Tag: MON

May 23, 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 *May 21, 2007*

current_hi052207.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
1-800- 804-9514

Agricultural Highlights

Fruits

Banana
Banana orchards in windward sections of Hawaii Island continued to make good progress. Soil moisture was adequate. Sunny and warm conditions benefited fruit and orchard growth. Disease incidences have remained stable. Banana Bunchy Top incidences remain isolated in the Puna and Kona areas. Oahu orchards were in fair to good condition. Fields in windward Oahu were in fair condition with light to moderate harvesting as Banana Bunchy Top virus continued to keep production down. Leeward and central Oahu fields continued to make fair to good progress and were also slowed by Banana Bunchy Top damage. Irrigation levels remained at moderate to heavy levels during the week due to the relatively dry weather. Fruit development and ripening continued to make good progress with the sunny days and warmer temperatures. Kauai?s orchards were in fair to good condition.

Papaya
Orchards in the lower Puna area of the Big Island were in good to fair condition. Light showers helped to provide some soil moisture. However, more showers are needed. In the lower Kapoho area, large orchards had trees that were too tall for commercial harvest. Recently planted orchards made slower progress due to the dry conditions. Spraying for weed and disease control was on-going. Orchards on Kauai continued to make fair to good progress during the week. Spraying to contain insect populations continued on a regular schedule and was keeping infestations manageable.

Vegetables

Head Cabbage
The Big Island?s Waimea crop was in generally good to fair condition. Medium-sized heads were harvested. Hot and dry conditions required heavy irrigation. Insect and disease damage was generally light. The Maui head cabbage crop continued to make steady progress. Warmer growing conditions have increased crop growth and development, but it has also encouraged increased insect pressure in the major growing areas. Borders of fields were drying out and insects and wildlife were feeding on irrigated fields. So far, losses have been kept to a minimum, but it may become increasingly more difficult to control with the warmer months approaching. Overall, Maui?s head cabbage crop was in fair condition. On Oahu, new plants were in good condition. Insect infestations were at light levels and mostly under control.

Sweet Corn
The Big Island?s young crop made steady progress. Sunny days and adequate soil moisture benefited crop growth. On Oahu, beneficial weather conditions allowed plants to make good progress and boost market supplies from central Oahu fields. Windward fields made good progress during the week and are expected to continue with moderate harvesting.

Dry Onions
Maui?s dry onion crop continued to benefit from the current weather conditions. The long days and warm temperatures encouraged good growth and development especially for maturing fields. Yields were good and are expected to be steady for several weeks. The lack of rainfall has reduced the occurrence of quality defects in the field. Developing fields were showing good steady progress. Overall, the dry onion crop was in fair to good condition.

Miscellaneous

Ginger Root
Plantings in the eastern sections of the island of Hawaii made steady progress. Sunny and warm days benefited crop growth. Light showers provided just enough moisture to sustain growth.

May 16, 2007 General Ag News and Notes, Papaya

Hawaii Papayas Report

Here is the PDF file for the Hawaii Papayas Report.
papaya51707.pdf
Please visit the website for more information: http://www.nass.usda.gov/hi/

————————————————————-
Contact Information:
Mark E. Hudson, Director
USDA NASS Hawaii Field Office
1421 South King Street
Honolulu, HI 96814-2512

Office: (808) 973-9588 / (800) 804-9514
Fax: (808) 973-2909
————————————————————-

“HAWAII PAPAYAS” reports are available on our website http://www.nass.usda.gov/hi/ and also PRINTED monthly. Subscriptions for PRINTED copies are free to those persons who report agricultural data to NASS (upon request) and available for $4 per year to all others.

APRIL FRESH SALES HIGHER

Hawaii fresh papaya utilization is estimated at 2.2 million pounds for April 2007, up 3 percent from March 2007 and 29 percent more than April 2006.

Favorable weather conditions continued for papayas in April, encouraging flowering and fruit development. Young orchards made good progress with some acreage coming into production soon. Fruit columns are full with few gaps. Production from other fields has been declining, abandoned, or neglected. Warm weather has spurred weed growth but controlled under current spraying programs.

Papaya growers are expected to receive an estimated 48.0 cents per pound for fresh fruit in April, up 2 percent (1.0 cent) from last month, but 2 percent down (1.0 cent) from a year ago.

May 7, 2007 General Ag News and Notes, Ginger Root, Papaya, Vegtables

Hawaii Weekly Crop Weather Report

Here is the PDF file for the *Hawaii Crop Weather* (crop progress and condition) Report for the week ending *May 6, 2007*

current_hi-051507.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
1-800- 804-9514

Agricultural Highlights

Fruits

Banana
Growing conditions are near ideal for orchards in the eastside of Hawaii Island. Light winds, sunny days, and adequate soil moisture provided good conditions for orchard progress. Spraying needed to be increased as higher disease incidences were observed. New plantings in the Pepeekeo area made steady growth. Oahu orchards were in fair to good condition. Fields in windward Oahu were in fair condition with light to moderate harvesting as the Banana Bunchy Top virus continued to hamper production. Leeward and central Oahu fields made fair to good progress. Irrigation remained at moderate to heavy levels during the week due to the windy and dry weather conditions. Fruit development and ripening continued to improve with the sunny days and warmer temperatures. Orchards on Kauai were in fair to good condition.

Papaya
Good soil moisture and sunny days helped boost orchard progress in the lower Puna area. Orchards in the Kapoho, Opihikao, and Pohoiki showed good flower and fruit set. Mature orchards have full fruit columns with medium-sized fruits. Orchards in the Kalapana area were in fair condition. Spraying was required to minimize disease damage. Orchards on Kauai made fair to good progress during the week. Spraying to contain insect populations continued on a regular schedule.

Vegetables

Chinese Cabbage
Plantings in the Waimea area of the Big Island made rapid progress. Weeds were a problem is some fields. Disease incidence was noticed on the wrapper leaves. Insect damage was light. Heavy irrigation was required as conditions have been mostly sunny and dry. New plantings made steady progress.

Head Cabbage
The Big Island?s Waimea crop was in good to fair condition. Insect and disease damage was generally light. Harvest of good quality, medium-size heads was in progress. New plantings made good progress with heavy irrigation. Maui?s head cabbage crop continued to make fair to good progress. Warm growing conditions required close monitoring of the fields for timely spraying due to increased insect pressure. Warmer temperatures also required increased irrigation for most fields, especially those in the lower elevation areas. Crop quality was good, and damage from insects continued to be low. Overall, the head cabbage crop was in mostly fair condition with some fields in good condition. On Oahu, insect infestations were at light levels. New plantings were in good condition.

Sweet Corn
Newly-planted fields in windward areas of the Island of Hawaii made good progress. Soil moisture was adequate, and crop was in fair to good condition. Weather conditions allowed central Oahu fields to make good progress. Light worm infestations were mostly under control. Windward fields made good progress during the week. Semi-head (Manoa) Lettuce Planting and harvesting on Oahu remained steady. Light to moderate insect infestation and damage to plants continued to slow crop progress and lower yields. Spraying to control insects was active. Most plantings on Kauai made good progress with the sunny and dry weather conditions.

Dry Onions
Weather conditions benefited Maui?s crop. Warm temperatures were good for the growth and development of the crop in all stages. Conditions have not been too hot, and the periodic brisk winds were good for air circulation within the fields. Insect pressure was low. Developing fields were in good condition. Bulbs were showing good size. Young fields were also developing well and showing vigorous growth. Overall, the dry onion crop was in good condition.

Miscellaneous

Ginger Root
On the Big Island, newly planted seeds were sprouting. Adequate soil moisture and sunny periods aided crop progress. Late planting continued in isolated areas. ?

May 2, 2007 General Ag News and Notes, Papaya, Vegtables

Hawaii Weekly Crop Weather Report

Here is the PDF file for the *Hawaii Crop Weather* (crop progress and condition) Report for the week ending April 29, 2007

current_hi-050107.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
Soil moisture in windward areas of the Big Island was high and the crop was in generally good condition. Mostly sunny days, following wet weather early in the week, were beneficial for fruit development and orchard condition.

Banana
Bunchy Top virus incidences remain isolated in the Puna and Kona areas. Oahu banana orchards were in fair to good condition. Fields in windward areas were in fair condition. Banana Bunchy Top virus continued to adversely affect production. Leeward and central Oahu fields made fair to good progress. Rouging and spraying for insect infestation was stepped up and has helped slow Banana Bunchy Top infections in the area. Irrigation levels were at moderate to heavy levels due to the windy and dry weather. Fruit development and ripening continued to improve due to mostly sunny skies and the longer daylight hours.

Papaya
Orchards on Hawaii Island were in fair to good condition. Showers increased soil moisture to satisfactory levels in most orchards. Active flowering occurred in most fields. Orchards on Kauai made fair to good progress during the week. Spraying to contain insects was on a regular schedule.

Vegetables

Chinese Cabbage
The Big Island?s Waimea crop continued to make steady progress. Planting was very active in selected fields. Irrigation was necessary due to dry and windy conditions. Excessive weeds were noticed in many fields. Quality of harvested heads was fair to good.

Head Cabbage
The Big Island?s Waimea crop was in generally good condition. Light insect damage was noticed on outer leaves. Irrigation kept crop progress normal. Crop progress in the Volcano area was slow due to wet conditions. On Oahu, increasing diamond back moth infestation was stemmed with increasing control measures. New plantings were in good to fair condition.

Sweet Corn
Planting and field prep were ongoing in the windward side of the Big Island. Frequent showers and warm temperatures boosted growth. Overall, the crop was making good progress with younger plantings making steady progress. Central Oahu fields made good progress having benefited from sunny skies, dry conditions, and warmer temperatures during the week. Light worm infestation was mostly under control. Windward area fields also made good progress.

Cucumbers
Harvesting is expected to pickup on Oahu fields as new plantings come into active harvest. Wind damage and scarring of fruits were light in exposed areas. Irrigation levels were heavy due to the dry weather.

Dry Onions
On Maui, growth and development of plantings have been very good. Fields, at all stages of development, were in good condition. Maturing fields are expected to have good yields and quality. Average bulb size is also anticipated to increase. Younger, newly-planted, fields also faired well during the week.

April 28, 2007 General Ag News and Notes, Vegtables

*Monthly* *Hawaii Vegetables* Report

Here is the PDF file for the *Monthly* *Hawaii Vegetables* Report

monveg1042707.pdf

Please visit the website for more information: http://www.nass.usda.gov/hi/

————————————————————-
Contact Information:
Mark E. Hudson, Director
USDA NASS Hawaii Field Office
1421 South King Street
Honolulu, HI 96814-2512

Office: (808) 973-9588 / (800) 804-9514
Fax: (808) 973-2909
————————————————————-

*Monthly* *Hawaii Vegetables* Report reports are available on our website http://www.nass.usda.gov/hi/ and also PRINTED monthly. Subscriptions for PRINTED copies are free to those persons who report agricultural data to NASS (upon request) and available for $4 per year to all others.

Production Generally Above Year Ago

Chinese cabbage production in March totaled 642,000 pounds, increases of 10 percent and 14 percent from the February 2007 and March 2006, respectively. Improved yields resulted in the higher production. In general, weather conditions were beneficial for crop development and kept crops in fair to good condition.

Head cabbage growers produced a total of 1.4 million pounds in March. This was an increase of 49 percent and 10 percent from last month and the previous year, respectively. Favorable weather conditions helped to increase yields and offset the decline in acreage for harvest. Insect infestations were kept under control with regular spraying. The crop was in good condition.

Sweet Corn growers produced an estimated 209,000 pounds in March, this was 63 percent and 248 percent above last month and a year ago, respectively. This increase was the result of improved yields and an increase in acreage for harvest. Favorable weather conditions helped to boost ear development and size, maintaining the crop in good condition.

Cucumber production during March increased 7 percent and 13 percent from February 2007 and March 2006 to 366,000 pounds. The crop harvested during the month was in fair condition. However, improved weather during March has helped the newer crop vines, flowers, and fruit sets.

Tomato production totaled 1.1 million pounds in March, a 13 percent and 10 percent increase over the previous month and a year earlier, respectively. The tomato crop was in fair to good condition.

April 19, 2007 General Ag News and Notes, Papaya

HAWAII PAPAYAS

MARCH AND FIRST QUARTER SALES DOWN FROM 2006

Papayas

Hawaii fresh papaya utilization is estimated at 2.2 million pounds for March 2007, up 4 percent from February, but down 2 percent from last year. Cumulative sales for the first quarter of 2007 were down 10 percent from the same period in 2006 to 6.6 million pounds.

Total in crop for March is estimated at 1,935, down 7 percent from a year ago. Harvested area totaled 870 acres, decreasing 51 percent from March of last year. Continuous wet weather in the earlier months of 2006 and an increase in disease during 2006 had some impact on current lower acreage.

In March, orchards benefited from sunny periods and adequate soil moisture for steady growth and flowering. Normal field activities were underway with favorable weather. Young plantings made good progress. More harvested acreage is expected for the summer months. Papaya growers are expected to receive an estimated 47.0 cents per pound for fresh fruit in March, up 15 percent (6.0 cents) from last month and 4 percent more (2.0 cents) from a year ago.

Here is the PDF file for the *Hawaii Papayas *Report.

papaya041917.pdf

Please visit the website for more information: http://www.nass.usda.gov/hi/

————————————————————-
Contact Information:
Mark E. Hudson, Director
USDA NASS Hawaii Field Office
1421 South King Street
Honolulu, HI 96814-2512