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| Mauna Loa and its current status are topics at After Dark in the Park this Tuesday. See more below. Photo from NPS |
“It is important to clean up your field by removing or strip-picking any cherry and raisins that would have otherwise been left on the trees at the end of the harvest season,” Andrea Kawabata said. “Do this prior to pruning so that coffee is not left in the field. In addition, note down the date of your first coffee flowering. This would mean that the flowering was large enough to warrant a future harvest.
“Sampling and monitoring for CBB activity should start between 60 and 90 days after flowering (your noted date). However, in Hawai`i and with such high CBB pressure and population, monitoring can start as early as 30 days after flowering. Remember that rain tends to trigger CBB to begin actively looking for new cherry to infest and that the goal is to kill CBB before they damage the coffee bean.
“Dissecting the bean and looking for bean damage will help you to determine if you’ve been successful.”
If stump pruning, growers may consider keeping a nurse vertical, particularly in higher elevations and on older or less vigorous trees.
Kawabata also asks growers to participate in an ongoing survey. The survey is a CBB and coffee informational exchange approach from CTAHR extension.
“Please help us to better understand coffee berry borer and to coordinate areawide CBB control activities in Hawai`i by telling us what is going on at your farm on a weekly basis,” Kawabata said. “We will summarize results and post them and possible CBB management strategies in that area on the hawaiicoffee.weebly.com website. We need TMK information so that CBB can be tracked by area, but only aggregate information will be released.”
The survey should take less than 10 minutes to complete once each week. Each time participants submit information, they will be entered into a monthly drawing for a $10 gift card to KTA, Choicemart, Foodland or Island Naturals.
This project begins with information from the week of Jan. 3, 2016. See surveymonkey.com/r/PWBB8Z5.
CBB management information can be found at http://hawaiicoffee.weebly.com/cbb-management.html.
Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.
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| UH-CTAHR encourages Ka`u Coffee growers to continue battling coffee berry borers. |
“Dissecting the bean and looking for bean damage will help you to determine if you’ve been successful.”
If stump pruning, growers may consider keeping a nurse vertical, particularly in higher elevations and on older or less vigorous trees.
Kawabata also asks growers to participate in an ongoing survey. The survey is a CBB and coffee informational exchange approach from CTAHR extension.
“Please help us to better understand coffee berry borer and to coordinate areawide CBB control activities in Hawai`i by telling us what is going on at your farm on a weekly basis,” Kawabata said. “We will summarize results and post them and possible CBB management strategies in that area on the hawaiicoffee.weebly.com website. We need TMK information so that CBB can be tracked by area, but only aggregate information will be released.”
The survey should take less than 10 minutes to complete once each week. Each time participants submit information, they will be entered into a monthly drawing for a $10 gift card to KTA, Choicemart, Foodland or Island Naturals.
This project begins with information from the week of Jan. 3, 2016. See surveymonkey.com/r/PWBB8Z5.
CBB management information can be found at http://hawaiicoffee.weebly.com/cbb-management.html.
Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.
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| Map from Hawai`i County Civil Defense shows confirmed, suspect and negative cases of dengue fever. |
CONFIRMED CASES OF DENGUE FEVER on Hawai`i Island reached 210 last week. According to Hawai`i Department of Health, five of the individuals are potentially infectious, with onset of illness as recent as Jan. 1. Of the confirmed cases, 190 are Hawai`i Island residents, and 20 are visitors. Adults number 170, and 40 have been under 18 years of age.
A total of 838 reported potential cases have been found negative for the disease.
Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.
RICHARD HA IS CLOSING HIS FARM. Ha, owner of Hamakua Springs Country Farms, is known in Ka`u for promoting an energy cooperative as an alternative to privately owned Hawai`i Electric Light Co. He is a founding member of Hawai`i Island Energy Cooperative.
Ha’s major crop is bananas. He had also grown tomatoes but stopped that venture several months ago. Leading up to the farm closing down, Ha had to stop funding a profit-sharing plan, then had to cut some medical benefits for his employees and most recently cut wages.
“It’s all related to the price of oil,” Ha said. “As the oil price has risen, folks that could pass on the cost did, but farmers cannot. When the oil price dropped recently, the cost of fertilizer, plastic, all sorts of things that have oil petroleum costs embedded in their prices, didn’t come down with it. Those costs stayed up.
“The oil price will go back up again, and anticipating that, we had to make a decision. It’s not that we’re going bankrupt – we’re not. We just need to do what we need to do before it gets to that point.”
Ha said a group applying for a license to grow and distribute medical marijuana is interested in leasing land. He said the group agreed to offer his employees jobs and provide security “so I can ensure that the community feels safe.”
He compared his decision to Alexander & Baldwin’s recent announcement that it is transitioning out of sugar on Maui. “‘Transition’ is the right word for what we’re doing, too” Ha said. “We don’t know exactly what the transition will look like, but we’ll still be around. The land that was in bananas is going to go into corn. A dairy that already leases land from us to grow corn is going to take the rest of that land and plant more.”
See hamakuasprings.com.
Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.
BASKETBALL SEASON IS IN FULL SWING for Ka`u High Trojans.
Girls started the New Year hosting Honoka`a on Monday, Jan. 4 with a loss of 20-52.
On Thursday, Jan. 7 at Kealakehe, JV won 35-27, but varsity lost 17-62.
Yesterday, JV won again at HPA 27-24, and varsity rebounded from previous losses to win 36-33.
Following their busy first week of 2016, the Trojan Wahine travel to Hilo on Friday Jan. 15.
Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.
KA`U RESIDENTS CAN REGISTER for upcoming classes sponsored by the College of Continuing Education and Community Service at University of Hawai`i-Hilo.
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| The Ha family is closing operations at Hamakua Springs Country Farms. Photo from Richard Ha |
“The oil price will go back up again, and anticipating that, we had to make a decision. It’s not that we’re going bankrupt – we’re not. We just need to do what we need to do before it gets to that point.”
Ha said a group applying for a license to grow and distribute medical marijuana is interested in leasing land. He said the group agreed to offer his employees jobs and provide security “so I can ensure that the community feels safe.”
He compared his decision to Alexander & Baldwin’s recent announcement that it is transitioning out of sugar on Maui. “‘Transition’ is the right word for what we’re doing, too” Ha said. “We don’t know exactly what the transition will look like, but we’ll still be around. The land that was in bananas is going to go into corn. A dairy that already leases land from us to grow corn is going to take the rest of that land and plant more.”
See hamakuasprings.com.
Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.
Girls started the New Year hosting Honoka`a on Monday, Jan. 4 with a loss of 20-52.
On Thursday, Jan. 7 at Kealakehe, JV won 35-27, but varsity lost 17-62.
Yesterday, JV won again at HPA 27-24, and varsity rebounded from previous losses to win 36-33.
Following their busy first week of 2016, the Trojan Wahine travel to Hilo on Friday Jan. 15.
Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.
KA`U RESIDENTS CAN REGISTER for upcoming classes sponsored by the College of Continuing Education and Community Service at University of Hawai`i-Hilo.
During Aquaponics for Beginners
on Saturday, Jan. 23, students learn to build their own highly productive, sustainable backyard aquaponics system.
Solar Power Basics is the topic on Saturday, Jan. 30. Learn to build renewable power and explore the future of energy. In this hands-on class, learn how solar photovoltaic systems work, how they are designed, how to predict output of a system and how systems are installed.
Vermicomposting for Beginners is scheduled on Saturday, Feb. 6. This is a family-friendly activity that will be fun for adults and kids alike (10 years and older). Learn how to take produce waste and turn it into rich fertile soil using worms – a perfect amendment to any garden bed, fruit tree orchard or house plant.
All classes are from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at UH-Hilo CAB 102.
For more information and to register, see hilo.hawaii.edu/academics/ccecs/courses.php.
Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.
SENIOR IDS ARE AVAILABLE TOMORROW from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. at Pahala Housing Center and from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Na`alehu Community Center. For ages 60 and over. Call 928-3100 for more information.
KAMEHAMEHA SCHOOLS ONE-STOP-SHOP services are coming to Ka`u. Help is available in completing applications for admissions, financial aid, Ho`olulu Hawaiian Data Center, summer school, summer enrichment and distance learning.
In collaboration with Tutu & Me Traveling Preschool, services are available from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday at Pahala Community Center.
VOLCANO AWARENESS MONTH CONTINUES at After Dark in the Park on Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientist Asta Miklius discusses recent activity at Mauna Loa and its current status. Since 1843, Mauna Loa has erupted 33 times, most recently in 1984, when lava flows reached to within four miles of Hilo. In September 2015, USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory raised the Volcano Alert Level of Mauna Loa from NORMAL to ADVISORY due to increased seismicity and deformation.
Solar Power Basics is the topic on Saturday, Jan. 30. Learn to build renewable power and explore the future of energy. In this hands-on class, learn how solar photovoltaic systems work, how they are designed, how to predict output of a system and how systems are installed.
Vermicomposting for Beginners is scheduled on Saturday, Feb. 6. This is a family-friendly activity that will be fun for adults and kids alike (10 years and older). Learn how to take produce waste and turn it into rich fertile soil using worms – a perfect amendment to any garden bed, fruit tree orchard or house plant.
All classes are from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at UH-Hilo CAB 102.
For more information and to register, see hilo.hawaii.edu/academics/ccecs/courses.php.
Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.
KAMEHAMEHA SCHOOLS ONE-STOP-SHOP services are coming to Ka`u. Help is available in completing applications for admissions, financial aid, Ho`olulu Hawaiian Data Center, summer school, summer enrichment and distance learning.
In collaboration with Tutu & Me Traveling Preschool, services are available from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday at Pahala Community Center.
VOLCANO AWARENESS MONTH CONTINUES at After Dark in the Park on Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientist Asta Miklius discusses recent activity at Mauna Loa and its current status. Since 1843, Mauna Loa has erupted 33 times, most recently in 1984, when lava flows reached to within four miles of Hilo. In September 2015, USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory raised the Volcano Alert Level of Mauna Loa from NORMAL to ADVISORY due to increased seismicity and deformation.
$2 donations support park programs; park entrance fees apply.
SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.
SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.
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| See kaucalendar.com/Directory2015.swf and kaucalendar.com/Directory2015.pdf. |
