November 2009
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Last month I had the good fortune to travel to Hawaii to visit local growers and golf courses. Sounds too good to be true – being paid to visit golf course resorts, greenhouses and nurseries in paradise. And that’s not too far from the truth. Hawaii is, well, Hawaii: perfect weather, friendly people and gorgeous plants. But traveling to the islands does have its drawbacks. Early inter island flights to catch, rental car hassles, unpronounceable street names and a different hotel bed each night does take some of the fun out of the experience…but not all of the fun. In a sentence, local Hawaiians are among the friendliest and most hospitable on earth. At each and every visit, we were treated like visiting royalty, and I cannot wait to return to enjoy more of the aloha spirit.
I traveled to Hawaii with BASF Senior Sales Specialist Fred Eckert. Fred manages Hawaii as part of his southern California and Arizona sales territory. He invited me to join him to visit growers and to speak about new BASF products at a local growers meeting in Hilo, Hawaii (the Big Island). Our tour started in Honolulu-Oahu, then moved to Maui, then on to Kona and ended in Hilo. We met with growers at each stop and managed to squeeze in a few golf course visits (to talk turf, not golf).
Despite the fact that they are living in the most ideal growing climate on earth, most growers are faced with the same challenges as mainland growers: tough economic conditions, troublesome pests (remember, its paradise for them, too) and rising production costs. With astronomical property costs, I am sure it is tempting to sell off the growing operation, kick back and sip Mai Tai’s. But not here, these growers are proud, innovative and very dedicated to their craft and to our industry. Many of the operations are family run and are relatively small by stateside comparisons. What they lack in size, they make up in quality. Most Hawaiian operations grow very high value crops, such as orchids, anthuriums and other rare tropical plants. Because the growing conditions are, well, perfect, most growers mostly use shade houses to grow in and very few have the need for an enclosed greenhouse. But don’t let the casual growing structures fool you, Hawaiian growers are producing first-rate plants, using time tested growing techniques.
At each stop I was struck with the generous hospitality extended to us. Growers would drop everything they were doing and take as much time as we wanted to visit. Fred warned me in advance to expect this, but I was still impressed by the attention and genuine interest we were shown by each grower we visited. After each visit I really felt like I had been given special treatment, but I was reminded again and again, that’s the Hawaiian way. As Fred would say, “We’re on Hawaiian time, not regular time.” I could get used to this.
Towards the end of our trip we attended a distributor seminar arranged by CPS (Crop Protection Services) in Hilo. Nearly 100 growers from the Big Island attended. I had the opportunity to speak to two groups about new fungicide and herbicide products. The crowds were attentive, asked a lot of good questions, and again, made me feel very welcome. It was a fitting ending to a very productive week.
Aloha!
Photo Captions:
Photo 1 - Honolulu is a concrete jungle, just like any major city. This is paradise?
Photo 2 - Typical Hawaiian orchid nursery - lots of diversity, but all very high quality and value.
Photo 3 - Beautiful, colorful plant life is every where in Hawaii. This picture came from a family-owned orchid nursery.
Photo 4 - Fred Eckert, George Nakashima (CPS) and me on the tee at a famous golf resort in Kona, HI. Now, this is paradise!
Photo 5 - Cut Anthurium nursery near Hilo. Plants are grown in pure crushed lava rock.
