a gas leak around, or if the carbon monoxide level (from vehicle exhausts) is high, this could result in the death of the piglet in the pig's womb.

Source: Greenfields May 1990, photo courtesy of www.baconunwrapped.com

How to make Fish Quekiam and Fish Frankfurter

If you are into fish diet, and you are interested in making your favorite fish into a Quekiam or a Frankfurter, then the procedure below might be of help.


Fish Quekiam

Materials:

½ kilo dalagang bukid
1 egg well-beaten
1/4 kilo shelled shrimps
½ cup chopped turnip
½ cup chopped onions
½ cup chopped celery
½ cup chopped carrot
½ cup flour
1/4 cup nguyong powder
½ tsp. pepper
1½ tsp. salt
3 pcs. taupe (wrapper)

Procedure:

1. Remove all bones and skin from the fish.

2. Grind together with the shrimps.

3. Mix all ingredients and steam for 20 minutes.

4. Wrap in taupe or aluminum foil.

5. Fry in hot lard.

6. Slice in desired sizes.

Sweet sour sauce:

3/4 cup water
1 tbsp. cornstarch
3/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp. vinegar
2 tbsp. soy sauce
vetsin

Mix all together and heat until the desired thickness.

Source: Fisheries Newsletter Oct. 18-24, 1981


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Fish Frankfurter

Materials:

1 1/4 kilo fish meat (labahita)
1/4 kilo pork fata
23 gms. salt
4 gms. accord powder (binder)
12 gms. frankfurter seasoning
5.5 gms. prague powder (available at ITDI, DOST)
12.5 gms. sugar
½ kilo ice

Procedure:

1. Separately grind the pork and fish meat.

2. Add salt and seasoning to the fish.

3. Add the ice and keep on mixing and cutting the mixture.

4. Add the frankfurter seasoning, fat, sugar and the rest of ice.

5. Mix well until fine.

6. Stuff into the sausage casing about 10 cm. long each.

7. Smoke for about one-half hour at 71°C-75°C.

8. Dip in hot water (about 73°C for 10 minutes).

9. Remove the casing.

10. Pack in plastic bag and freeze.

Note: guava leaves are good for smoking.

Source: Fisheries Newsletter August 18-24, 1981 , Photo courtesy of www.germanfoods.org