Alumni News

Axis deer, invasive and detrimental to Molokaʻi’s fragile ecosystem, have also fed the local community for generations. But with the prolonged drought, these starving wildlife are destroying farm crops and forest watershed, leading to erosion and runoff into the ocean. “They started moving into the farm area and are just raising hell,” said Glenn Teves, Extension agent and Molokaʻi native, in a recent interview for the Star Advertiser newspaper about the ongoing situation. He suggests that killing the deer for slaughterhouses could help food banks and those in need during the pandemic.

If the words “competitive grants” strike fear in your novice grantwriting skillset, the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative feels your pain. AFRI’s competitive grants program, part of the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture, has plenty of funding opportunities ahead for new researchers – and plenty of webinars starting March 1 to guide you through the processes. The webinars are designed to provide information about AFRI programs, introduce new NIFA staff to applicants, and answer questions. “Here is an excellent opportunity to learn more about funding opportunities in the NIFA AFRI competitive grants program,” says Walter Bowen, CTAHR Associate Dean for Research. “Please note that registration is required to participate in these webinars.”

It was less than four years ago when our banana industry was reeling from the double punch of Panama Wilt and Bunchy Top Virus. With the value of their product in freefall, Oʻahu farmers reached out to Extension. In response, Amjad Ahmad, Koon-Hui Wang, and Jari Sugano obtained a Specialty Crop Block Grant Program administered by Hawaiʻi Department of Agriculture. The grant allowed Extension’s Jensen Uyeda to screen field-grown banana plants for the virus, using a new Agdia Amplify RP XRT rapid DNA amplification technology – an improvement over the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, or ELISA, method. Extension then partnered with Dr. Ming Li of the Hawaiʻi Agriculture Research Center & East County Hawaiʻi Farm Bureau to move clean, BBTV-free plants into tissue culture for multiplication.

Fast forward to now. With Extension’s help, banana growers on Oʻahu’s Windward side are re-starting new banana fields, using BBTV-free keiki plants derived from tissue-cultured mothers. Extension has also developed a rotational insecticide program, designed to work in conjunction with the BBTV tissue culture program.

“We were just about to stop growing apple banana because we had no resources for clean planting material,” says Clyde Fukuyama of Kahuku Farms. “We are very excited and looking forward to start increasing our plantings again. This will definitely help and benefit our farm.”

To date, 875 tissue-cultured banana plants have been distributed to 22 growers, and Extension is optimistic the program has the potential to re-establish previously destroyed banana orchards, and enable growers to rebound from the devastating effects of BBTV and Panama wilt. The initial success has led to another grant secured to distribute a larger number of seedlings (5,000-10,000) to statewide producers. 

“With almost a thousand BBTV-free plants distributed to growers, along with rotational insecticide, we’re hopeful the local banana industry will rebound quickly,” says Jari. "It’s important to note, these plants are not disease resistant — just free of the virus. Growers must closely follow the insecticide rotation in order to keep the aphid vector away.”

“Ornamental production is the second-leading agricultural commodity in Hawaiʻi, second only to seed production,” says Joanna Bloese of the Dept. of Plant & Environmental Protection Sciences. “The development of novel, innovative techniques to manage pests and diseases is vital to the biosecurity and competitiveness of our industry.” With a new grant from the USDA’s APHIS Plant Protection Act, Joanna is feeling better equipped to continue her research, as well as educating and training nurseries. “Early detection of incipient pest species, and developing best management practices, will facilitate the mitigation and rapid response to emerging pest populations,” she says. “This grant aims to increase the annual value of Hawai’i’s exported flowers and nursery products by decreasing shipment rejections.”

She adds, “With less exports from Hawaiʻi being rejected, quarantine security for the Mainland will be strengthened, exporters will experience fewer financial losses, and consumers will gain confidence in receiving products from Hawaiʻi.”

Working closely with HDOA, CDFA, and industry partners, Joanna will identify major pest interceptions and other biosecurity problems facing Hawaiʻi nurseries, conduct applied research to develop in-field and post-harvest pest management, and develop BMP’s based on applied research and compliance agreements with the feds.

For 2021, PPA topped $70 million in grants to strengthen the nation’s infrastructure for pest detection and surveillance, identification, and threat mitigation; safeguard the nursery production system; and respond to pest emergencies.

“I am very grateful and excited to continue this research,” Joanna says. “This grant provides much needed continuity in protecting Hawaiʻi’s ornamental crops.”

Dr. Barry Brennan, who had a long and illustrious career in the College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources at the University of Hawaiʻi, has passed away. Dr. Brennan came to Hawaiʻi in 1967 after graduating with a B.S. from Arizona State University. He studied in the Dept. of Entomology (now part of the Dept. of Plant and Environmental Protection Sciences), receiving his M.S. in 1969 and Ph.D. in 1975. He served as the University of Hawaiʻi’s Pesticide Coordinator and Pesticide Applicator Training Coordinator from 1976 to 2001.