Cuihong Tu of Lin’s Farm harvested 13 huge containers of cucumbers Monday (some went to the Pau Hana Market at Kukui Grove Center in Lihu‘e!).
The harvest was a result of just a week of having honeybees around after Dr. Francis Takahashi of the Kaua‘i Community College aviary program dropped off a small, five-frame hive to the Lin’s Farm greenhouses.
Tianshong Lin realized that when greenhouses are installed, it keeps out the bad bugs, but it also keeps out the good bugs and, as a result, the cucumbers and bittermelons weren’t producing. Takahashi to the rescue with his delivery of the small hive.
“Dr. Helen Cox, when she started the aviary program, realized the significance of honeybees to sustainable agriculture,” Takahashi said. Currently, the aviary program produces queen bees that are sold to local beekeepers while they continue to work toward export certification.
Laurie Ho, president of the Kaua‘i County Farm Bureau, said those at Lin’s Farm are really good bee herders, going so far as to provide the bees with a container of water to drink from during the hot summer days.
“They showed me pictures from the China university where bee herders even make up food for the bees to have during the cold winters when there are no flowers,” Ho said. “The bees are really cute, drinking water from the little pan. They’re really good bee herders. They move the hive to different parts of the farm and really care for the bees.”
Kudos to Frisco and Rose Garabillo on the grand opening of Rose’s Pinoy Favorites at KGC, where Randy Francisco (he had to run away early for a Lawa‘i International Center open house — only 40 reservations at a time) had the Kaua‘i Filipino Chamber of Commerce adding to the excitement along with the Starfish. Rose’s offers Kupuna Day on Tuesdays and is open until 8:30 p.m.
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Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.
