Traditional weather forecasting for sustainable agroforestry practices in Ilocos Norte Province, Philippines

People in rural communities in Ilocos Norte Province in the Philippines rely heavily on traditional knowledge, particularly for predicting weather to plan and prepare their agroforestry activities as well as disaster prevention. Farmers use this knowledge, derived from observations of atmospheric and astronomic conditions, indicator plants and behavior of animals (insects, birds, and mammals) which signal the onset of the rainy season. These indicators prompt farmers to prepare their upland farmlands for cropping to ensure that vegetative ground cover is established prior to heavy rainfall and thereby prevent erosion of upland soil and siltation of watercourses. Predictive knowledge of the timing of long or short rainy periods enables farmers to plant suitable crops.