LIHU‘E — Although Kaua‘i may be one of the wettest places on earth, and despite the fact that the island has decent soil, farmers are still faced with many problems. “Its more then just planting seeds and watering it,” said
LIHU‘E — Although Kaua‘i may be one of the wettest places on earth, and despite the fact that the island has decent soil, farmers are still faced with many problems.
“Its more then just planting seeds and watering it,” said Earl Kashiwagi, manager of Esaki’s Produce.
Kaua‘i’s main agricultural obstacles are droughts, floods and the heat. With more than 50 years experience in the agriculture industry, Kashiwagi said he believes farming begins with a good source of water.
“Never depend on just water that comes from the sky,” he said in an interview earlier this month. “Before growing any type of crop, look for a reliable water spot first.”
Most farmers are unaware of the type of climatic heat of Kaua‘i that may cause harm to many types of crops, Kashiwagi said.
“Lettuce heads in particular may shrivel even with the proper supply of water,” he said. “The high amounts of heat may burn through the leaves, and water may make it worse.”
This problem may occur throughout the summer, especially in Waimea or Kekaha, where Kaua‘i has some of its hottest days.
“Many problems may occur in farms that are operated by new owners that come from the Mainland without the proper knowledge or experience of how Kaua‘i operates,” Kashiwagi said.
He noted the yearly conditions of Kaua‘i as “clear skies with light drizzles in January and Feburary; March is known for large winds; light rain in April and May; June till September there is hardly any rain; heavy rains, even floods may occur in October throughout December.”
Many farmers who do experience a drought pack up and leave, but Kashiwagi said true farmers are those who would not give up but instead ask for water rights and even going to the extent to build a reservoir.
“Before all this machinery, Kaua‘i farmers relied solely on the ditches and the use of gravity that allows water to flow into the crops,” he said. “Nowadays reservoirs and ditches are left abandoned or untaken care of because the use of irrigation systems, but what happens when their main source of water dries up?”
Kashiwagi also believes to succeed in farming on Kaua‘i a farmer must be raised in the industry although most children who are raised in that industry now seem like they would rather work in air-conditioning than out in the hot fields.
“Learn farming techniques from the older farmers because they know how to cope with the climatic changes of Kaua‘i before all this machinery came about,” Kashiwagi said.
• Sheadon Ringor, contributor, can be reached via news editor Nathan Eagle at 245-3681 (ext. 227) or via e-mail at neagle@kauaipubco.com
