In trick-

In trick-

In trick-or-treat like fashion, home gardeners from all corners of the community made their rounds at the Urban Garden Center’s recent “Extension in the Garden Day.” Visiting Extension faculty and Master Gardener educational booths, the excited participants filled their recycled containers with a diversity of locally adapted crops that had been field tested by Extension agents around the state.

A very sincere congrats to Jari Sugano, Oʻahu County Administrator for Extension, who was honored by the Oʻahu Resource Conservation and Development Council. Jari was the honored speaker at the event “Celebrating Women Who Help Shape Local Agriculture in Hawaiʻi,” where the statewide membership of Oʻahu RC&D’s Hawaiʻi Women Farmers Network recognized her professional excellence, dedication, and leadership; she serves as an inspiration to many throughout Hawai’i's agricultural sector.

We are excited to announce the launch of the new Hawaiʻi Nutrition Center (HNC) website! HNC is a partnership between the University of Hawaiʻi - College of Tropical Agriculture & Human Resources (CTAHR), Cooperative Extension, Hawaiʻi Foods, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program - Education (SNAP-Ed), and Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP).

Sporting a new cover and artsy photos throughout – but leaving the time-honored text inside completely intact – the classic “Taro Varieties in Hawaiʻi” is reprinted and available for purchase. Originally published in 1939 by L.D. Whitney, F.A.I. Bowers, and M. Takahashi, it is available for $15 from UH Press and CTAHR’s Urban Garden Center.

Free events for public benefit aren’t only for the community, you know. CTAHR faculty, staff, alumni, and students are welcome, too! On Thursday, Oct. 20, starting at 3:00 p.m. at the Urban Garden Center, join Extension as they host visitors for an afternoon of sharing and networking as they discuss gardening in the islands.

Registration for the latest ʻExtension in the Garden Seriesʻ workshop was so popular that Tina Lau and Jensen Uyeda had to book a second segment to accommodate the eager crowd. Guests joined Extension agents as they discussed static hydroponics container gardening and learned how to start seedlings, select the right variety for their own back yard, and use various tray bases, covers, liners, net pots.

With great pride, the Urban Garden Center in Pearl City has re-started its “Extension in the Garden” series. Once a month, we will host a walking tour to showcase the most recent work of CTAHR agricultural scientists, Extension educators, Master Gardeners, and UGC volunteers. Field demonstrations and educational exhibits – on a highlighted theme – will be on display for the community’s benefit. 

Join the Oʻahu Master Gardeners at the Urban Garden Center in Pearl City and learn about low-water use gardening with succulents at its Water-Wise Gardening Workshop. The morning event will give participants a glimpse into a low-water use garden, which can lead to bigger projects that enhance home landscapes while conserving water. Participants will also create a starter dish garden of succulents to take home (6 x 4 inch). 

The Hawaiʻi State Legislature’s House Committee on Finance paid a friendly site visit to the Magoon Research and Education Station on July 14. Tessie Amore and Orville Baldos of the Dept. of Tropical Plant and Soil Sciences led the tour of the grounds and greenhouses. The group included lawmakers and staff, CTAHR Associate Dean for Research Walter Bowen, UH VP of Government Relations Kalbert Young, and various CTAHR and UH staff.

Look what you’ve done to the place! Rain or shine, our CTAHR Extension faculty, staff, and tireless volunteers have been digging, planting, pruning, raking, and overall sprucing up the Urban Garden Center in Pearl City, Oʻahu.

The next cohort for the highly successful GoFarm Hawaiʻi program will begin August 1 with its AgCurious online webinar. This virtual meeting is the first step to learn more about CTAHR’s beginning farmer training program and how to apply; attendance is a prerequisite for the next training step, AgXposure.

The next cohort for the highly successful GoFarm Hawaiʻi program will begin August 1 with its AgCurious online webinar. This virtual meeting is the first step to learn more about CTAHR’s beginning farmer training program and how to apply; attendance is a prerequisite for the next training step, AgXposure.

Know anyone who’s looking to improve their farming production and agribusiness skills? Please share the news with your networks and tell them to Register today before the class fills up.

• AgCurious Online Webinar: August 1 @ 5:30pm: The first step to learn more about the GoFarm beginning farmer training program and how to apply. 
• AgXposure: August 17 - September 14: Learn from local farms and get exposure to farm work (Wednesday evenings (online) and Saturdays).
• AgXcel: October 19 - April 29, 2023: Learn farm production and business skills from our coaching team during Wednesday evening (online) and Saturday field classes. Plant, manage, and market your own 7-week Community Supported Agriculture vegetable production at GoFarm’s site in Waialua. 

For more info, visit GoFarm Hawaiʻi or contact Laura Ediger at lediger@hawaii.edu.

Long after they’ve wilted and returned to the earth, flowers grown by Extension agents at the Urban Garden Center will live on in the memories, education, and overall development of Oʻahu youths. Originally grown to brighten the décor at the CTAHR Ohana Banquet, as well as brighten spirits at the Hawaiʻi Dept. of Health, the harvested flowers also went toward teaching students at Pearl City High School how to make arrangements using locally available flowers. PCHS teachers and students also made floral arrangements to give to school administrators during Admin Professional Week.

The recent UH drive to support the Hawaiʻi Foodbank brought in almost $70K, and CTAHR led the way in total pounds of food donated at a whopping 2,488 pounds – by far and away the most from any college or school in the UH system.

Mark your calendars for Saturday, July 9, because the Urban Garden Center is once again holding educational workshops for the public, this time on orchids and composting. Can’t wait? Guests are welcome to arrive early for a guided tour of the Honolulu Rose Society gardens beginning at 9 am, visit the Master Gardeners’ “Got a Plant Question?” booth, and check out the interesting “Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle” display.

A $1 million gift from American AgCredit and CoBank will go directly to helping GoFarm Hawaiʻi graduates grow their agricultural businesses. The highly successful CTAHR program has graduated 480 participants in less than a decade. It provides business technical assistance, educational opportunities, and resources to remove barriers to farming and agribusinesses.

Ag teachers on Maui, Molokaʻi, and Lanaʻi haven’t been able to gather, share knowledge, and renew friendships for a while now. So along with Britney James of the Maui Economic Development Board’s STEMworks Program, in partnership with Maui County Farm Bureau, we decided to host a professional development. It was great to see Ag teachers from across Maui County come together for the event. We kicked off with a tour of HokuNui Maui’s Agroforestry program. The Hewahewa family shared the history of the farm and how they decide which plants to grow in their agroforest so teachers could implement the same choices in their classes.

The Dean’s Award for Excellence in Extension distinguishes an exceptional Extension faculty member or team whose work has demonstrated outstanding performance and significant results. The application for this award is the submission of an Extension Impact Statement. This year’s winning Impact Statement can be found on the CTAHR homepage.

Volunteers are the lifeblood for Extension programs such as 4-H and Master Gardener. The recipient of this first-ever Dean’s Award for Outstanding Extension Volunteer goes to Joe Simmons, Master Gardener volunteer. For many years, the Master Gardener program in the majority of states utilized an electronic volunteer management system created and hosted by the University of California – Davis. In 2019, this system was decommissioned, and it was up to each state to come up with a replacement system.

For his dedication to supporting and enhancing invasive species management on Kauaʻi and throughout Hawaiʻi, Extension agent Roshan Manandhar is the recipient of the 2022 Hawaiʻi Invasive Species Awareness Month Kauaʻi Island MVP Award! The award recognizes an individual, organization, or agency responsible for one of the major invasive species highlights in the areas of research, prevention, control, and/or public outreach on their island.

Want to sustain our aging Ag workforce with the best and brightest of the next generation? How about try exposing young persons to the wide diversity of careers that are available? Faculty, staff, and volunteers of CTAHR’s Urban Garden Center (UGC) played host to field trips last week from Pearl City High School and Waipahu High School, partnering with the Hawaiʻi Agricultural Foundation (HAF) to promote awareness of agriculture at the high school level. With a grant to cover transportation, UGC and HAF worked together to bring more than 30 PCHS students to the CTAHR facility February 11 for a multisensory event.

Students had an opportunity to: 1) learn about the benefits of flowers, 2) smell the roses, 3) express themselves creatively with plants, 4) harvest, process and taste mamaki tea, 5) use their hands to propagate plants, 6) taste local and unique fruits grown at UGC, 7) convert home waste into a useable fertilizer for plants, 8) take home local roses and their personalized bouquets, and 9) taste how sour lemon can be made into a local treat by using gummies and lemon peel.