LOOK: Frost hits cabbage patch in Atok, Benguet as temperature drops to 9°C

Atok farmers in Benguet province have experienced 2021’s first frost descending on their crops today—an almost annual occurrence in late January or February, the coldest months in the country, when Atok records single-digit temperature or below zero.

Farmers in Paoay, Atok, woke up to find light frost on their cabbage patches and other crops today, as the temperature dropped to 9°C in the early morning hours of Feb. 2. This cold spell is due to the northeast monsoon or amihan—cold air from Siberia that starts in October and reaches its peak this time of the year.

Root vegetables and leafy plants can tolerate light frost but hard frost (of -4°C and below) can damage them.

Bordered by Mountain Province and Ifugao in the northeast and Nueva Vizcaya in the southeast, Benguet is nicknamed the “Salad Bowl of the Philippines.”

Farmers in the 13 towns of Benguet province grow high-value crops due to its cool climate, high elevation (at 5,000 feet above sea level, Benguet lies on top of the Cordillera Mountains), and soil rich with nutrients. Major crops include cabbage, potato, Baguio beans, peas, strawberries, broccoli, carrots and cauliflower, which are shipped throughout the country.

According to Philgis.org, “The La Trinidad Vegetable Trading Post in the capital town of La Trinidad serves as the hub of vegetable trading in the province, attracting farmers, merchants and traders from the local community and the Philippines' different provinces.”

Farmlands comprise 20% of Benguet’s total land area of 283,300 hectares and one-fourth of the provincial population of 446,224 (excluding Baguio’s 345,366 population).

According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, migrants have joined the local tribes such as the Kankana-ey, Ibaloy and Kalanguya to settle in this rich highland province. “Although the three tribes speak different dialects, they share similar cultures and have common beliefs and rituals.”