Okinawa, Japan, April 22, 2009

Wed, Apr 22, 2009 at 02:18:38 PM

My friends Yasunori Hamada and John Yonemoto helped me out with their contacts in Okinawa. Takaaki Maeda from Jinnai Tropical Fruit Research Center and Hamada were waiting for me at the airport to take me to the hotel. Okinawa is comprised of 150 islands, where farming is molded to its subtropical climate. Agricultural crops include sugar cane, vegetables, flowers and fruits. Mangoes were introduced to Okinawa in the early 1900s, and since the technique for mango production using plastic greenhouses was established, mango production has been increasing year by year. Recently, mangos have become an important part of the Okinawan horticulture industry. The current mango production in Okinawa is about 1460 MT per year.

Our first visit in the morning was to the Botanic Garden Tropical Dream Center. On the way to the garden, we stopped to pick up Inoe Hirotsugu, from the Agricultural Extension Division in Okinawa. They have a tropical fruit pavilion including mango, jackfruit, canistel, cacao, acerola, and many others. Their orchid display was absolutely impressive. After the botanic garden we drove to Uruma to visit Susumu Onaga, a pioneer mango grower in Okinawa. He started his grove in 1970 in this area. Since that time he has maintained his traditional way of pruning and managing his grove.

He believes in the variety 'Irwin', like the rest of the people in Okinawa. The rootstocks used are a polyembrionic type from Taiwan. They do not induce blooming, as it occurs naturally during the cool winter season. Trees are heavily mulched and intensely managed by pruning. He leaves two principal branches horizontaly to support the canopy for the rest of their life. This will provide light in the most eficient way acording with him. We had a long discussion about mango managment. The harvest season is in June and the average wholesale price of mangos at the Okinawa central wholesale market is 100 yen/kg. I really enjoyed this visit to see for myself how the Japanese have been domesticated Florida mangos according with their tradition and culture.

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