Category: Vegtables

April 1, 2007 General Ag News and Notes, Ginger Root, Papaya, Vegtables

HAWAII CROP WEATHER

Here is the PDF file for the *Hawaii Crop Weather* (crop progress and condition) Report for the week ending *April 1, 2007*

current_hi040107.pdf

Please visit http://www.nass.usda.gov/hi/ for more information.USDA NASS Hawaii Field Office
1421 South King Street
Honolulu, HI 96814-2512

Agricultural Highlights

Fruits
Banana
Orchards in eastern sections of Hawaii Island had adequate moisture. Spraying was required to minimize disease damage. Banana Bunchy Top virus damage was still localized in the Puna and Kona areas. Oahu orchards were in good to fair condition. Fields in windward Oahu made fair progress with light to moderate harvesting. Leeward and central Oahu fields remained in fair to good condition. Irrigation was at moderate to heavy levels. Fruit development and ripening continued to improve during the week with the favorable weather conditions. Kauai?s orchards were in fair to good condition.
Papaya
Papaya orchards in the lower Puna area of the Big Island were in fair to good condition. Spraying for disease and weed control was active during the week. Young papaya fields in the lower Kapoho area made steady progress. Fruit quality and yields were improving. Orchards on Kauai made fair to good progress during the week. Spraying to contain insect infestation and disease infestation remained slow in rainy areas.
Vegetables
Chinese Cabbage
The Big Island?s crop was making good progress with heavy irrigation. Light disease incidence was noticed on the wrapper leaves. Head quality and yields were generally good. New plantings made good growth.
Head Cabbage
On Hawaii Island, the Waimea crop made good progress with irrigation. Selective spraying was minimizing insect and disease damage. New plantings increased in the Lalamilo area and were making good progress. Maui?s crop was reported to be showing steady increased growth due to the warming conditions and longer day length. Rainfall received a couple of week ago increased the overall ground moisture and some producers may reduce irrigation for the week. Some areas reported that the increase moisture has increased incidences of rot. While there has been some loss due to the rot, overall production is not expected to be significantly affected. Overall the crop was in generally fair condition. On Oahu, new plants were in good condition. Insect infestation remained light to moderate.
Sweet Corn
Sunny, dry, and warm weather allowed plants to make good progress in central Oahu fields. Windward fields made fair to good progress, slightly slowed with the overcast skies and intermittent rains. Big Island plantings had adequate oil moisture and the crop was making steady progress. Overall, the crop condition was in fair condition.
Cucumbers
New plantings on Oahu made good progress during the week as the warmer and sunnier weather conditions were favorable for most fields located in the central part of the island. Flower and fruit set was good during the week.
Semi-head (Manoa) Lettuce
The dry weather and higher temperatures have caused an increase in insect infestation and light damage to Oahu?s Manoa lettuce crop. Spraying to control insects was active.
Dry Onions
The crop on Maui benefited from this week?s sunny weather and in generally fair condition. Average bulb size was larger, although there were some losses due to quality defects in development as a result of cooler conditions during the previous months. Overall, producers are expecting increased improvement in the condition of the dry onion crop. Yields are expected to increase and losses from defects are expected to decrease as growing conditions continue to improve.
Miscellaneous
Ginger Root
Most growers have finished harvest for the season. Planting and field preparation for next season?s crop was active in east Hawaii sections.

March 26, 2007 General Ag News and Notes, Ginger Root, Papaya, Vegtables

HAWAII CROP WEATHER

Here is the PDF file for the *Hawaii Crop Weather* (crop progress and condition) Report for the week ending *March 25, 2007*

current_hi032607.pdf

Please visit http://www.nass.usda.gov/hi/ for more information.
USDA NASS Hawaii Field Office
1421 South King Street
Honolulu, HI 96814-2512

Agricultural Highlights

Banana
Orchards in eastern sections of Hawaii Island were in good to fair condition. Young plants were making good progress. Soil moisture was adequate. Regular spraying was minimizing disease and insect damage. Oahu orchards were in fair to good condition. Fields in windward Oahu made fair to good progress with light to moderate harvesting. Leeward and central Oahu fields remained in fair to good condition. Irrigation levels were at moderate levels during the week. Fruit development and ripening continued to improve during the week with the favorable weather conditions. On Kauai, orchards were in fair to good condition. Harvesting was expected to continue light to moderate for on island market.
Papaya
Light showers and sunny days benefited orchard growth in the lower Puna areas of the Big Island. Routine spraying has minimized disease damage. Field activities such as weeding, leaf trimming, fertilizing, and harvesting were active. Fruit quality and yields were fair. Young plantings made steady progress. Orchards on Kauai made fair to good progress during the week. Pickings remained at light to very light levels from many older fields. Spraying to contain insects and diseases were slowed in areas where the winds were too blustery.
Head Cabbage
The Big Island?s Waimea crop was in good to fair condition. Weeds were a problem in isolated Puukapu and Lalamilo fields. Head quality was generally good. New plantings made steady progress. Maui?s head cabbage crop made good progress. Weather conditions enabled continued growth and uniform development. Insect pressure was present, but has been generally kept under control. Damage has been minimal for most fields. Overall, the head cabbage crop was in fair condition. New fields on Oahu were in good condition with fields in active harvest. Insect infestation remained under control and head quality was good.
Dry Onions
On Maui, some maturing fields were producing larger bulbs compared to previous harvests. Young fields have benefited from the increasing day length and are expected to do well with the changing weather conditions. Overall, the dry onion crop was generally in fair condition.
Sweet Corn
The Big Island crop was in good to fair condition. Soil moisture was adequate and sunny periods benefited crop growth. Harvesting was active. On Oahu, harvesting was active with the continued sunny, dry, and warmer weather allowing the plants to make good progress in central Oahu fields. Windward fields made fair to good progress. The drier weather also allowed more active field preparation and planting to occur.
Cucumbers
New plantings on Oahu made good to fair progress during the week as the winds slowed crop progress and caused some damage to fruits in exposed fields. Flower and fruit set was fair during the week.
Coffee
Light coffee flowering was observed in the Holualoa district of the Big Island. Coffee fields on Kauai continued to make good progress with good flowering from the last rains.
Ginger Root
Field preparation and planting continue to take place in eastern areas of Hawaii Island. Conditions were good for planting activities. Harvesting was light.

March 19, 2007 General Ag News and Notes, Papaya, Vegtables

Hawaii Crop Weather

Here is the PDF file for the *Hawaii Crop Weather* (crop progress and condition) Report for the week ending *March 18, 2007*

current_hi031907.pdf

Please visit http://www.nass.usda.gov/hi/ for more information.USDA NASS Hawaii Field Office
1421 South King Street
Honolulu, HI 96814-2512

Agricultural Highlights

Fruits

Banana
Orchards in eastern sections of Hawaii County made good growth. Showers on Wednesday and Thursday helped to keep soil moisture adequate. Regular spraying minimized disease and insect damage. Banana Bunchy Top incidences remained isolated in the Puna and Kona areas. Oahu orchards were in fair to good condition. Fields in windward Oahu made fair to good progress with light to moderate harvesting. Leeward and central fields remained in fair to good condition. Irrigation levels were at moderate levels during the week. Fruit development and ripening continued to improve during the week with the increasing day length and beneficial sunny skies. Kauai?s orchards were in fair to good condition. Crop progress remained steady and made good recovery from previous wind damage.

Papaya
Warmer temperatures and sunny periods are benefiting orchard progress in the lower Puna areas of the Big Island. Soil moisture was adequate. Regular spraying was necessary to minimize disease damage. Mature trees in the Kapoho and Opihikao area have medium sized fruits and full fruit columns. Good weather conditions were encouraging good flower and fruit set. Growers are replanting in the lower Kapoho area. Orchards on Kauai made fair to good progress during the week. Rains and overcast skies slowed crop progress during the week. Sprayings to contain insect infestation was delayed, but are expected to be stepped-up as soon as the fields dry.

Vegetables

Head Cabbage
Big Island growers were harvesting medium to large heads. Head quality was generally good. Tall weeds were observed in the Puukapu fields. New plantings made steady progress in Lalamilo. Heavy irrigation was required. Selective spraying minimized damage from disease and insects. On Oahu, new fields were in good condition. Insect infestations remained under control and head quality was good. On Maui, weather conditions hampered field activities for most operations. Some plantings were delayed due to wet ground conditions. Producers may be able to get on schedule later in the month depending on future weather conditions. The crop was in fair condition during the past couple of weeks.

Dry Onions
Maui?s crop showed some improvement in growth and development during the past month, but with the recent weather may increase the chances of loss due to rain damage and disease from wet field conditions. The effect of this week?s rains on mature fields is uncertain, and the rains could also affect production from fields in the developing stages. Currently, crop conditions range from marginally fair to fair condition depending on the location of the field.

February 28, 2007 General Ag News and Notes, Vegtables

Hawaii Taro

Hawaii taro production is estimated at 4.5 million pounds in 2006, up 5
percent from 2005?s revised estimate of 4.3 million pounds. Farm prices
increased 6 percent to an average of 57 cents per pound, and value of
sales was estimated at $2.6 million, up 10 percent from 2005.
Weather and pests continue to hamper growers
Taro production was once again hampered by a combination of wet weather
and pests during 2006. The year began drier than normal, but quickly turned
very wet. Heavy rains started to saturate parts of the State by the second
half of January. The northern islands recorded heavy rainfall during
February with record amounts and flooding affecting most the State during
March. The beginning of April finally marked the end of six weeks of heavy
rainfall. The remainder of the year was a mix of drier than normal weather
and occasional periods of heavy rains. Pests also continued to pose a
problem for taro growers. Reports of apple snail (Pomacea canaliculata)
infestations and losses varied from light to heavy. Taro Pocket Rot (TPR), a
disease that forms pockets of rotting tissue in the corm, also continued to
result in some losses.

Click Below for complete pdf report

Hawaii Taro

USDA NASS Hawaii Field Office
http://www.nass.usda.gov/hi/
1421 South King Street
Honolulu, HI 96814-2512
Office: (808) 973-9588 / (800) 804-9514
Fax: (808) 973-2909