When science blooms on stage

‘Love According to the Plants (Na May Breeding)’ celebrates 50 years of UPLB’s Institute of Plant Breeding

- BY JOHANNES L. CHUA

In a nation where food security remains a pressing challenge, the science of plant breeding has emerged as a quiet yet powerful force shaping our collective future. At the forefront of this effort is the University of the Philippines Los Baños Institute of Plant Breeding (UPLB-IPB), which celebrates its golden anniversary this year.

Established in 1975, the IPB has been a pioneering institution whose impact stretches from local farms to international fields, developing new and improved crop varieties for progressive agriculture.

But this celebration is more than a scientific milestone. In a deeply resonant interplay of science and art, this anniversary was complemented with a stage play titled “Love According to the Plants (Na May Breeding),” written by acclaimed playwright and Palanca-winning writer Dr. Layeta P. Bucoy. The play highlighted the value of plant science as a compelling narrative that humanizes scientists and dramatizes the unseen labor that helps put food on our tables.

Play rooted in science

“One of the major goals of plant breeding is to feed people,” Bucoy explains. And yet, to the public, plant breeders often remain anonymous, their achievements tucked away in academic journals and laboratories.

Through theater, Bucoy brings their stories to light. “Love According to the Plants” is an unusual title, but beneath the romantic metaphor is a scientific truth: breeding—whether of plants or relationships—requires patience, compatibility, and vision.

The play depicted real scientists such as Dr. Nemesio Mendiola - considered the “Luther Burbank of the Philippines” - who authored “A Manual of Plant Breeding for the Tropics” in 1926 and National Scientists like Dr. Dioscoro Umali (Father of Plant Breeding in the Philippines) and Dr. Ramon Barba. The play featured Dr. Barba's work on banana tissue culture, which not only benefits the Philippines but other countries as well.