Southeast Asia

Coconut breeding programme in Indonesia
Coconut breeding programme of the Philippines
Coconut breeding programme in Thailand
Coconut breeding programme of Vietnam

Coconut breeding programme in Indonesia

Novarianto Hengky¹, Tine Rompas¹ and S.N. Darwis²

¹ Head and Scientist of Coconut Breeding Division, RICP, Manado, Indonesia
² Senior Scientist, Central Research Institute for Industrial Crops, Bogor, Indonesia

Coconut is a strategic commodity not only because of its economic value but also in terms of its social and cultural importance in Indonesia. In 1992, the coconut area amounted to 3.4 million ha or one-third of the world's total. About 98% of the total area are predominantly in the hand of small-scale farmers. Such cultivation involved about 3.2 million farm families. Although Indonesia is the largest coconut producer in the world, the current condition of the national coconut industry is not satisfactory, especially in terms of exports, productivity and farmers' income.

The low productivity of palms was attributed to the following conditions: (1) the existing coconut areas consist of about 53% senile palms (more than 50 years old) of mixed varieties; (2) growth environment, i.e. land and climate are not very suitable; (3) coconut plantations were not managed intensively, with no fertilization; and (4) pests and disease problems. These limiting factors were compounded by the poor physical and chemical properties of the local coconut hybrid meat products (e.g. desiccated coconut) compared with tall varieties.

In this context, the Coconut Breeding Programme under the Research Institute for Coconut and Palme (RICP) was established to solve the coconut problems and lead Indonesia towards coconut industrialization. The programme will survey coconut germplasm resources in several parts of the country, including swampy and drought areas, to identify germplasm for collecting, selection and hybridization. General trials will be conducted to determine and release coconut hybrids with high copra yield, early bearing, suitable for swampy or drought area, resistant to bud rot and nut fall diseases, low input, and good raw material for food and industry products.

Area and production of coconut

The development of coconut area and intensification of production began intensively at the end of the third and fourth Five-year Development National Plan (PELITA III and IV) and during the fifth National Five-year Plan (PELITA V) (Table 1).

As indicated in Table 1, the area of mature coconut increased by 1.84% per year for the period 1983-92. Within the same period, the total area of coconut and copra production also went up by 1.4%, and 2.9% per year, respectively. At the national level, the average yield of coconut for PELITA III (1979-83), PELITA IV (1984-88) and PELITA V (1989-92) were: 0.84, 0.99 and 1.03 t copra/ha/year, respectively. Small coconut farms (about two hectares) were common. It was estimated that net income per hectare of coconut farm was about US$240, assuming the yield of copra per hectare was 1.03 t, and price of copra was US$0.23 per kg. More than 50% of coconut farm was monocultured. On the other hand, the estimated productivity of coconut in a well-managed farm was about 2-3 t and 3-5 t copra/ha/year for tall and hybrid, respectively. Computed net income was about US$ 460-$ 1150 per hectare.

Coconut germplasm

The history of coconut germplasm survey in Indonesia

The research on coconut palms was given considerable attention during the Dutch colonial period. The initial research activity was institutionally conducted in 1911. This involved collection of some coconut ecotypes in surrounding areas of Java.

In 1900, Sexava sp. and Aspidiotus sp. attacked coconut palms in Sangihe Talaud Island (North Sulawesi) and in North Maluku. They caused considerable damaged to coconut. This led Dr P.L.M. Tammes, a Dutch agronomist, and his colleagues to conduct a study on these pests which was the first coconut research activity in Indonesia. In 1926-27, Dr Tammes selected tall coconut population around Mapanget district (North Sulawesi) and collected 100 high yielding palms which were planted at the Mapanget Experimental Garden.

After the Independence of Indonesia (1945), coconut research activities were continued by the Government. In 1956-61, Indonesia invited Diplm. Ing. A. F. Ihne, a German breeder who was an FAO expert, to characterize, select and hybridize the coconut germplasm collected by Dr Tammes.

From 1973 onwards, the staff of the Central Research Institute for Industrial Crops and its regional institutes, conducted several surveys in selected areas of 11 provinces of Indonesia under the guidance of D.V. Liyanage, a UNDP/FAO coconut breeder (Liyanage 1974). The main objectives of the survey were to identify suitable forms of coconut palms to be planted in a seedgarden and to select desirable types for the breeding programme. Collections were planted at the Mapanget Experimental Garden. Surveys are being continued by the staff of the Coconut Research Institute. Some of the recent collections have been planted at the research farm located at Pakuwon, West Java.

In late 1980, the National Germplasm Conservation Commission encouraged the RICP at Manado to intensify their exploration work by providing some financial assistance obtained from the International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (the then International Board for Plant Genetic Resources). Until 1987, about 50 accessions from various parts of Indonesia were collected and planted at the Bone-Bone Experimental Garden, South Sulawesi (Novarianto, Rompas and Luntungan 1988).

Present status

At present, the RICP has collected 96 accessions, but 14 accessions are duplication of Mapanget and Pakuwon germplasm. They were planted at three experimental gardens. Some of them have been screened for their potential as parent material in hybridization programmes, especially the collection at Mapanget. The details on accessions collected are given in Table 2.

All collected germplasm has been conserved in field genebanks. This conservation strategy was found to be very expensive, especially the field maintenance. For example, the Bone-Bone experimental garden had initially collected about 50 ecotypes, and 10 years later, the ecotypes increased to 35 (Table 2). In future, the RICP will consider zygotic embryo technology to exchange with an other country. The RICP at Mapanget has set up an in vitro embryo culture laboratory in collaboration with COGENT. Cryopreservation technology is also being considered as a future alternative to conserving the coconut germplasm in the country.

Utilization

Characterization of germplasm accessions had been done intensively at the Mapanget experimental garden as a component activity of the coconut improvement programme in Indonesia. Germplasm characterization included vegetative and generative traits, nut components, oil content of copra, protein content in meat, fatty acid composition in oil and resistance to bud rot and nut fall. About 15 coconut ecotypes were used in the hybridization programme.

Coconut genetic erosion in Indonesia was mainly caused by the replanting and rejuvenation of coconut areas. For these programmes, the Government used mostly coconut hybrid PB121 to cover about 300 000 ha in 1993. Planting of local coconut hybrid KHINA-1 (Nias Yellow Dwarf or GKN × Tenga Tall or DTA) covered about 20 000 ha. The distribution of this hybrid was concentrated in several major coconut producing provinces. Other causes of genetic erosion were crop shifting especially on farm with senile palms, pests and diseases, and in areas with various development projects.

New dwarf and tall ecotypes from local and foreign sources are being introduced to increase the genetic variability in the present collection. Future priorities for collecting and conservation are coconut ecotypes from tidal swampy and drought areas. Utilization of a coconut germplasm depends on its having the following characteristics: high copra yield, early bearing, suitable to swampy or drought areas, resistant to bud rot and nut fall diseases, high yield with low input requirement and good raw material for food and industrial products.

Coconut development in Indonesia

Most of the coconut grown in the country are tall types. About 98% have been cultivated by smallholders and the rest by government and private organizations. For replanting and rejuvenation, farmers usually select seednut from their garden. High yield blocks of tall coconut were selected beginning 1970 to increase the production of copra. Some known coconut ecotypes with high copra yield were Mapanget, Tenga, Bali, Palu, Sawarna, Riau, Igo Daku, and other local tails.

In 1975, the Government introduced coconut hybrid PB 121 from Ivory Coast. PB 121 was distributed to the farmers through the SCDP (Smallholder Coconut Development Project). Every farmer had a 2-ha supervised farm under the SCDP until five years after planting. In 1984, the Government released coconut hybrids KHINA-1 (GKN × Tenga Tall or DTA), KHINA-2 (GKN × Bali Tall or DBI) and KHINA-3 (GKN × Palu Tall or DPU). Tall × Tall hybrids were also released, namely: KB-1 (32 × 32), KB-2 (32 × 2), KB-3 (32 × 83) and KB-4 (32 × 99). These local hybrids, especially KHINA-1, are now planted on a small scale by farmers and private growers.

Dwarf types were not commonly planted in large areas. Nias Yellow Dwarf (GKN) was traditionally used as a female parent in seedgarden. In 1993, GKN was planted in 1856 ha with a production potency of about 16 million seednuts (Table 3).

After 20 years, the coconut hybrids planted have yet to meet expected yield. Harsh environmental factors caused the poor performance of coconut hybrids in terms of yield. It was also found that coconut hybrids required high input. Hence, most farmers disliked planting hybrids and preferred local tall coconut.

Breeding programme

In 1970, the Government paid more attention to coconut replanting and rejuvenation after noting the significant decrease in copra export. Seedlings were produced by mass selection from high yielding blocks of tall coconut.

Indonesia urgently needs large quantities of improved coconut planting materials for its development programmes (Table 4). In the breeding programme, priority was given for mass production of preferred varieties using known technology. Hence, the breeding programme has two components, a short term and a long term programme, with priority given to the farmers' selection. The short term programme is geared to solving the problems currently besetting the coconut industry, especially in producing improved seed. The seednut production of dwarf × tall on a large scale in seedgardens is of utmost importance. The long term programme aims at improving planting material further which is being carried out simultaneously with the short term programme. Basic information and material required for the former are taken from the current germplasm collection.

A survey of coconut germplasm was carried out in selected areas of 11 provinces, i.e. Aceh, North Sumatera, Lampung, West Java, Central Java, Bali, Maluku, North Sulawesi, Central Sulawesi, South Sulawesi and West Kalimantan. The palm populations were studied, fruit samples collected and a number of measurements recorded. The main objectives of the survey were:

a) to identify suitable farm sources of male and female parents for the coconut seedgardens; and
b) to select suitable farms for coconut hybridization.

Out of the coconut samples collected, the first four best populations were selected. They were Nias Yellow Dwarf (GKN) from Nias Island (North Sumatera), Tenga Tall (DTA) from Tenga Village (North Sulawesi), Palu Tall (DPU) from Bangga Village (Central Sulawesi) and Bali Tall (DBI) from Pulukan Estate (Bali island).

The establishment of seedgardens to produce dwarf × tall seed was given high priority. The initial plan was to have three large seedgardens with a total area of 900 ha. The Government directed that there should be eight seedgardens distributed all over the country. Initially, seedgardens were established in three locations, at Paniki (North Sulawesi), Pakuwon (West Java) and Paya Gajah (Aceh), with 100 ha each. Planting materials for seedgardens are being derived from the Nias Yellow Dwarf and three tall types, i.e. Tenga, Bali and Palu (Table 5).

Main productivity problems and breeding objectives and strategies

Main productivity problems

In 1975, the Government had introduced coconut hybrid PB 121 from Port Bouet, Ivory Coast and established demonstration plots in five provinces. Copra production of this hybrid was reported at 5-6 t/ha/year. Until now there are about 300 000 PB 121 in Indonesia. However, production of copra in farmer fields varied due to agropedoclimatic differences, poor management, rubbery coconut meat not suitable for desiccated coconut (Djatmiko 1991), susceptibility to bud rot and nut fall caused by Phytophthora palmivora (Bennett, Roboth and Sitepu 1985); (Warokka and Mangindaan 1992), and drought (Tampake, Kuswara and Davis 1982). Bud rot and nut fall attacks were very serious problems limiting coconut productivity. These diseases were found among the coconut hybrid PB 121 developed by SCDP in six provinces covering an area of 7211 ha (AARD 1993).

This problem was compounded because the only two coconut cultivars currently planted were both susceptible to the diseases. Because of this, the CRI decided to produce more coconut hybrids which have the desired resistance and can adapt to broader conditions.

In March 1991, the Directorate General of Estate Crops conducted a survey of bud rot disease caused by Phytophthora sp. at four main coconut areas in selected West and East provinces. This collaborative survey with the Coconut Division Director of IRHO (Institut de Recherches pour les Huiles of Oléagineux) showed that most standing hybrids have bud rot disease. The degree of infestation for each coconut hybrid and cultivar are given in Table 6.

Hybrid PB 121 and coconut tall WAT were found to be more susceptible to bud rot. Cultivars PYT, RLT, DJP and DBI were more resistant to bud rot. The most resistant coconut hybrid was MYD × PYT. Bud rot was widespread in smallholder farms because they failed to eliminate the disease by not cutting the tree and burning the infested trees. In coconut area with high rainfall, the disease was more noticeable than in coconut area with more than three dry months per year.

In 1984, the Minister of Agriculture released three coconut hybrids of dwarf × tall, namely: KHINA-1 (Nias Yellow Dwarf × Tenga Tall), KHINA-2 (Nias Yellow Dwarf × Bali Tall) and KHINA-3 (Nias Yellow Dwarf × Palu Tall). These three hybrids can produce 4-5 t copra/ha/year. They flower in about three years after planting. At the same time, four tall × tall hybrids namely: KB-1, KB-2, KB-3 and KB-4 which can produce 4-4.5 t copra/ha/year (Balitka 1989) were also released. However, very little of these materials were distributed to the farmers because most of them dislike to replant or rejuvenate using hybrids due to past bad experience with coconut hybrids.

Breeding objectives

The main objective of the coconut breeding programme is to produce planting material on a large scale with the following characteristics:

· High yield of copra
· Early bearing of fruits

· High oil content of copra
· Resistance to bud rot and nut fall diseases
· High yield of copra per unit area with medium input
· Tolerant to tidal swampy area
· Tolerant to drought
· High content of lauric acid in oil
· High content of protein in meat

While in the past there was only one coconut hybrid (PB 121) used, the current breeding programme will develop several coconut hybrids with specific traits. The probability of finding several specific coconut hybrids is high because variability exists in the current germplasm collection. Some of the ecotypes with their specific traits are shown in Table 7. Most of these coconut ecotypes were used as parents in hybridization programmes using as much as possible local accessions because the introduced germplasm have certain adaptation constraints. Nevertheless, the exotic material MYD, MRD, WAT, PYT and RLT have been used in combining ability tests to determine the best parental combination with the local germplasm.

Breeding action and expected output

In the production of new strains, precocity for bearing is a must. The other desired characters as earlier identified, are considered in the hybridization strategy. The ultimate goal is to obtain the desired ideotypes. Currently six crosses are being evaluated - five dwarf × tall and one tall × tall (Table 8). All of these hybrids have been fertilized with medium input or 3 kg urea, TSP and KCl/palm/year.

Institutions involved in coconut breeding

RICP(Research Institute for Coconut and Palmae)
P.O. Box 1004
Manado 95001 (Indonesia)

CECRBK (Centre for Estate Crops Research Bandar Kuala)
P.O. Box 16 Galang-Sumut
Medan (Indonesia)

NGCC (National Germplasm Conservation Commission)
PUSLITBANG BIOLOGI LIPI
JL. Ir. Juanda 18
Bogor (Indonesia)

Funding agencies

· APBN (Government Budget of Indonesia)
· ARMP (Agricultural Management Project) from World Bank
· IPGRI/COGENT

· Germplasm exchange with other coconut growing countries
· Establishment of 1200 ha genebank at Riau province

To increase the productivity of coconut palms, the Government of Indonesia had introduced coconut hybrids, besides high yielding tall coconut, for replanting and rejuvenation. However, production of copra from these hybrids had been lower than expected. One or two hybrid cultivars used were found to be disastrous because of varied agropedoclimate in Indonesia.

The RICP at Manado had collected 87 accessions from Indonesia and overseas. The evaluation of germplasm characteristics was a component activity of the coconut improvement programme in Indonesia. Selection and hybridization are continuously being conducted to produce several coconut hybrids which are high yielding and early bearing, with high oil content of copra, resistant to bud rot and nut fall diseases, low input requirement, tolerant to tidal swampy area and drought, and high content of lauric acid in oil and protein in meat.

References

AARD. 1993. Penelitian dan pengembangan perkelapaan di Indonesia. Pp. 1-10 in Kumpulan Bahan KNK III. Departemen Pertanian. Badan Penelitian dan Pengembangan Pertanian. Balai Penelitian Kelapan, Manado.

Balitka. 1989. Coconut hybrids. DOK 018/1/1989. Research Institute for Coconut. Manado, Indonesia.

Bennett, CPA., O. Roboth and G. Sitepu. 1985. Aspect of the control of premature nutfall disease of coconut, Cocos nucifera L. caused by Phythopthora palmivora (Butler). Pp. 157-175 in Seminar Proteksi Proteksi Tanaman Kelapa. Bogor.

Djatmiko B.1991. Karakterisasi daging buah beberapa kultivar kelapa (Cocos nucifera L.). Jurnal Penelitian Kelapa. 5(1):12-16.

Liyanage, D.V. 1974. Survey of coconut germplasm in Indonesia. Document No. 1, LPTI, Bogor.

Novarianto, H., T. Rompas and H.T. Luntungan. 1988. Coconut genetic resources and improvement in Indonesia. FAO/RAS/80/032 project, Chumphon, Thailand.

Tampake, H., T. Kuswara and T.A. Davis. 1982. Coconut germplasm survey of Nusa Tenggara Timur Province: The initial step towards producing drought resistance in coconut strains. Ind. Agric. Dev. Journal 4 (2): 52-61.

Warokka, J.S. and H.F. Mangindaan. 1992. Penyakit busuk pucuk dan kerugian yang diakibatkannya. Buletin Balitka 16:48-51.

Table 1. Coconut area and production in Indonesia during the third, fourth, and fifth National Five-Year Plan

Year	Area (ha)			Total area (ha)	Copra prod'n (t)	Average copra prod'n (t/ha)
	Immature	Mature	Senile/ damage palms
The end of PELITA III
1983	884 915	1 922 659	205939	3 013 513	1 607 638	0.84
The end of PELITA IV
1988	873 183	2 121 660	230645	3 225 488	2 098 544	0.99
PELITA V
1989	869 960	2 170 005	221624	3 261 589	2 221 357	1.02
1990	904 016	2 261 563	228243	3 393 822	2 331 570	1.03
1991	905 525	2 267 876	221273	3 394 674	2 337 203	1.03
1992	917 622	2 275 122	221054	3 413 798	2 342 167	1.04
MEAN
1983-1992	+0.94%	1.84%	-0.38%	+1.37%	+2.89%

Table 2. Coconut accessions collection at three locations

Location/number/ecotypes	Code	Origin	Date of planting	Surviving trees
Mapanget (North Sulawesi)
Dwarf Types
1 Nias Yellow Dwarf	GKN	North Sumatera	Feb. 1977	78
2 Bali Yellow Dwarf	GKB	Bali Island	Feb. 1977	54
3 Nias Green Dwarf	GHN	North Sumatera	Nov. 1978	66
4 Jombang Green Dwarf	GHJ	East Java	Nov. 1978	57
5 Tebing Tinggi Dwarf	GTT	North Sumatera	Dec. 1979	49
6 Malayan Red Dwarf	MRD	Malaysia	May 1980	27
7 Raja Dwarf	GRA	Maluku	Aug. 1980	44
8 Sagerat Orange Dwarf	GOS	Maluku	May 1987	24
9 Salak Dwarf	GSK	South Sulawesi	Feb. 1988	46
Tall Types
10 Mapanget Tall	DMT	North Sulawesi	1927/27	50
11 Takome Tall	DTE	Maluku	May 1977	60
12 Bali Tall	DBI	Bali Island	Nov. 1987	59
13 Jepara Tall	DJP	Central Java	Nov. 1987	60
14 Paslaten Tall	DPN	North Sulawesi	Nov. 1987	84
15 Tenga Tall	DTA	North Sulawesi	Nov. 1987	88
16 Banyuwangi Tall	DBG	East Java	Jan. 1979	48
17 Sawama Tall	DSA	West Java	Aug. 1980	48
18 Mapanget 83 Tall	DMT83	North Sulawesi	May 1981	38
19 Mapanget 32 Tall	DMT32	North Sulawesi	Jul. 1981	40
20 Lubuk Pakam Tall	DLP	West Sulawesi	May 1981	62
21 Aetembaga Tall	DAG	North Sulawesi	Nov. 1981	37
22 llo-llo Tall	DM	North Sulawesi	Nov. 1981	46
23 Pungkol Tall	DPL	North Sulawesi	Nov. 1981	53
24 Tontalete Tall	DTT	North Sulawesi	Nov. 1981	42
25 Kinabuhutan Tall	DKN	North Sulawesi	Nov. 1981	55
26 Talise Tall	DMW	North Sulawesi	Nov. 1981	21
27 Marinson Tall	DMW	North Sulawesi	Nov. 1981	36
28 Sea Tall	DSE	North Sulawesi	Jan. 1982	46
29 Kalasey Tall	DKY	North Sulawesi	Jan. 1982	49
30 Wusa Tall	DWS	North Sulawesi	Jan. 1982	52
31 Palu Tall	DPU	Central Sulawesi	Nov. 1982	53
32 Pandu Tall	DPA	North Sulawesi	May 1983	46
33 Mapanget 99 Tall	DMT99	North Sulawesi	May 1983	49
34 Mapanget 55 Tall	DMT55	North Sulawesi	May 1983	44
35 Mapanget 2 Tall	DMT2	North Sulawesi	May 1983	42
36 Igo Daku Tall	DID	Maluku	May 1983	125
37 Igo Bulan Tall	DIB	Maluku	May 1983	125
38 Rennel Tall	RLT	Solomon	May 1983	125
39 West African Tall	WAT	Ivory Coast	May 1983	125
40 Tahiti Tall	PYT	Polynesia	Jun. 1983	125
41 Riau Tall	DRU	Riau
Pakuwon (West Java)
Dwarf Types
1 Nias Yellow Dwarf	GKN	North Sumatera	Feb. 1977	61
2 Bali Yellow Dwarf	GKB	Bali Island	Feb. 1977	59
3 Jombang Yellow Dwarf	GKJ	East Java	Nov. 1978	19
4 Jombang Green Dwarf	GHJ	East Java	Nov. 1978	12
5 Nias Green Dwarf	GHN	North Sumatera	Nov. 1978	64
6 Malaysia Yellow Dwarf	MYD	Malaysia	May 1980	62
7 Raja Dwarf	GRA	Maluku	Aug. 1980	78
8 Salak Dwarf	GSK	South Sulawesi	Feb. 1988	73
Tall Types
9 Boyolali Tall	DBY	Central Java	Nov. 1978	32
10 Banyuwangi Tall	DBG	East Java	Nov. 1978	28
11 Jepara Tall	DJP	Central Java	Nov. 1978	19
12 Paslaten Tall	DPN	North Sulawesi	Apr. 1979	68
13 Bali Tall	DBI	Bali Island	Apr. 1979	66
14 Tenga Tall	DTA	North Sulawesi	Apr. 1979	71
15 Beji Tall	DPU	Central Sulawesi	Apr. 1979	59
16 Lubuk Pakam Tall	DLP	West Sumatera	Oct. 1979	47
17 Sawarna Tall	DSA	West Java	Mar. 1980	118
18 Kar-kar Tall	KKT	Papua New Guinea	Mar. 1980	98
19 Markham Valley Tall	MVT	Papua New Guinea	Mar. 1980	130
20 Pangandaran Tall	DPR	West Java	Aug. 1986	76
Bone-Bone (South Sulawesi)
1 K.T.M. Jawa Tall		East Kalimantan	Jan. 1984	64
2 K.T.2. Samboja Tall		East Kalimantan	Jan. 1984	70
3 Kalbar I/1 Tall		West Kalimantan	Jan. 1984	73
4 Kalbar II/1 Tall		West Kalimantan	Jan. 1984	86
5 Kalbar III/1 Tall		West Kalimantan	Jan. 1984	68
6 Batu Kapal Tall		North Sulawesi	Jan. 1984	84
7 Noid II/A Tall		North Sulawesi	Jan. 1984	58
8 Noid II/B Tall		North Sulawesi	Jan. 1984	51
9 Noid II/C Tall		North Sulawesi	Jan. 1984	13
10 Poigar Budidaya Tall		North Sulawesi	Jan. 1984	92
11 Mogdale II/1 Tall		East Nusa Tenggara	Jan. 1984	6
12 Oebafok II/2 Tall		East Nusa Tenggara	Jan. 1984	24
13 Oebafok II/3 Tall		East Nusa Tenggara	Jan. 1984	5
14 Boa II/4 Tall		East Nusa Tenggara	Jan. 1984	58
15 Boa II/5 Tall		East Nusa Tenggara	Jan. 1984	7
16 Silian III/A Tall		North Sulawesi	Jan. 1984	13
17 Silian III/B Tall		North Sulawesi	Feb. 1984	72
18 Silian III/C Tall		North Sulawesi	Feb. 1984	44
19 Inobonto IV/A Tall		North Sulawesi	Feb. 1984	64
20 Inobonto IV/B Tall		North Sulawesi	Feb. 1984	47
21 Lolak V/A Tall		North Sulawesi	Feb. 1984	78
22 Inobonto IV/C Tall		North Sulawesi	Feb. 1984	2
23 Blok I Samuda CWC Tall		Central Kalimantan	Oct. 1984	66
24 Blok II Samuda CWC Tall		Central Kalimantan	Oct. 1984	47
25 Blok III Samuda CWC Tall		Central Kalimantan	Oct. 1984	141
26 Blok IV Samuda CWC Tall		Central Kalimantan	Oct. 1984	79
27 KM II Tall		Central Kalimantan	Oct. 1984	4
28 Bulan Tall		Central Kalimantan	Oct. 1984	22
29 Bawang Tall		Central Kalimantan	Oct. 1984	2
30 Sumbar I Tall		West Sumatera	Jan. 1986	89
31 Sumbar II Tall		West Sumatera	Jan. 1986	69
32 Sumbar III Tall		West Sumatera	Jan. 1986	55
33 Luwu I Tall		South Sulawesi	Feb. 1987	80
34 Luwu II Tall		South Sulawesi	Feb. 1987	3
35 Polmas Tall		South Sulawesi	May 1987	61

Table 3. Sources and production potency of coconut hybrid seednut, 1993

Source: Muldjodihardjo (1993)

Source: Muldjodihardjo (1993)

Population	Husked Wt. (g)	Nut CV (%)	Endosperm			Ratio (%)
			Wt. (g)	CV (%)	Thickness	Nut/Fruit	Endos/Nut
Nias Yellow Dwarf (GKN)	796	13.0	342	9.8	11.3	59.5	43.0
Tenga Tall (DTA)	1 209	15.3	538	13.5	12.8	65.6	44.5
Bali Tall (DBI)	1 567	16.8	644	14.1	12.2	78.2	41.1
Palu Tall (DPU)	1385	13.1	619	12.7	74.4	74.4	44.7

Table 6. Bud rot attack of Phytophthora on coconut hybrids and cultivars

Source: Directorate General of Estate (1992)

No.	Main characteristic of interest	Ecotypes	Code	Origin	Note
1.	High yield of copra	- Mapanget tall	DMT	North Sulawesi	4.5 t/copra/ha/yr
		- Tenga tall	DTA	North Sulawesi	3.5 t/copra/ha/yr
		- Bali tall	DBI	Bali Island	3.5 t/copra/ha/yr
		- Palu tall	DPU	Central Sulawesi	3.5 t/copra/ha/yr
2.	Early bearing	- Salak dwarf	GSK	South Kalimantan	16.5 mos. after germination
		- Sawarna tall	DSA	West Java	3.5 yrs after planting
3.	High oil content of copra	- Sagerat Orange D	GSO	Maluku	67.0%
		- Paslaten tall	DPN	North Sulawesi	67.5%
		- Mapaanget tall	DMT	North Sulawesi	68.0%
		- Pandu tall	DPD	North Sulawesi	67.0%
4.	Tolerant to tidal swampy area	- Riau tall	DRU	Riau
5.	Tolerant to drought	- Mogdale tall	DME	NTT
		- Oebafok tall	DOK	NTT
		- Boa tall	DBO	NTT
6.	Resistant to bud and nut rot	- Raja dwarf	GRA	Maluku
		- Nias Green dwarf	GHN	North Sumatera
		- Salak dwarf	GSK	South Sulawesi
7.	High yield of copra with low input	- Mapanget tall		North Sulawesi	3.5 t/copra/ha/yr
		No. 1668	DMT-1668
		No. 1709	DMT-1709
8.	High content of lauric acid on oil	- Lubuk Pakam tall	DLP	West Sumatera	40.40%
		- Jepara tall	DJP	Central Java	42.50%
		- Banyuwangi tall	DBG	East Java	42.10%
		- Pungkol tall	DPL	North Sulawesi	42.10%
9.	High content of protein in meat	- Sea tall	DSE	North Sulawesi	4.55%
		- Pungkol tall	DPL	North Sulawesi	4.28%
		- Tontalete tall	DTT	North Sulawesi	4.51%
		- Marinsow tall	DMW	North Sulawesi	4.20%

Table 8. Matrix of six crossing of selected coconut ecotypes in general trials

No. Crosses		Planting	Expected F1	Tentative Result
1. DWARF × TALL		Jan. 1988	high yield of copra substitution	Copra Production (t)
				5 years	6 years	7 years	8 years
-GKN × DTA (KHINA-1)			material for food product	1.01	1.30	2.80	2.80
- GKN × WAT (PB 121)				1.06	1.50	2.90	2.56
- GKN × DTE				0.51	0.90	3.20	2.80
- GKB × DTE				1.26	2.20	2.50	3.34
- GKB × DMT				1.05	1.60	3.00	2.94
- GRA × DMT				0.98	1.30	3.30	3.13
2. DWARF × TALL		Jan. 1993	high yield of copra early bearing	flowering
- GKN × DTA (KHINA-1)
- GKN × DSA
- GKB × DSA
- GRA × DSA
- GHJ × DSA
3. DWARF × TALL		Jun. 1995	high yield of copra quality of nut be better tolerant to pest	vegetative
- GSK × DTA, PYT, RLT, DID & WAT
4. DWARF × TALL		May 1993	high yield of copra specific product for food and industry	flowering
- MYD × WAT (PB 121)
- GKN × DTA (KHINA-1)
- GKN × DID
- GKN × DTE
- GKN × RLT
- GKN × PYT
5. DWARF × TALL		Nov. 1993	resistant to bud and nut rot	bud not attack
GKN, GKB, GRA, GHJ, GSK × RLT, PYT, DTA, WAT, DSA				GKN × PYT
				GRA × PYT
				GHJ × DSA
				GHJ × WAT
				GKB × RLT
6. TALL × TALL		Jun. 1983	high yield of copra with low input	production (t/ha) of copra on 9th year: 3.33 - 3.63 Local (Control): 1.52
	DMT bulk × 18 trees (copra prod'n > 45 kg/palm)

Coconut breeding programme of the Philippines

Gerardo A. Santos and Ramon L. Rivera
Division Chief III and Science Research Specialist, Breeding and Genetics Division, PCA-ZRC, San Ramon, Zamboanga City, Philippines

Introduction

The Philippines remains one of the two largest coconut producers in the world. It accounts for about 39% of the world's coconut production and about 52% of the world's coconut oil and copra exports in 1989 (PCCI-MARID 1991).

Sixty four out of 72 provinces of the country grow coconut as a major crop in varying production capacities. Production is largely concentrated in Mindanao which accounts for more than 60% of the total coconut production. In Luzon, Southern Tagalog is the premier coconut producing region accounting for almost 15% of the total nut production (BAS 1990).

As a major dollar earner of the country, more than 20 million Filipinos or about one-third of the country's population derive their livelihood from coconut. Of these, 1.6 million are farmers and around 1.9 million are farm workers (Magat 1993).

A United Coconut Planters Bank (UCPB) report projected that the Philippine coconut production will decline by 2% per annum primarily due to depressive biotic, environmental and farm management factors (Magat 1993).

The estimated decline of production values were 1.84, 1.66 and 1.38 million t in the Year 1995, 2000 and 2009, respectively. Cognizant of this alarming situation, the Philippine government through the Philippine Coconut Authority's (PCA) Small Coconut Farmers Development Project (SCFDP) implemented a coconut rehabilitation programme aimed at arresting the decline and at increasing national production to around 1.98, 2.06, 2.36 and 2.9 million t in 1995, 2000, 2005 and 2009, respectively.

Coconut production and hectarage

Over the last ten years, coconut production registered erratic levels and averaged 2.14 million t copra annually. Production ranged from a low of 1.44 million t in 1984 to a high 2.69 million t in 1986 (Table 1).

There was an average increase of 0.85% per annum in coconut area from 1983 to 1986. However, from 1987 to 1992, the hectarage declined steadily such that only 3.077 million ha remained at the end of the period (Table 1). Consequently, coconut bearing palms followed the same downward trend, except in 1990, where a slight growth in coconut production was attributed to the expansion in production area of a little less than 1%, i.e. from 3.110 million ha in 1989 to 3.112 million ha in 1990 (PCCI-MARID 1991).

In 1991, production registered 2.06 million t (copra terms) which was lower by 21.6% from the previous year's 2.629 million t. There was a slight increase of 2.57% or a total of 2.113 million t in 1992.

Present level of productivity

Agustin (1993) provided the industry's salient points in terms of coconut production and current area devoted to coconut farms. Some of which are:

a) Coconut is grown in 3.08 million ha (24.14%) of the country's 12.81 million ha of agricultural land;
b) Volume of production is 2.113 million t in copra terms; and
c) Nut production is 11.405 billion from 289 million bearing trees.

Based on a strategic study of the coconut industry done by UCPB (Magat 1993), the expected net income per hectare using traditional tall varieties ranged from 2325 pesos (US$ 97) to 7008 pesos (US$ 292) in Mindanao (Southern Philippines).

Table 2 shows the annual production profile of coconut farms in the Philippines. Yield levels range from 18 nuts/palm (405.8 kg copra/ha) for low; 29 nuts/palm (851.1 kg/ha) for medium; and 50 nuts/palm (1600.8 kg/ha) for high yielding farms. Net income (in 1979 peso terms) ranged from 595 pesos, 1101 pesos and 1945 pesos for low, medium and high yielding farms, respectively. Under the 1994 peso equivalent, these amounts are estimated to be four times their values amounting to 2380 pesos (US$ 99), 4404 pesos (US$ 184) and 7780 pesos (US$ 324) for low, medium and high yielding areas, respectively.

In a study conducted on a tall variety (Laguna) and a PCA recommended hybrid (Catigan × Laguna), de Castro et al. (1992) reported an earlier return to capital investment of between six and seven years from field planting. The highest net returns per hectare in the amount of 2685 pesos (US$ 945) for the Laguna Tall and 27 157 pesos (US$ 1132) for the local hybrid were achieved at the 11th year from field planting at a price of 8 pesos/kg (US$ 0.33) copra. Yield levels reached 3.49 and 4.05 t copra/ha for Laguna Tall and the local hybrid, respectively, at a plant density of 143 palms/ha, with cover crop and fertilizer combination of ammonium sulfate (21-0-0) and sodium chloride (NaCl).

Types of coconut grown

The existing coconut stands in the country are still dominated by tails (at least 97%). Magat (1993) reported that from the initial planting of Malayan Yellow Dwarf × West African Tall (MYD × WAT) hybrids in 1976 to date, surviving population area of these high yielding hybrids including PCA local hybrids (PCA 15-1, PCA 15-2 and PCA 15-3) could be around 45 000 hectares. It was, however, estimated that these hybrids are occupying less area or around 30 000 to 35 000 hectares.

The major tall populations grown in the country are Bago-Oshiro (BAO), Baybay (BAY), Laguna (LAG), Macapuno (MAC), San Ramon (SNR), Tagnanan (TAG), and Hijo Tall (HJT). The dwarf varieties include Catigan (CAT), Tacunan (TAC), Kinabalan (KIN) and Aromatic (ARO).

National coconut germplasm collection

Past collecting activities were done by the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI), Tiaong, Quezon; College of Agriculture, University of the Philippines (UPLB), Los Baños, Laguna; and Visayas State College of Agriculture (ViSCA), Baybay, Leyte (Santos et al. 1984).

Since 1972, PCA initiated a vigorous campaign of conserving domestic genetic resources. It gained further momentum in 1981 with the financial aid provided by the International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (the then International Board for Plant Genetic Resources) and with the launching of the National Planting/Replanting Programme.

The past coconut collecting network of PCA involved the assistance of field men assigned in the different regions of the country. The team stationed at Zamboanga identified the collected populations either by direct characterization (use of genetic markers) or indirect as in CLUSTAN (Cluster Analysis) and by Mahalanobis Generalized Distances method (D²) using data collected during pre-prospection trips. The germplasm collections are planted in the PCA research centers at Davao and Zamboanga (both in Mindanao) and at Albay (Luzon). The populations consisted of various tall and dwarf types. Together with other collections from abroad, pure lines, local varieties and developed hybrids (Annex 1), the PCA's genebank in Zamboanga has become one of the most important germplasm depository of local and foreign coconut ecotypes in the world. To date, the PCA-Zamboanga Research Center (PCA-ZRC) has a total of 97 accessions; 52 tails, 23 dwarfs and 22 hybrids/lines.

Eleven of the 97 accessions in the Center are of foreign origin. Out of the 22 hybrid/line collections, 15 are F1 hybrids originating from six pure line tall populations. The total collection excluded the 67 inter-origin hybrids which are being tested for their combining ability in a series of 11 genetic trials.

Field collection of existing varieties in field plots forms the core of the PCA's efforts in genetic resources conservation. Likewise, production and storage of pollen from the different varieties below freezing temperature are also practised with periodic assessment of pollen quality. Duplication of all available accessions started in 1993 with the establishment of a Coconut Breeding Trial Unit (CBTU) at Panay Polytechnic College (PSPC) in Mambusao, Capiz. To date, 40 accessions consisting of 20 dwarf and 20 tall populations have been planted totalling 18 hectares.

Utilization

On the aspect of germplasm utilization, nine tall and seven dwarf highly promising populations were used to develop 67 hybrids at PCA since early 1970s. In Albay, 31 cultivars were screened for disease resistance against cadang-cadang disease either by artificial infection (mechanical injection of ccRNA to young seedlings or old palms) or by natural infection. Cultivars with low susceptibility to the disease were crossed with 'survivor palms' found in areas with high disease incidence. Six hybrids and three selfed lines were the first materials produced at Albay Research Center in 1984.

The collections are not only utilized for breeding experiments but also for mass production of selected F1 hybrids. Three PCA recommended hybrids, CAT × LAG (PCA 15-1); Malayan Red Dwarf or MRD × TAG (PCA 15-2); and MRD × BAY (PCA 15-3) are being produced by assisted pollination technique for a small-scale replanting programme. Local tall BAY is also recommended as planting material. Promising varieties like TAC, CAT, ARO, MRD, RIT (Rennel Is. Tall) and BAY are used for multiplication and purification of seednuts for seedgardens.

The germplasm collection in Zamboanga is also being used as a pollen source in the production of hybrid seednuts at various Coconut Germplasm Testing Stations (CGTS) of the PCA.

Genetic erosion

Although no exact estimate on the amount and extent of generic erosion can be made, coconut germplasm existing in farmers' fields are at present considered at greater risk today than in the past decade. Cutting down of old, low yielding and diseased trees in the context of the replanting programme is strongly encouraged. However, indiscriminate cutting of productive palms to provide wood for the construction industry has reached a very alarming stage. Cocowood has become a good substitute for hardwood which are becoming rare due to over logging of the country's rain forests. Landowners are also cutting down palms anticipating that the action could exempt their lands from land reform.

Ready cash incentives for land conversion into real estates and other ventures, i.e. shifting to other high value crops like mango, also contributed for the massive pre-mature cutting of coconut. According to a PCA report (PCA 1992), felling of coconut ranged from 204 000 to 360 000 palms per year.

The effect of typhoons, aggravated by the severe denudation of the country's rain forests, long drought periods and devastating effects of diseases (e.g. cadang-cadang), are likewise contributing factors hastening the genetic erosion of coconut in the country.

Comparative performance of coconut hybrids and cultivars

Two main factors generally determine copra yield, i.e. number of nuts and copra yield per nut. With few exceptions, coconut hybrids have higher nut production but lower copra recovery per nut. On the other hand, the local tails produce lesser number of nuts but have higher copra yield per nut. The higher total nut production of the hybrids more than compensates for their lower copra yield per nut. Coconut hybrids are not only prolific and precocious but also possess certain adaptive traits, like more efficient use of fertilizers and other environmental resources, earlier recovery from stress and stability, which make them more suitable for plantations and small farms.

The basic features of PCA recommended hybrids, the introduced hybrid MYD × WAT (MAWA) and four local tall populations under Zamboanga condition, where growing conditions are far from being perfect, i.e. 4 to 5 dry months per year, are shown in Table 3. The hybrids generally bloomed earlier than the local tails. Consequently, they bore fruit one to two years earlier than local cultivars. The local tall populations produced medium to large size nuts, while MAWA produced small-sized nuts. The local tails needed only 3.3 to 3.5 nuts to produce one kilogram of copra. On the other hand, the local hybrids needed an average of four nuts to make one kilogram of copra.

The higher copra recovery per nut of local tails like BAY, when compared to their hybrid counterpart, may be attributed to the large amount of meat they produced per nut (476-534 g). In contrast, the MAWA hybrid yielded only an average of 229g of meat per nut and had the lowest fruit quality value (FQV) of 0.37 among the eight cultivars tested. Three local hybrids, however, were comparable to the local tails in their nut component characters and FQV. The oil content was also similar among all cultivars.

National replanting programme

In the mid 1970s, the Philippine government embarked on a nationwide coconut planting/replanting programme in order to arrest the declining coconut production. The hybrid MYD × WAT was used in the programme to cover an initial 60 000 ha in 1982. The large scale planting of this hybrid throughout the country, however, encountered major problems such as: (a) location specificity of the material, which grows best only under favourable agro-climatic conditions; (b) the industry's need for a wide genetic base and (c) other character limitations like smaller nuts which drew negative reactions from farmers.

In 1989, PCA came up with four promising selections from its trials in Zamboanga after 18 years of genetic research on coconut (Bahala et al. 1989). The four promising selections were found to possess outstanding basic agronomic features which could very well satisfy the urgent need and the increasing demand for more superior types of coconut for utilization in the national planting/replanting programme.

In 1990, the Philippine government, through the Small Coconut Farms Development Project (SCFDP), launched a programme on coconut development and productivity improvement. Replanting, one of the major components of this project, involved the total replacement of senile coconut trees, or the in-filling or spot replanting of farms damaged by typhoons and other natural calamities with promising local cultivars and/or hybrids. Initial replanting target was 50 000 ha/year of the estimated 450 000 ha senile palms (Magat 1993). However, the target was revised to 5000 ha/year for the first five years and 20 000 ha for the succeeding years.

The present seed production sites of PCA have a combined capacity of about 240 000 seednuts/year, just enough to plant 1000 ha/year. These seed production sites are: PCA-Zamboanga Research Center (72 000 nuts); PCA-Davao Research Center (48 000 nuts); and Canumay Farms, Sultan Kudarat (120 000 nuts). A promising local tall population, Tagnanan, is also being utilized as seednut source for the replanting programme.

Main productivity problems

Most coconut groves in the country have low or declining productivity. Magat (1993) identified six factors responsible for declining coconut production in the Philippines. These are as follows:

1. Poor crop nutrition and inadequate fertilization.

PCA nationwide leaf survey revealed that approximately 60-65% of the total hectarage or about two million hectares of coconut have been suffering from nutritional deficiencies (nitrogen, potassium, sulfur). However, less than 5% of the farms practised fertilization.

2. Senile trees.

Estimated in 1993 to be around 60 million trees covering at least 450 000 hectares.

3. Production unsuitability of coconut land.

Only 65% of the coconut areas in the country are suitable for coconut production, setting aside typhoons and strong influence of rainfall amounts and distribution as major production suitability factors.

4. Improper harvesting and post-harvest practices.

The management practices used by farmers are generally traditional and wasteful.

5. Inadequate water and rainfall.

Common occurrence of long drought periods aggravated by severe deforestation in the country contribute to inadequate water.

6. Massive pre-mature cutting of palms.

Mainly due to logging ban and the negative response to the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law (CARL).

The use of high yielding varieties/hybrids from the breeders' point of view is the best strategy to solve the declining productivity. However, due to insufficient supply or non-availability of planting materials the effect of the current replanting programme of the country is insignificant. Although four alternative planting materials are recommended, mass production of seednuts is wanting and should be given priority.

Another productivity problem that should be given proper attention is the destructive cadang-cadang disease caused by the coconut cadang-cadang viroid (CCVd). This disease has been reported to be responsible for the death of 500 000 palms annually. It spread at the rate of 500 meters per year. The disease, first noted in San Miguel Island, Tabaco, Albay in 1929, has been confirmed to be present in the whole Bicol region in the three provinces of Samar, Maripipi Is., Leyte and in some isolated areas in Quezon province (Carpio 1989).

Breeding objectives and strategies

The PCA's breeding programme has two primary objectives. The first is to increase the yield of copra and/or oil per unit area per unit time. The second is to breed for widely adaptable coconut genotypes which are resistant to pest and diseases and stress factors such as drought and strong winds. Development of cultivars capable of producing the desired copra/oil yield and other traits is currently being initiated.

The specific objectives of PCA's breeding programme can be summarized as follows:

1. To improve the yield of coconut varieties by incorporating the desired heterosis or hybrid vigor from heterogenous populations;

2. To improve the precocity of local populations;

3. To screen and breed for pest and disease resistant varieties; and

4. To produce widely adaptable coconut hybrids/varieties.

1. Recruitment and training of human power on appropriate coconut research breeding techniques, e.g. hand pollination and data gathering;

2. Survey and collecting of indigenous coconut varieties;

3. Introduction of exotic coconut varieties;

4. Establishment, evaluation, maintenance and conservation of the collected varieties;

5. Improvement of facilities for breeding and selection;

6. In situ evaluation of domestic coconut varieties to obtain superior base population for hybridization work;

7. Hybridization of dwarf × tall coconut varieties;

8. Field evaluation (regional testing) of promising coconut hybrids and cultivars; and

9. Genotype evaluation for disease resistance in cadang-cadang infected area.

Project 1. Collecting and evaluation of coconut cultivars and conservation of genetic resources

Project 2. Hybridization of coconut populations of various local and foreign origin

Project 3. Coconut genotype evaluation in a cadang-cadang infected area and breeding for disease resistance

Project 4. Regional testing of local hybrids (RTLH)

Project 5. Regional testing of promising coconut hybrids and cultivars (MULTILOC)

Project 6. Coconut germplasm testing station (CGTS)

The project established 3-4 promising cultivars in eight locations throughout the country to serve as mini-seed gardens. Each station has an area of 10 hectares which could accommodate 2-3 hectares for each cultivar.

Under this project, four local hybrids are being produced by assisted pollination for testing in small farm holdings.

Project 7. Production and utilization of selected planting/replanting materials in the Philippines (HSP)

Mass production of recommended coconut hybrids is being done through assisted pollination technique. The project aims to produce high quality planting materials for the replanting programme while the proposed seedgarden is not yet fully operational.

Project 8. Development of synthetic variety of coconut: PCA Syn Var 001 (PHSV 001) Efforts toward the possibility of creating a synthetic variety of coconut are being undertaken by PCA. The project was initiated in 1979 with the establishment of selfed lines of Laguna (LAG) and Bago-Oshiro (BAO) tall population. This project maybe regarded as PCA's ultimate strategy in the mass propagation of improved planting materials for the replanting programme.

The philosophy behind the PCA's varietal improvement programme is the attainment of balanced heterozygosity in the resultant progeny or hybrids. Individual hybrid palms emanating from dwarf parents carry certain degrees of close consanguinity. While this maybe a desirable trait, the likelihood of obtaining recessive genes that may expose the said population to the hazards of failure under any pest or disease epidemic is high. Balanced heterozygosity can be achieved from natural intercrossing among the open-pollinated lines particularly, tall varieties. Therefore, open pollination or mass breeding using desired pollen mix of tall varieties offers the best alternative to mitigate the effect of future epidemics.

In collaboration with local and international scientists in the allied fields, the Varietal Improvement Programme of the PCA will:

1. endeavor to include and make use of the best available techniques and breeding tools by maximizing collaborative relations with researchers in both local/foreign laboratories;

2. aim to further widen the genetic diversity of its coconut collection, participate in the international exchange and testing of coconut germplasm using the best available technology for its safe movement;

3. participate in cryopreservation experiments which are underway in the best equipped laboratories in the west for the long term conservation of the country's coconut genetic resources; and

4. collaborate in the conduct of related studies on Coconut Based Farming Systems (CBFS) particularly, on raising of animals under coconuts and/or planting of suitable inter-crops to maximize land utilization and increase farm productivity.

Short term objectives (within the next five years)

1. To conduct economic analysis of promising coconut cultivars and hybrids;

2. To actively participate in studying the mechanism and nature of resistance of local cultivars to Phythopthora and other diseases;

3. To evaluate and characterize the coconut varieties and ecotypes in the PCA genebank;

4. To study the variability, screen and breed for population or genotypes with high quality attributes like protein content, free fatty acid components; pest and disease resistance and improved tolerance to drought conditions;

5. To study the performance of tall × tall crosses used as parental base population for the development of PCA SYN VAR 001;

6. To study the genetic diversity of local stands of coconut and assess the rate of genetic erosion;

7. To collect seednuts of threatened cultivars and establish them in the coconut genebank;

8. To assist in the development of alternative strategies for the long term conservation of coconut genetic resources;

9. To produce seednuts of selected hybrids in alternative seed production sites; and

10. To continue the duplication and testing of the coconut collection at the CBTU site in Mambusao, Capiz.

1. To develop better dwarf × tall and tall × tall hybrids;

2. To establish and maintain alternative seed production fields and coconut seedgardens;

3. To establish two more CBTU sites;

4. To produce high quality seednuts using assisted pollination technique in alternative seed production fields;

5. To assess the performance of the distributed hybrids and evaluate their acceptability to farmers; and

6. To pursue the development of open pollinated coconut varieties.

1. To study the genetic diversity of remaining coconut stands with the employment of modern molecular techniques;

2. To further collect seednuts, establish and evaluate the performance of such cultivars in situ or ex situ;

3. To mass produce seeds of the developed open pollinated varieties (OPV); and

4. To evaluate the performance of the distributed planting materials in farmers' fields.

In relation with other allied fields, the Programme will also participate in the promotion of CBFS-related studies that could be performed in the PHGC (Philippine Genetic Coconut) trials in ZRC, in particular, the rearing of livestock under coconut.

National institutions involved in coconut breeding

The major institutions currently active in coconut breeding in the Philippines are as follows:

1. University of the Philippines at Los Baños (UPLB)
College of Agriculture
Los Baños, Laguna

2. Visayas State College of Agriculture (ViSCA)
Baybay, Leyte

3. Twin Rivers Research Center (TRRC)
Madaum, Tagum
Davao Del Norte

4. Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA)
Zamboanga Research Center
San Ramon, Zamboanga City

Since its inception in 1972, Coconut breeding projects of PCA are totally funded by the Philippine government with minor international support from UNDP/FAO. In 1981, the International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI) provided financial support for the germplasm collecting activities of the PCA.

Conclusion and recommendation

Coconut, the traditional source of foreign exchange, is a very important industry in the Philippines. However, for the past two decades the country's coconut production has been erratic and generally on the downward trend threatening the country's position as one of the top coconut producers in the world.

Increasing crop productivity through rehabilitation of existing tall palms below 50 years of age by fertilization should be continued to reverse, if not totally stop, the declining coconut production in the country. Likewise, greater efforts should be exerted in the mass production of recommended hybrid seednuts to adequately supply the replanting programme of the country.

Research-wise, collaborative breeding research with other countries should be given emphasis, not to mention the need for international support to take advantage of recent development in research.

Policy-wise, the government must curb current wanton felling of coconut palms not only for direct socioeconomic reasons but also to protect the environment. The contribution of coconut to the enhancement of the environment where it is found growing can not be discounted. The destruction brought by the denudation of forests in the Philippines should not be aggravated by the further felling of coconut which is a predominant component of the rich flora in many islands.

References

Agustin, Y. TV. 1993. Coconut Industry Kit - Series of 1993. United Coconut Association of the Philippines.

Bahala, R. T, S. B. Cano, and G. A. Santos. 1989. Recommended coconut variety hybrids/ cultivars for the national planting/replanting program. Philippine Coconut Authority, Agricultural Research and Development Branch.

BAS. 1990. Coconut Production Report. Bureau of Agricultural Statistics, Department of Agriculture.

Carpio, C.B. 1989. Coconut genetic resources programme of the Philippine Coconut Authority Albay Research Center: Priorities for action (1990-1995). Unpublished.

De Castro, M.M., S.S. Magat and R.A.P. Prudente. 1992. A study of costs and returns of four cultural management techniques of coconut production. Phil. J. Coconut Stud. 16(2):6-19.

Magat, S. S. 1993. Coconut production and productivity in the Philippines: Realities and potentials in the early 90's. PCA-Agricultural Research and Development Branch, Diliman, Quezon City. Monograph. 4 p.

Magat, S. S. 1993. Coconut production and productivity: The Philippines. PCA-Agricultural Research and Development Branch, Diliman, Quezon City. Unpublished.

Magat, S. S., J. A. Habana, A. G. Escoton, A.D. Labarcon, and L. B. Froilan. 1981. Mineral nutrition (leaf) survey of coconut in the Philippines: I. Nutritional deficiency and fertilization. Philippine Coconut Authority, Agricultural Research Branch.

PCA. 1992. Agricultural Research Development Branch Annual Report. Philippine Coconut Authority, Diliman, Quezon City. Pp 122-154.

PCCI-MARID. 1991. Coconut. Market Information Dissemination. Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry - MARID, Metro Manila, Philippines. 25 p.

Santos, G. A., S. B. Cano, B. V. de la Cruz, M. C. Ilagan and R.T. Bahala. 1984. Coconut germplasm collection in the Philippines. Phil. J. Crop Sci. 9(1&2):l-9.

Additional References

Bureau of Agricultural Research. 1991. Coconut-based farming: State of the knowledge and practice. Department of Agriculture, Diliman, Quezon City. 302 p.

Magat, S. S. 1990. Growing conditions and growth habits of coconut in relation to coconut-based farming systems. In Proc of the Asian Coconut Community XVII COCOTECH Meeting, CBFS, Manila, Philippines. 25-29 June.

Magat, S. S. 1991. Coconut industry in the Philippines. Occasional Publication Series No. 14 Asian Pacific Community. Jakarta, Indonesia. 95 p.

Santos, G. A. 1986. State of the art: Coconut production in the Philippines. Coconuts Today. 4 (1):77-86.

Santos, G. A. 1993. Varietal improvement programme (1993-2003). Philippine Coconut Authority Zamboanga Research Center, San Ramon, Zamboanga City. Monograph. 11 p.

Santos, G. A, S.B. Cano and M.C. Ilagan. 1991. Variability of nut components and copra recovery in various coconut populations. Phil. J. Coconut Stud. 6(1):34-39.

UCAP. 1992. Annual Coconut Statistics, 1992. United Coconut Associations of the Phils., Inc. Manila, Philippines. 6(25):1-74.

UCAP. 1993 Coconut Industry Kit Series of 1993. United Coconut Associations of the Phils., Inc., Manila, Philippines. Unpublished.

Annex 1. Status of coconut genebank at PCA-ZRC as of March 1998

Block No. Dwarfs	Population/Accession	Date planted	Hills		Area (ha)
			Total	Existing
01	Malayan Red (MRD)	12/75	485	347	2.71
A	New Buswang (BUSD)	04/84	92	55	0.51
B	Sto. Niño (SÑOD)	08/84	83	52	0.53
C	Tupi (TUPD)	09/86	78	31	0.43
D	San Isidro (SNID)	04/88	87	73	0.48
E	Sri Lanka Green (SGD)	09/86	82	58	0.46
F	Cameron Red (CRD)	02/86	123	32	0.69
02	Malayan Yellow (MYD)	01/76	543	284	2.51
A	Kapatagan (KAPD)	12/82	106	81	0.59
B	Galas (GALD)	10/83	110	81	0.61
C	Malayan Yellow (MYD)	10/83	61	31	0.34
D1	La Victoria (VIC-gD)	10/83	67	48	0.37
2	La Victoria (VIC-bD)	10/83	26	21	0.14
E	Talisay (TALD)	10/83	50	40	0.28
F	Malayan Yellow (MYD)	10/83	47	10	0.26
10	Tacunan (TACD)	01/77	84	48	0.47
11A	Makilala (MAKD)	09/77	106	66	0.59
B	Kinabalan (KIND)	09/77	117	76	0.65
C	Baguer (BAGD)	06/82	154	122	0.86
D	Bañga (BAÑD)	08/82	140	107	0.78
F	Mañgipod (MÑD)	01/91	69	35	0.38
12	Catigan (CATD)	04/77	1285	884	7.14
17A	Pilipog (PILD)	11/80	150	123	0.83
B	Tacunan (TACD)	02/81	165	109	0.92
28A	Malayan Yellow (MYD)	05/78	999	790	5.58
B	Equatorial Green (EGD)	07/78	113	77	0.63
C	Cameron Red (CRD)	07/78	168	56	0.93
1	Pilipog (PILD)	09/80	39	27	0.22
2	Sri Lanka Green (SGD)	09/80	15	5	0.07
D	Magtuod (MAGD)	09/78	146	72	0.81
E	Aromatic (AROD)	01/79	137	85	0.77
		Sub-total	5927	3926	32.54
Tails
03	Rennel (RIT)	02/76	648	482	4.53
04	Baybay (BAYT)	03/76	155	141	1.08
05	Bago-Oshiro (BAOT)	03/76	151	93	1.06
06	Laguna (LAGT)	04/76	148	132	1.03
07	San Ramon (SNRT)	04/76	153	126	1.07
08	Zamboanga (ZAMT)	04/76	149	137	1.04
09	Tagnanan (TAGT)	09/76	1239	1037	8.66
10A	Acc. # 36	01/86	83	55	0.58
B	Acc. # 37	04/86	88	55	0.58
C	Acc. # 31	01/86	88	57	0.62
D	Acc. # 32	01/86	81	56	0.57
11E	Acc. # 35	06/86	80	61	0.56
13A	Baybay (BAYT)	07/77	494	439	3.45
B	Karkar (KKT)	06/79	148	125	1.03
C	Markham (MVT)	06/79	152	125	1.06
D	Gazelle (GPT)	06/79	151	134	1.06
I	Tahiti (PYT)	10/80	123	89	0.85
J	West African (WAT)	10/80	145	125	1.02
K	Spicata (SPIT)	10/80	115	104	0.83
L	Gatusan (GAT)	10/80	117	82	0.82
M	Vanuatu (VTT)	10/82	81	50	0.57
N	Tampakan (TPKT)	10/82	76	45	0.53
O	Aguinaldo (AGDT)	11/83	99	62	0.69
P	Baybay (BAYT)	11/83	69	48	0.48
Q	Salambuyan (SALT)	12/83	98	72	0.68
R	Venus (VENT)	12/83	96	83	0.67
18D	Bato-Bato T.	09/97	99	99	0.69
	Lato-Lato T.	09/97	101	101	0.71
	T'boli T.	09/97	94	94	0.66
	Katangawan T.	09/97	103	103	0.72
20B	Acc. # 29	10/85	90	54	0.63
C	Acc. # 20	10/85	94	65	0.62
23A	Agta (AGAT)	12/85	84	68	0.58
B	Macapuno (MAC-DGT)	12/85	96	74	0.66
C	Acc. # 27	12/85	84	74	0.59
D	Acc. # 28	12/85	84	80	0.59
E	Acc. # 34	12/85	84	75	0.59
26A	Acc. # 44	07/87	90	51	0.56
C	Acc. # 33	10/86	90	26	0.56
D	Acc. # 46	10/86	40	23	0.25
E	Acc. # 40	10/86	90	61	0.56
F	Acc. # 42	06/87	90	50	0.56
G	Acc. # 47	06/87	80	30	0.50
H	Acc. # 43	06/87	90	21	0.56
I	Acc. # 45	06/87	89	24	0.56
29A	Banigan (BNGT)	12/83	96	51	0.67
B	Loong (LONT)	12/83	96	59	0.67
C	Baybay (BAYT)	12/83	64	42	0.45
D	Culaman (CULT)	09/84	96	50	0.67
E	Acc. # 16	01/85	96	60	0.67
F	Acc. # 25	02/85	90	48	0.63
G	Acc. #17	05/85	97	54	0.46
H	Acc. # 23	05/85	101	52	0.71
I	Acc. # 24	07/85	81	44	0.57
30A	Acc. #18	03/85	99	73	0.62
B	Acc. # 21	03/85	93	86	0.65
C	Acc. #19	03/85	91	74	0.64
D	Acc. # 30	03/85	92	76	0.64
E	Acc. # 26	03/85	94	73	0.66
		Sub-total	7985	6030	54.98
Line Collections
13E	LAG S1	09/79	150	138	1.11
F	BAO S1	10/79	119	104	0.83
G	MAT × CRD	11/79	60	48	0.42
H	MAT × MYD	12/79	60	56	0.42
14C	MRD × TAC	07/79	119	80	0.66
D	MRD × CAT	07/79	128	102	0.71
F	MRD × BAY	07/81	38	36	0.21
16C	MAT × CRD	06/80	26	16	0.18
	MAT × MYD	06/80	26	21	0.18
28B	Natural Hybrid EGD	07/78	443	345	2.46
18B	MRD × WAT	06/80	52	45	0.36
		Sub-total	1221	991	7.54
Hybrid Trials
14A & 15A	PH GC 02Z	11/77	1152	1011	8.06
	MYD × WAT		120	115
	MRD × WAT		120	111
	CRD × WAT		120	98
	EGD × WAT		120	103
	TAG		120	112
	SNR		120	112
	Dummies/Borders		432	360
14B & 15B	PH GC 03	05/78	720	641	5.03
	PCA 15-1 (CAT × LAG)		144	129
	CAT × BAO		144	132
	CAT × TAG		144	134
	MYD × WAT		144	128
	Borders		144	118
16A	PH GC 04	01/79	884	826	6.18
	CAT × PYT		120	115
	CAT × WAT		96	92
	CAT × TAG		144	136
	PCA 15-2(MRD × TAG)		144	139
	MRD × PYT		96	90
	TAG		120	116
	Borders/Dummies		164	138
14E	PH GC 05	10/79	585	504	3.25
	MRD × TAC		110	87
	MRD × CAT		110	107
	TAC × TAC		110	87
	CAT × CAT		110	105
	Borders		145	118
18A	PH GC 06	06/80	832	657	5 2
	TAC × LAG		144	117
	TAC × TAG		144	108
	MRD × BAO		144	123
	MRD × LAG		144	125
	TAC × BAO		144	118
	Borders		112	66
16B	PH GC 07	11/79	364	328	2.55
	MYD × LAG		96	79
	MYD × SNR		96	89
	LAG		96	91
	Borders		76	69
17C	PH GC 08	03/82	1083	879	6.77
	CAT × BAY		135	116
	TAC × WAT		135	123
	PCA 15-3(MRD × BAY)		135	123
	RIT × TAC		135	94
	RIT × CAT		135	101
	MYD × WAT		135	120
	Dummies/Borders		273	202
18C 19B & 20A	PH GC 09	09/83	1286	832	8.04
	MYD × TAG		135	86
	MYD × BAY		135	89
	MYD × PYT		120	76
	MYD × LAG		135	105
	MYD × SNR		135	93
	RIT × CRD		135	67
	RIT × SGD		120	70
	MYD × WAT		135	107
	Dummies/Borders		236	139
19A	PH GC 10	07/83	634	439	3.96
	BAY × CRD		90	66
	TAG × CRD		60	42
	BAO × CRD		90	63
	BAY × SGD		90	60
	LAG × CRD		75	52
	MYD × WAT		90	75
	Dummies/Borders		139	81
22	PH GC 11	02/84	1176	1024	8.22
	RIT × WAT		120	113
	BAY × WAT		120	112
	BAO × WAT		120	108
	LAG × WAT		120	113
	SNR × WAT		120	111
	ZAM × WAT		120	112
	TAG × WAT		120	106
	MYD × WAT		120	107
	Borders		216	142
	Sub-total		8716	7141	57.88
11E&21	Syn Var 001	08/92	1805	1650	13.86
	BAY × TAG		135	133
	BAO × WAT (86)		117	123
	WAT × BAO (31)
	BAO × RIT (112)		145	117
	RIT × BAO (33)
	WAT × LAG (68)		134	117
	LAG × WAT (66)
	BAO × TAG		108	87
	BAO × BAY		96	74
	WAT × RIT		117	115
	LAG × RIT		134	118
	LAG × TAG		134	118
	LAG × BAY		120	108
	WAT × BAY		118	114
	LAG × BAO		106	110
	WAT × TAG		113	107
	RIT × BAY		105	96
	RIT × TAG		123	113
20	Underplanting	01/94	994	847	5.82
	PCA 15-1		144	137
	PCA 15-2		144	134
	PCA 15-3		144	138
	BAYT		144	132
	MRD × RIT		27	27
	LAGT		24	24
	MACT		24	24
	Dummies/Borders		343	231
	Seedgarden		6 785	6 785	37.03
PLOT 01 - 05	TACUNAN	10/95-7/96	2 156	2 156	12.03
PLOT 06 - 08	CATIGAN	09/96	1 243	1 243	6.90
PLOT 09 -14	TACUNAN	4/97-9/97	2 301	2 301	12.76
PLOT 15 - 17	CATIGAN	10/97	1 085	1 085	5.34
	Grand total		33 433	27 370	209.65

Annex 1 (Summary)