Newsletter 38 - April 2012
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Aloha! This issue marks the beginning of our 4th year of publication. Our lofty original goals included: The Hawai‘i Homegrown Food Network will support a vibrant and sustainable local food system by accelerating the exchange of knowledge between stakeholders, connecting all strata of the agricultural economy, and raising awareness in the general public and media. Thinking back to 2009, awareness of local and sustainably produced food has indeed gone through a transformation due to the activities of many organizations such as Hawai‘i Homegrown. Farmers markets are blossoming, local food is now promoted in supermarkets and restaurants, and food gardens are sprouting up everywhere. Many hands make light work, and our work seems to be getting easier and easier. Thank you for your support of our local and sustainable food system, you are to be congratulated on all of the progress! Mahalo nui loa, Craig Elevitch and Pedro Tama EventsEvery Thursday, 9:00 am – 1:00 pm, Puna Thursday, April 05, 2012, 09:00am, North Kona Saturday, April 14, 2012, 09:00am - 12:15pm, Kona & Hamakua Saturday, April 14, 2012, 10:00am - 04:00pm, South Kona Monday, April 16, 2012, 07:00pm - 09:00pm, North Kona Wednesday, April 18, 2012, 03:00pm - 07:00pm, North Kohala Friday, April 20, to Saturday, April 21, 9 am -5 pm, (North Kona) Saturday, April 21, 2012, 09:00am - 02:00pm, Kona & Puna Saturday, April 21, 2012, 09:00am - 11:30am, North Kohala Saturday, April 21, 2012, 12:00pm - 04:00pm, North Kohala Saturday, April 28, 2012, 09:00am - 01:00pm, Hilo & South Kohala Saturday, April 28, 2012, 12:00pm - 04:30pm, North Kohala Sunday, June 10, 2012, 01:00pm - 03:30pm, South Kohala View events calendarReportsWritten by Craig Elevitch | 28 March 2012 
A garden of short-lived temperate vegetables such as this one (sunflower, beet, lettuce, daikon) produces lots of food, but requires constant care such as weeding and replanting.
With our mild tropical climate in Hawai‘i, we are very fortunate to be able to grow most food plants from both temperate and tropical climates. Temperate food plants include many table vegetables such as lettuce, cabbage, tomato, cucumber, corn, squash, spinach, sunflower, radish, peas, and beans. These plants have relatively short life cycles, usually 2–9 months. These short-lived plants are adapted to completing their life cycle during the few months of spring, summer, and fall. Written by Dave Jacke and Eric Toensmeier | 28 March 2012 
Many characteristics of forest gardens support self-renewing fertility.
Part 1 of a 2-Part Series Introduction The forest-gardening approach to fertility emphasizes strategies employed in the design phase that should reduce the need for work and expensive inputs later on down the line. Many basic characteristics of forest gardens support self-renewing fertility by their very nature: perennial plant roots provide consistent root-zone resources to the soil food web; lack of tilling allows undisturbed development of the soil organism community; consistent mulch provides stable food resources for the decomposers and a stable soil environment for everyone who lives down there; and so on. Written by Andrea Dean and Susan Osborne | 27 March 2012 
The first Puna ‘Ulu Festival celebrated the culture, agriculture, and culinary arts surrounding breadfruit in Hawai'i.
The first Puna ‘Ulu Festival took place Saturday, March3, 2012 at Ho‘oulu Lāhui, the site of Kua O Ka Lā Public Charter School at Pū‘āla‘a, adjacent to the ‘Āhalanui County Park warm ponds in Puna. Despite island-wide rain, the weather at Pū‘āla‘a was clear, and the event was attended by about 1,200 people. Written by Sonia R. Martinez | 27 March 2012 
Sam Choy’s Keauhou Poke Contest attracted a large and enthusiastic crowd.
Among the winners of the different categories in the recently held 1st Annual Sam Choy Keauhou Poke Contest held Sunday, March 18th at the Sheraton Keauhou Bay Resort was the entry by the ’Aina Life Culinary Arts Class of the Kua O Ka Lā Public Charter School at Pū'āla'a in Lower Puna. Mariposa Blanco, the school’s Culinary Teacher, and Susie Osborne, School Principal and Administrator, entered the class’s ‘Ulu–‘Ahi Spicy Poke, and won First Place in the Non-Professional Spicy Category. Announcements27 March 2012 Whether you have a few loaded trees in your yard or a full fledged farm, we can help you get your produce to market and make some money. We are currently accepting growers in the area around Maku'u market into this newly formed co-op. Click here to see new website. The idea is simple - you harvest your trees and we pick up that harvest the evening before market. You set your price, we keep 25% of sales, remaining costs and profits are split between members according to what sells each day. You no longer have to feel bad about fruit rotting on the ground - we'll make it easy to get more local produce to local markets, to build local economy and increase our island's food security. We can also talk about other homemade products like jams, pesto, and other treats. We are looking for pesticide free growers only and look forward to hearing from you! Mary & Sean Jennings 09 March 2012 Holuakoa Gardens & Cafe in Holualoa is known for its use of local produce, supplied mainly by farmers in Kona. We are looking for steady suppliers of high quality citrus including lemons, limes, tangerines, oranges, and others. Please contact Barb at 322-5072 for more information. 08 March 2012 Hamakua North Hilo Agricultural Cooperative has affordable farm land available for lease. Lot sizes from 5 to 20 acres $150 per acre/per year+$300 admin fee Irrigation water available For further information contact: Hamakua N. Hilo Ag Coop - Lori Beach Other announcementsFarmers' Markets and Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)Please visit our comprehensive directory of Hawai'i Island farmers' markets and Community Supported Agricuture.
Web ResourcesNew web site listings
Supporting OrganizationsSponsorsHawai'i People's Fund and the Hawai'i Community Foundation   Founding sponsorsHawai'i County Resource Center, a program of the County of Hawai'i Department of Research and Development. Hawaii Agricultural Development Program in partnership with the Big Island RC&D Council.
 New subscribers: Subscriptions to this newsletter are free and welcome from the general public. You can unsubscribe at any time. We will not share your name with anyone without your prior permission. Click here to subscribe This newsletter is published by:Hawai'i Homegrown Food Network
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