Paano Magtanim ng Oats: How to Plant Oats the Traditional Way
Paano magtanim ng oats? Here is how traditional Filipino farmers usually plant oats, step by step from getting the field ready to the harvest, with the day of each step and what to change for a higher yield.
This guide shows how traditional farmers usually plant oats. Use it as a starting point. For a higher yield, update it: plant certified seed or clean planting material, test your soil, and follow the right spacing and fertilizer.
Oats are rarely grown in the Philippines, where oatmeal is imported. A few highland farms sow small plots, mostly as green feed for animals or as a cover crop, and this short guide shows how they do it.
Before you plant, get the field ready with our land preparation guide for corn.
When to plant oats
Sown in the highlands at the end of the rains, around October to December, so the crop grows in the cool, dry months.
What you plant
Dry seed bought from feed or seed suppliers, sown without soaking.
Paano magtanim ng oats, step by step
The days count to a grain harvest. Oats cut green for animal feed are taken much earlier, before the heads ripen. The crop is ready about 95 days after sowing.
Before planting (Bago magtanim)
14 days before sowing: Dig or plow to a fine bed
Plow or dig the plot, clear the weeds and rake it fine.
Planting day (Pagtatanim)
Sowing day: Sow the seed
Sow thinly in shallow rows about 20 to 25 cm apart and cover with 3 to 5 cm of soil, or scatter and rake in.
Sowing day: Manure at sowing
Work compost or manure into the bed, with some complete fertilizer (14 14 14) on poor soil.
Care while it grows (Pag aalaga)
Day 3: Water if dry
Water the plot if no rain falls in the first days.
Day 21: Weed
Hand pull the weeds while the plants are young.
Harvest (Anihan)
Day 95: Cut when the heads are dry
For grain, cut when the heads have turned pale and the grain is firm. For feed, cut the green plants before the heads ripen.
Day 97: Dry and thresh
Sun dry the bundles, beat out the grain and winnow it.
Watering oats, stage by stage
Oats are rare here and grown on small highland plots sown at the end of the rains. Growers water by hand in dry spells. Hand watering with a can or a hose on small plots, in the morning.
Heading and grain filling, about day 45 to 85: a dry spell gives light grain.
| Stage | When | How often | How much |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sowing and coming up | Sowing day to day 10 | Water right after sowing and every few days if no rain falls | Enough to moisten the seed rows, never soggy |
| Leaf growth and tillering | Day 10 to 45 | In dry spells, water about once a week | Soak the rows with a can or a hose |
| Heading and grain filling | Day 45 to 85 | Water when the topsoil dries | A good soaking of the rows |
| Ripening | Day 85 to 95 | Stop watering | None |
Without irrigation. Sow at the end of the rains, from October to December, while the soil is still moist.
In the dry season. Water small plots about once a week in dry spells. For green feed, keep watering until cutting.
In the rainy season. Plant on beds that drain, since wet, warm weather brings rust and lodging.
- Too little water: Leaves roll and pale and the plants stay short.
- Too much water: Yellow leaves, rust spots and plants that fall over.
To water better for a higher yield: Water at tillering and at heading if you can water only twice.
Spacing, water and fertilizer for oats
Spacing
Rows about 20 to 25 cm apart, sown thinly, or broadcast.
Water
Grown on the last of the rains, with hand watering in dry spells.
Fertilizer
Compost or manure at sowing, with some complete fertilizer (14 14 14) on poor soil. To read what a bag really gives, see our guide to fertilizer for this crop.
Care and harvest
Care while it grows
Hand weeding in the first month. Plots grown for feed are cut and fed fresh.
When and how to harvest
Grain is ready at about 90 to 110 days when the heads are pale and dry. Feed oats are cut green, before the heads ripen.
Common mistakes when planting oats
- Sowing in the lowlands or in the rainy season.
- Sowing too thickly, which gives weak stems.
- Leaving ripe heads out in the rain.
How to get a higher yield of oats
The traditional way gets a crop, but small changes add up. These are the first things to change, one season at a time.
- Use seed of a variety meant for warm highlands.
- Sow only in the cool dry months.
- Test the soil and add compost to poor ground.
- Keep the plot weed free for the first month.
anee.io helps with each of these. The NPK Plus calculator checks that your fertilizer plan feeds the yield you want, the pest and disease finders tell you what is on the leaves before you spray, and Anee, the smart farm technician answers your questions in Tagalog or English.
Members open this guide in the How to Plant tool and send every step to the Protocol Builder in one tap, each on its own day. There you can change the seed, the spacing and the fertilizer, then turn it into a cropping calendar for your lots.
Start from the traditional way, make it better, and let anee.io date every task from your own planting day. Free to start.
Start freeQuestions about planting oats
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When do farmers plant oats in the Philippines?
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How long before oats can be harvested?
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What do you plant to grow oats?
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