Get the Feel of the Cordilleran Blossoms – Sayangan, Atok, Benguet, Philippines

The municipality of Atok is dubbed The High Heart of Benguet. There are plenty of attractions here, this is where you can locate the Philippine Pali or the Highest Point of the Philippine Highway System with an elevation of 7,400 feet above sea level. And you can also visit the 3rd tallest mountain in Luzon- Mt. Timbak.

Despite the cool and cruel weather, Atok’s main livelihood is farming. Vegetables such as carrots, potatoes, broccoli, sweet peas, and cabbages are abundant in this place. Flowers are also bountiful in this municipality.
I called a few of my friends and my eldest sister, then we decided to visit Atok when photos of the cabbage rose became viral on social media.

We gathered information on how to get there by asking some people on the Internet. We were successful.

HOW TO GO THERE?
From Baguio City:

• Ride any bus going to Bontoc or Sagada. (Sunrise Bus or GL Trans on Dangwa Station or Slaughterhouse Terminal)
• Drop off to Sayangan, Atok, Benguet town proper. (You can see Marosan’s Restaurant, the church, and the public market.)
• Walk a few meters down the town proper and locate Northern Blossom Farm. (You can ask locals for directions, locals are friendly and approachable.)

*The bus ride is 1.5 hours from Baguio City. There is also another transportation option, a UV Express in KM5- Shell Station, La Trinidad, Benguet.

We were welcomed by the owners, Ma’am Lany Ganayan and their husband, when we arrived at Northern Blossom Farm. Ma’am Lany said that we went on a perfect timing because they were harvesting the flowers for the upcoming Valentine’s Day. After that, we were asked to register our names and paid 100 pesos for the fee (which Ma’am Lany told us jokingly was a “disturbance fee”). After that, they provided us with a guide and the visit started.

These are the beauty we witnessed in the garden. There are different varieties of floras. You can see fascinating colors of flowers. There are Snap Dragons, Matthiolas, Larkspur, and of course the Cabbage Rose.

We first visited an area filled with white gorgeous Larkspur. We have also seen workers harvesting and packing the flowers, this will be distributed in Metro Manila and is intended for the February market.

And the highlight of the visit, was the Cabbage Roses.

The Cabbage Roses are planted as seedlings and emerge as an unbelievable beauty. These cabbage roses are edible! Can you believe it?!

Walking further, we also saw a different Cabbage Rose variety.


We also picked Snap Dragons and Cabbage Rose to bring home. It is 100PHP for the Cabbage Rose (price may vary according to size) and Snap Dragons which was 150PHP per dozen.

Of course, we didn’t miss the chance to have some photo ops.



Travel Expenses:

• Bus = 60 PHP (student) / 73 PHP (regular)
• Entrance Fee to the farm 100 PHP per head.
• UPDATE: The entrance fee is now 300PHP as of OCTOBER 2019.

NOTES:

• DUE TO PUBLIC DEMAND, THE GARDEN IS NOW OPEN TO PUBLIC. A 100PHP ENTRANCE FEE IS COLLECTED 💯

UPDATE: The entrance fee is now 300PHP as of OCTOBER 2019.

• TIMING IS IMPORTANT WHEN YOU PLAN TO VISIT THE FARM FOR THE CABBAGE ROSE (most probably, December to February is the month for cabbage roses), BUT ALL THROUGHOUT THE YEAR, DIFFERENT FLORAS AND ORNAMENTS ARE PLANTED. A WORTH IT VISIT IS ASSURED.
• YOU CAN PICK AND PAY THE FLOWERS AND PLANTS.
• THE FARM SUPPLIES FLOWERS, MORE DETAILS HERE:

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Get the feel of the CORDILLERAN BLOSSOMS! READ BLOG ENTRY HERE : https://hannahjenina.wordpress.com/2018/02/11/get-the-feel-of-the-cordilleran-blossoms/

A post shared by Hannah Jenina (@hannahjenina) on Feb 23, 2018 at 2:19am PST