It started with a little pest management
The Ho Family has 40 acres to farm Japanese cucumbers, long beans, squash, tomatoes, and eggplant. They’ve been dedicated land stewards for over 20 years. The conservation plan they hold with NRCS is to address weeds, insects, and plant disease by following an integrated pest management system.

In partnership with the Oahu Soil and Water Conservation District, the Oahu Resource Conservation and Development Council, the University of Hawaii’s Ag Extension, the Hawaii State Department of Agriculture, and the Farm Bureau, the Ho family is working diligently to reduce the use of chemicals with the limited resources they have.

In 2006, they were awarded a state Conservation Innovation Grant to install and test a fine mesh netting screen house for exclusion of insect pests of cucumber. The project seeks to install a technology that has been proven to be effective in the mainland under temperate conditions but has not been put to such a test in a tropical climate where insect pest pressure
is intense year round.

The new system will reduce the use of pesticide by 90% and address the damage caused by pickleworm, melon thrips, silverleaf whitefly, and melon fly. It also addresses the air quality and determines cost effectiveness of the system for future use to reduce soil and water
contamination from pesticides.

Wei Chong Ho (center) with his wife and daughter next to their crop of long beans. They consistently do soil testing on their property to minimize the use of fertilizers and pesticides. Crop rotation is also used on their farm. They truly care about their land and their neighbors.

Media Contact: Jolene Lau, Pacific Islands Area NRCS