For more information, contact East Hawaii chapter president Dave Longacre at htfg.east@gmail.com. Visit www.hawaiitropicalfruitgrowers.org.
On Wednesday, the East Hawaii chapter of the Hawaii Tropical Fruit Growers will introduce to the public two tropical agriculture experts — Mark Nickum from the University of Hawaii College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources (CTAHR) and Danielle Downey of the state Department of Agriculture.
The two will speak, respectively, on tropical fruit and nut culture and on honeybee pollination. The meeting will start at 6 p.m. at the Komohana Research Extension Center at 875 Komohana St. in Hilo. Pupus will be provided.
Nickum is CTAHR’s newest asset to tropical fruit and nut growers — both commercial and backyard. He recently signed on as the new assistant professor in sustainable fruit and nut crops.
He is looking forward to meeting with both growers and others in the fruit and nut industry.
Nickum’s thrust is to develop research and extension goals for the university’s tropical fruit and nut program, particularly through meaningful planning sessions with growers and industry professionals.
He envisions these sessions to include focusing on each crop with its collection of growers and reviewing all aspects of the industry.
Topics will include orchard establishment, variety selection, fertilization, production, pests and disease, harvest, yield, marketing and more.
Innovations and possible new areas of research for the program would thus develop through commercial and backyard growers as well as industry input.
Downey is an agriculture specialist at the state Department of Agriculture/UH Pacific Cooperative Studies Unit in Hilo. She will offer information about honey bees, pollination and the Apiary Program at the state Department of Agriculture. Part of the funding for the program is to secure pollination needs as honeybees decline. In particular, she is seeking grower input on whether they are noticing an impact on production that may be due to pollinator loss.
Hawaii Tropical Fruit Growers is a nonprofit organization composed of both commercial and backyard growers. Its primary purpose is promoting the interests of all aspects of tropical fruit growing in Hawaii. The group’s annual tropical fruit conference is set for Sept. 14-16 at UH-Manoa in Honolulu.
For more information, contact East Hawaii chapter president Dave Longacre at htfg.east@gmail.com. Visit www.hawaiitropicalfruitgrowers.org.