What’s green and crunchy, has a slightly peppery taste that is a joy in salads, requires lots of fresh water to grow, and caused a shopping center development to slam on its brakes?Watercress. That’s what. And I know where three-quarters of watercress consumed in Hawaii is grown – on the ten-acre Sumida Watercress Farm fronting Kamehameha Highway in Aiea, smack-dab in the middle of Pearlridge Shopping Center.
The center’s developers had to split the shopping Mecca into two distinct wings to accommodate the farm because the Sumida family has steadfastly refused to sell their property.
And why should they shut down anyway? They’ve got a good thing going. The natural spring water irrigates the crop, allowing the family to harvest more than six tons a week, which translates to 300 tons of the crispy stuff every year.
But that doesn’t stop developers from drooling when they see that prime land sitting there green and wet.
I hope the Sumidas continue to hold fast. I want their watercress in my salad.
1 comment:
Hurrah for the Sumidas! It's refreshing to see someone decide to keep farming instead of sell the land.
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