This column is produced by Diana Duff,is a plant adviser, educator and consultant with an organic farm in Captain Cook.
BY TY MCDONALD | SPECIAL TO WEST HAWAII TODAY
The Cooperative Extension Service, a nationwide partnership between the U.S. Department of Agriculture and state universities, functions as the outreach arm of the University of Hawaii at Manoa. It provides a means for extending science-based information developed at the main campus to communities throughout the state. Through the Extension Service, agricultural research results get disseminated to growers.
The Hawaii Master Gardener program, one of hundreds of similar programs throughout the country, is a notable UH Extension program geared specifically for home gardeners. The first Master Gardener program began 40 years ago in Washington state and has since spread throughout the U.S. and Canada, and, most recently, into South Korea.
The program was developed initially as a means of assisting home gardeners with their questions, while freeing up university Extension agents to focus their efforts on commercial operations. The program was founded with the goal to train volunteers in the latest university-researched gardening information in exchange for their efforts to share the valuable information they had learned with other gardeners in the community.
Today, five Master Gardener programs are being offered in Hawaii, including single programs on Kauai, Oahu and Maui. The Big Island boasts two programs, one in Kainaliu serving West Hawaii and another at the Komohana office in Hilo, serving the east side.
In West Hawaii, certified Master Gardener volunteers operate a weekly helpline at the Kona Cooperative Extension Service office in Kainaliu answering telephone requests for information by the gardening public. Volunteers are available by phone from 9 a.m. to noon every Thursday at 322-4892. Questions sent by email to konamg@ctahr.hawaii.edu are also answered by Master Gardener volunteers. Home gardeners are also encouraged to send photos by email or bring bagged samples of the plant parts in question to the Kainaliu Cooperative Extension Service office on Thursday mornings.
Beyond the traditional helpline, volunteers also staff booths at numerous community events throughout West Hawaii, including farmers markets, county fairs, various agricultural festivals and plant sales. In addition to providing free gardening advice to the public, Extension Master Gardeners also provide invasive pest awareness, fruit fly control education and traps, as well as information on the usage of UH-developed vegetable seed varieties adapted to Hawaii conditions.
West Hawaii Master Gardeners are also actively engaged in other types of community outreach to help folks learn to grow more of their own food. Volunteers have helped develop a community garden at Kawaihae Transitional Housing and worked to develop and maintain educational gardens like that at Early Head Start. They also conduct workshops at events like the Wiliwili Festival and have developed advanced training materials, including websites, and contributed to advice columns in local newspapers.
Extension Master Gardeners are valuable partners that help promote the University of Hawaii’s College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources and the Cooperative Extension Service and its mission: to provide community-based education and information to growers throughout the state.
The requirements to become a certified master gardener are to attend 40 hours of instruction and offer 40 hours of volunteer time in exchange. Classes are held from 9 a.m. to noon Tuesdays at the Kona Cooperative Extension Service office in Kainaliu.
The course covers such topics as botany, plant identification, plant nutrition, soil fertility and nutrient management, insect and plant disease management, weed control, horticultural practices, food crops and diagnosing plant health problems.
After completing the classes, passing the tests and fulfilling the volunteer hours, a trainee is awarded a University of Hawaii Master Gardener Certificate. To maintain certification, master gardeners are asked to donate 40 volunteer hours on the helpline or community gardening projects each year.
The 2012 series of classes begins Feb. 21 and runs 12 weeks, through May 8. Candidates are required to apply in advance for admission to the program. A $125 registration fee is due with submission of a completed application. This year’s training program still has a few openings. To learn more about the West Hawaii program and obtain an application form, visit ctahr.hawaii.edu/uhmg/WestHI/index.asp or contact Ty McDonald at 322-4884 or tym@hawaii.edu.
Participation in the training program will increase your knowledge of horticultural practices and information resources, improve your plant diagnostic skills and awareness of current pest problems plaguing West Hawaii, all in a congenial and supportive environment.
Ty McDonald is a University of Hawaii Extension agent and Master Gardener Program Coordinator.
Tropical
gardening helpline
Kathy asks: My tomato plants are not doing well. Some of the leaves are yellowing and others, as well as some of the blossoms, are withering and dying. What’s wrong and what can I do?
Answer: Some of the problems might be a result of cultural practices. You may also have a soil nutritional issue and perhaps a disease occurring. Some of the dieback may just be natural senescence. We’ll explore several possibilities, which may prove helpful.
Tomato plants grow and produce best in hot, dry climates. They are prone to disease and even rotting in rainy areas. In West Hawaii, especially at upper elevations, our sunnier and drier winters are the best tomato growing season. Tomato plants do require adequate water and fertility to thrive, however.
It is best not to water tomato plants until or unless the top of the soil is dry. During long periods with no rain, set up a watering schedule based on your determination of how many days after a thorough watering the soil in the root zone remains moist. Dig down to the roots of one of your plants several days after watering. If the soil is dry, water immediately. If it is still moist schedule another watering in a few days. You can then set your watering schedule accordingly.
Tomatoes are also sensitive to fertility issues. If you are unsure of the nutritional contents of your soil, call the UH Cooperative Extension Service helpline to find out when and how to best test your soil. Their publication on the subject is on the web at ctahr.hawaii.edu/oc/freepubs/pdf/SCM-9.pdf.
When fertilizing a fruiting plant like tomato, avoid adding fertilizers heavy in nitrogen. Nitrogen will increase the vegetative growth (leaves and stems) sometimes at the expense of flowers and fruit.
Another problem plaguing tomato growers is the recent arrival of a deadly disease called Tomato Yellow Leaf Curl. This viral disease is quickly transmitted from plant to plant by several species of whiteflies and once contracted will eventually cause plant death. Recommended treatment is to remove, bag and discard the plant. For more on the symptoms of the disease, visit ctahr.hawaii.edu/oc/freepubs/pdf/PD-70.pdf. If you suspect you have the disease, refer to the UH publication at www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/oc/freepubs/pdf/PD-78.pdf for information on resistant varieties.
Another consideration is the natural yellowing and dying that occurs in the lower leaves of tomato plants. It is natural for some of the lower leaves to dieback as the plant matures. Because tomato plants have the ability to create roots along their stems, you can mound soil up around the lower stems that become leafless and increase the root zone of the plants. This can help them absorb more moisture and fertility.
Email plant questions to konamg@ctahr.hawaii.edu for answers by certified master gardeners. Some questions will be chosen for inclusion in this column.
This column is produced by Diana Duff,is a plant adviser, educator and consultant with an organic farm in Captain Cook.