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- Netizens were curious as to why dried Talisay leaves were being sold online.
- One online seller said that it has been a blessing to her as she only picks up the fallen leaves from their Talisay tree, dries them, and sells them online.
- The leaves are mostly bought and used by fish breeders.
Talisay leaves, or Indian Almond leaves, are currently a trending topic on the internet after a netizen named Kierwin Anne Reyes started selling the dried leaves online.
Aside from the people who were curious about such a plant, the registered nurse also received a lot of negative feedback because of her sunbaked Talisay leaves cattapa. Others even began questioning her about the benefits of the leaves.
But even though she received negative messages, she said that she wouldn’t sell them if no one was buying. That’s far from happening as it’s currently the best selling item from her online shop. She also sells various items such as cacti, succulents, decorative stones, and clothes.
How did she start selling it and why do people keep buying the leaves?
GMA News TV featured Reyes’ story in an episode of iJuander. She said that she started selling the leaves when she saw someone picking up dried pieces from the pavement.
“Kasi one time, palabas ako ng gate. Tapos may nakita akong nagpupulot ng dahon. Nagulat siya tapos sabi niya ‘Ma’am, pwede pong humingi ng mga dahon?’ Tapos ayun, tinanong ko kung bakit. [Sagot] niya sa aquarium daw.”
She began searching about the leaves on the internet and there she saw that it was for sale in other online shops. Reyes immediately joined the bandwagon and got some leaves and began selling them.
As leaves fall daily from the tree, the item is always on-hand in her shop.
“Kagandahan po nito kasi walang puhunan. Readily available po siya dito sa bahay namin kasi sa tapat namin may puno,”
After she gathers the leaves, she puts them under the sun to make it “sunbaked”. But her success doesn’t come without the challenges as she got bashed online for selling the leaves.
Each pack she sells contains 10 pieces of leaves. And it costs Php49 per pack.
“Meron pa nga one time bumili sakin super dami. Worth mga Php500. Ayun. Pina-ship ko sa Manila lang din.”
But what is it for? The answer: for fish. According to fish breeders, they use Talisay leaves for their Betta Fish or Siamese Fighting Fish. It is to increase the fertility of the small fish.
As the Betta Fish are also territorial, they often fight with others when put in the same tank and the Talisay leaves can help cure their wounds.
