By Niña Bea Cadorna
The Philippine Association of Landscape Architects (PALA) conducted a 2-day workshop on landscape design for 30 Xavier Ecoville residents on June 1-2 at the Manresa Tagbuan Center.
In partnership with the National Commission for Culture and Arts (NCCA), PALA chose XE to be the beneficiary of their 2nd Luntiang Pook Project aimed at fostering a strong sense of nationhood through sharing of knowledge in landscape design using indigenous and edible plants.
Among the plants used for the workshop were gabi (taro), papaya, lemon, tanglad (lemon grass), ampalaya (bitter gourd), okra (lady’s finger) and malunggay (horseradish). Besides improving XE’s landscape, the said plants can also be food sources for the local residents.
Three renowned resource speakers from University of the Philippines — Professor Zenaida Galingan, Dr Susan Aquino Ong and Architect Patrick Gozon — discussed on edible, indigenous plants for Philippine landscapes and basic landscape design techniques.
The design drafts of the residents came to life when the participants, together with the landscape architects, built their communal gardens at XE’s open spaces onthe last day of the said workshop.