News and Events


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No Beating this Bushe

No Beating this Bushe 2 February 2018

No Beating this Bushe

The floriculture and nursery industry honors CTAHR veteran and alumnus Brian Bushe for dedicated service to the college and the agricultural community in Hawai‘i.

Not Root-Knot

Not Root-Knot 2 February 2018

Not Root-Knot

Coffee farmers got the low-down on a root-knot nematode at a Kona research plot that's amassed 11 years of research data on the pest.

Forestry Find

Forestry Find 2 February 2018

Forestry Find

Check out the great new website for Hawai‘i Forestry Extension!

Aquaponics and Health

Aquaponics and Health 21 December 2017

Aquaponics and Health

CTAHR Community Coordinator Ilima Ho-Lastimosa is part of a multidisciplinary effort to address health disparities thorough backyard aquaponics.

Maui County Awardees

Maui County Awardees 21 December 2017

Maui County Awardees

Maui County Extension celebrated its 2017 award winners — Secretary Clarisse Baisa, to left in lei, for service to faculty and staff, and Research Technician Edwin Perez, at right in cap, winner of the Administrator’s Award.

Congratulations Shirley Han!

Congratulations Shirley Han! 21 December 2017

Congratulations Shirley Han!

Office Assistant Shirley Han, left, was recognized for her service to the Molokai Cooperative Extension staff at a December 2017 lunch hosted by Maui County Administrator Cynthia Reeves (in red).

Bee on Screen

Bee on Screen 14 November 2017

Bee on Screen

Videos on the life cycle of bees and apian role in the rise of flowering plants captured national entomology awards for a CTAHR-led team.

Good Breeding

Good Breeding 14 November 2017

Good Breeding

Bred under the direction of the Mealani Research Station staff, CTAHR bulls rank among the top 5% of Angus in the country and are free of a common genetic disorder.

GoFarm’s Weigert Rocks

GoFarm’s Weigert Rocks 14 November 2017

GoFarm’s Weigert Rocks

Agritourism expert and one of “five women rocking” the Hawai‘i food scene Pomai Weigert has joined GoFarm as an agbusiness consultant.

Elder Affairs Advisor

Elder Affairs Advisor 14 November 2017

Elder Affairs Advisor

Center on the Family Assistant Specialist Sarah Yuan has been re-appointed to the State’s Policy Advisory Board for Elder Affairs for a second four-year term.

New Kaua‘i Agent

New Kaua‘i Agent 26 October 2017

New Kaua‘i Agent

Emilie Kirk has joined the Kaua‘i County Cooperative Extension team as junior Extension agent and Master Gardener coordinator with a focus on edible crops, food safety and security, ag education and production, and leadership development.

Virus Free is Sweet

Virus Free is Sweet 23 October 2017

Virus Free is Sweet

CTAHR organized a sweetpotato growers meeting featuring mainland experts and yield-boosting virus-tested ‘Okinawan’ planting materials.

Ruminating on Peas

Ruminating on Peas 23 October 2017

Ruminating on Peas

Low-water, nitrogen-fixing, tasty cowpeas are a potential niche crop for Hawai‘i producers, as Junior Extension Agent Jensen Uyeda recently demonstrated.

Delegates to National 4-H Congress

Delegates to National 4-H Congress 28 September 2017

Delegates to National 4-H Congress

The State committee reviewed the senior portfolios, interviewed the 4-H’ers and have come up with a list of 10 delegates qualified to represent Hawaii at this year’s National 4-H Congress in late November.

Giant Success

Giant Success 28 September 2017

Giant Success

East Hawai‘i 4-H had a huge presence at the Hawai‘i County Fair—both as volunteers and producers. In fact, they set four state records for produce—including a 20+ pound kalo and 137+ and 2+ pound tomato.

Samoa Swine Survey

Samoa Swine Survey 20 September 2017

Samoa Swine Survey

CTAHR Specialist Halina Zaleski assists in American Samoa’s first swine disease survey in two decades.

Irrigation Covered

Irrigation Covered 13 September 2017

Irrigation Covered

Choosing, funding, and using irrigation systems and conservation groundcovers was the focus of a Cooperative Extension workshop for orchardists at the Kona Extension Office and Research Station.

Documents to download

  • irrigate(.jpg, 90.61 KB) - 3025 download(s)

Myanmar Mission

Myanmar Mission 13 September 2017

Myanmar Mission

Glen Fukumoto and Jonathan Deenik teamed up to teach poultry waste composting and soil fertility to Myanmar farmers and officials through a USAID–funded Farmer-to-Farmer workshop series.

Digest this…

Digest this… 13 September 2017

Digest this…

Anerobic biodigester technology has improved the quality of life for Cambodian farmers, turning animal waste to fuel and fertilizer, thanks in part to MBBE researcher Samir Khanal.

‘Ulu Day on Maui

‘Ulu Day on Maui 12 September 2017

‘Ulu Day on Maui

Maui Master Gardeners helped homeowners select appropriate trees and TPSS’s Noa Lincoln described his research on the staple food crop during the Valley Isle’s first La ‘Ulu (Breadfruit Day).

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3 November 2022

Zero Dark Twolined

Extension develops an app to manage the Twolined Spittlebug

Zero Dark Twolined

By the time it was discovered in Hawaiʻi in 2016, this invasive pest had already damaged 2,000 acres of rangeland. A scant eight generations later, the Twolined Spittlebug (TLSB) had expanded its range to more than 176,000 acres.

In highly infested areas where nymph density exceeded 50/m2, the result was nearly 100% die back of key range forages, including Kikuyu and pangola grasses – and their loss exposed the land to invasive plants like Pamakani, wild blackberry, and fireweed. Livestock producers faced devastating economic losses.

Fast forward to today. Extension’s Twolined Spittlebug Team has released “Twolined Spittlebug Tool,” a new reporting and decision-support tool for the management of TLSB in Hawaiʻi. The smartphone app allows users to learn about and correctly identify TLSB, giving landowners the ability to locate, map, and manage outbreaks on their land. Users can also assist Extension, as citizen-scientists, by using the app’s reporting tool to geolocate sightings of the pest.

“The app has four main features,” explains Mark Thorne. “First, an information guide that provides an overview of TLSB biology and ecology. Next, it helps users identify TLSB in the field and distinguish it from other, non-pest species. Third, users can report sightings of TLSB. Fourth, it allows users to determine the size of the TLSB population, and then, based on the potential damage threshold calculated, select from a series of integrated pest management decisions.”

The team, which includes Mark Wright, Shannon Wilson, Daniel Peck, and Melelani Oshiro, notes the reports include a geo-referenced picture and basic details about the habitat and geographical location of the pest. The reported data is then captured in a database and displayed on a web-based mapping tool. Users have the option to enter data on TLSB population density and provide estimates on spatial extent and observed damage in their report. Data on TLSB populations is determined by following sampling protocols provided in the fourth tool.

“We spent two years drafting content and working with developers to get the app released, and we’re confident it will facilitate tracking and documenting the spread of this pest and lead to better pest management decisions for rangeland managers,” says Mark.  

To keep track of TLSB sightings, the team has created an administrative TLSB website that displays a map of TLSB sighting reports by app users.

Visit the Google Play store or Apple store to download the app.