Agriculture and Environmental Awareness Day shines a light on Hawaiʻi’s agricultural industry and shows keiki how local food production connects communities and the environment. It not only lets kids see where their food comes from; it opens their eyes to possible careers in ag and environmental management, showing them how they can contribute to this important work.

Welcome to a new role to Amjad Ahmad, who joins O‘ahu Cooperative Extension as an assistant Extension agent in Sustainable and Organic Agriculture. Amjad, a CTAHR PhD alumnus, previously worked for the college as a junior researcher in TPSS. Amjad’s educational background is the area of agronomy, field crops, legume crops production, organic amendments, and nitrogen applications.

Welcome to a new role to Jennifer Hawkins, who has started her new position within CTAHR as the Edible Crops agent on Moloka‘i! Jennifer used to be the Moloka‘i Hawaiian Home Lands Agriculture junior Extension agent, where she inaugurated a successful program teaching farmers to keep bees as pollinators.

There have been lots of problems associated with lettuce in the news, from the E. coli outbreaks traced to mainland romaine to local concerns about leafy greens and rat lungworm disease. But O‘ahu Cooperative Extension offered a great way to eat your greens and feel safe about them, too, at the Hydroponic Field Day at the Waimanalo Research Station.

With their omnivorous appetites and modest housing needs, pigs are an important part of food security in the Islands, and CTAHR Extension is getting swine producers the help they need to keep local pork production safe and sustainable. Livestock Extension agent Savannah Katulski hosted a Kaua‘i Swine Day this month at the Kaua‘i Agricultural Research Station.

Every office needs someone to keep it running smoothly, which is why the Kamuela Cooperative Extension office is so glad that Raquel Stephenson has joined as the new office assistant IV. Raquel is originally from O‘ahu, but she and her family moved to agricultural land in Waimea on Hawai‘i Island several years ago. She is excited about learning more about the Big Island as well as agriculture on the island.

Grandparents who are the primary caregivers for their grandchildren face some unique challenges as well as the potential for special joys. Here to help them is the GRANDCares Project, which offers grandparents a variety of useful tools to cope with their unique family situation and added responsibilities. It also provides grandchildren with positive youth-development experiences through its Youth Club. 

The latest CTAHR Impact Report, focusing on positive community impacts on the island of Kaua‘i, is now up on the college’s website. This issue pays tribute to outstanding faculty, staff, volunteers, and projects on the Garden Isle. Find out about how these initiatives are making life better for Kaua‘i and the whole state!

Coffee production education is getting into full swing with the start of another coffee-growing season. The Kona Cooperative Extension Service and Kona Research Station are welcoming farmers to attend upcoming coffee events. Coffee berry borer (CBB) 101 workshops will be conducted in Kona on February 5 and 8.

Hydroponics and other soilless growing systems are the wave of the future: they’re compact, water efficient, and prevent many pest problems. Find out more about them at the Hydroponics Open House in Waimanalo, hosted by O‘ahu County Extension agents and CTAHR researchers. It’s a pop-in event, which means that participants can come by anytime during it for lots of helpful information.

MS alumna Melelani Oshiro will be the new assistant Livestock agent on the Big Island, based at the Kona CES office. Mele has a wide range of experience, having worked for Mark Thorne (HNFAS) as a research assistant on pasture and cattle production; at a horse stud farm in New Zealand; and as a veterinarian technician. Please welcome Mele when she starts on March 1!

Shannon Sand (NREM) will be the new assistant Extension agent in Agricultural Finance. Based out of the Komohana Agriculture Research & Extension Center in Hilo, she will have state-wide responsibilities. Shannon has earned master’s degrees in Agriculture, Agricultural Economics, and Food and Resource Economics. Please welcome her when she starts work in June!

Dig in and add some spice to your life! The Pearl City Urban Garden Center is hosting a Cooperative Extension workshop on “Multiplying Organic Bacterial Wilt-Free Ginger.” Pathogen-free planting material is essential when growing ginger, but there’s been limited access to organic seed pieces. Now you can find out how to grow your own!

Savannah Katulski, a Kaua‘i junior Extension agent, has been awarded a $750 scholarship by the Roy A. Goff Memorial Endowment Fund to support her participation in the Beef Improvement Federation Symposium and Convention in South Dakota. Savannah will use this opportunity to bring research information, new tools and resources back to Hawai‘i to help improve beef carcass quality and genetics for local production systems.

Want to know more about the state of ag education throughout the state? There’s no better way to find out than by reading the Final Report on a Coordinated Framework of Support for Preschool through Post-Secondary Agriculture Education in Hawai‘i, submitted to the Legislature by the P–20 Ag Ed Working Group, of which CTAHR is a member.

Want to spread the good word about ag and hang out with happy fifth-graders? Volunteer for the annual CTAHR Agriculture and Environmental Awareness (AEA) Day! The purpose of AEA Day is to create a greater awareness and understanding of agriculture and the environment among students and teachers and to introduce students to career opportunities in agriculture and environmental studies.

As part of a collaboration between livestock Extension agent Kyle Caires and King Kekaulike High School’s Agricultural Program in Maui, Phase III of forage research and pasture trials started on January 2 with new plantings of pasture grasses and forage crops. This collaboration has generated valuable data for industry and provided hands-on learning opportunities for high school ag students.

Extension faculty and staff at the Poamoho Station just presented a Cucurbit Powdery Mildew Management Field Day. Besides giving the participants an overview of the disease and its effects, the field day offered the results of a trial comparing three commercially available products reported to control powdery mildew on cucurbits.

Kyle Caires (HNFAS) wrapped up a productive year in livestock extension by hosting an animal health and handling workshop on Maui for more than 40 4-H youth and adults in early December at Kaonoulu Ranch. Attendees got hands-on experience administering dewormers and vaccines, as well as trimming hoofs and treating hoof problems in sheep and goats.