Otsuji Farm provides a taste of healthful living

"How do you like my office?" Edwin Otsuji asks as visitors admire a panorama that stretches from Diamond Head to Maunalua Bay. "Beautiful, yeah? That’s why vegetables grow so well here; they love the view."

Otsuji, 76, has been farming at this site on the slopes of Koko Crater above Kaiser High School for 45 years. "With farming you have to be on top of things seven days a week," he says. "But when you’re harvesting you realize your efforts were worth it. You reap what you sow, which is a great lesson to apply in life in general."

He attributes his three sons’ strong work ethic to working at the farm from the time they could walk. He himself learned the value of hard work from his father, Kakuji, who immigrated to Hawaii from Kagoshima, Japan, by himself at the age of 19.

Kakuji initially worked as a blacksmith and toolmaker for California Packing Corp., a pineapple plantation on Molokai. Later, when he moved to Oahu with his family, he became a plumber.

His wife, Fumie, urged him to farm instead, thinking being his own boss and cultivating his own plot of land would be a more promising path to success. Kakuji was not as sure, but in 1954 Fumie persuaded him to invest most of their savings in a 1-acre farm in then-rural Hawaii Kai, close to where the public library now stands.

Initially, Kakuji grew carnations and lettuce part time. When his farming business flourished, he gave up plumbing and turned his attention to it full time.

In 1969 Edwin Otsuji decided to take over the farm. Being an avid outdoorsman, it was a logical step; he remembers how much he enjoyed running barefoot through the pineapple fields on Molokai.

"I never wore shoes until I was in the sixth grade," he says. "I loved the fresh air, the sense of freedom and feeling my bare feet on the ground. I don’t function well in a high-rise, air-conditioned environment. Too confined. There’s no connection with nature."

When Kakuji began farming, East Oahu was all agricultural land, dotted with dozens of plant nurseries, pig and chicken ranches, and farms growing vegetables and flowers. By the time Otsuji assumed ownership, the first increments of homes in Hawaii Kai had been developed.

As the subdivision expanded, many farms moved to make way for roads, houses, banks, shops, supermarkets, restaurants and other businesses. Today fewer than 10 farms remain in Hawaii Kai. With six full-time employees working 4.5 terraced acres, Otsuji Farm is the largest.

On tours, Otsuji explains the cultivation process and the challenges and rewards of farming as he guides participants past fields of some 20 crops, from beets and basil to spinach and cilantro, from chives and choy sum to mint and mustard cabbage.

All are grown from seed in little pots for three weeks, then transplanted into the soil by hand. Most are ready for harvest in another three weeks.

Because of the continuous turnover, the soil must be replenished regularly; invasive seaweed removed from Maunalua Bay has proved handy for this purpose.

"There’s all kinds of minerals in seaweed," Otsuji says. "The sand that’s mixed with it neutralizes the acidity in the soil. In farming, pH balance is really important because different crops like different levels of acidity."

Near the entrance to the farm, an aquaponic system pumps water from a tank filled with tilapia into a tank of ong choy (water spinach).

"The fish waste in the water contains nutrients that feed the plants," Otsuji says. "The key to aquaponics is having the right number of fish so you have enough nutrients for the plants. That’s determined by observation; it’s more art than science. If the ong choy is thriving, we know we have the right balance."

Guests’ time with Otsuji concludes at Harbor Village restaurant in nearby Koko Marina Center for a hearty meal (five courses for lunch and seven for dinner) that features fresh fish and just-picked produce from the farm. Menus change, depending on what’s most plentiful on a particular day. Dishes might include braised beets and pork, choy sum and chicken with cake noodles and tilapia steamed with ginger, garlic, chives and cilantro.

Otsuji is planning a class that will teach people to grow herbs, fruits and vegetables. "Good food is good medicine," he says. "Look at all the possible side effects of prescription drugs — seizures, dizziness, nausea, kidney failure, even death. Nobody has died from eating too much kale, beets or choy sum. So stay tuned for Farmer Ed’s gardening class. Class description: No notebooks, iPads or questions. Success guaranteed."

IF YOU GO …

Otsuji Farm tour

>> Meeting place: 459 Pakala St.
>> Tour details: Offered on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays; 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. for lunch; 4 to 6:30 p.m. for dinner. Minimum of 10 people required. Reservations required at least three weeks in advance.
>> Cost: $45 for lunch tour, $65 for dinner. Menus depend on crops in season. 
>> Information: 801-808-9108 or email otsujifarms@gmail.com.
>> Website: www.otsujifarm.com
>> Notes: Wear sunscreen, comfortable clothes, walking shoes and a hat. Tours require walking a dirt path with a slight incline. The farm is not wheelchair accessible.
>> Also: Check out the farm’s market, 8 to 11 a.m. Saturdays

FAMILY SHARES FLAVORFUL DISH
This is one of the Otsuji family’s favorite recipes.

Chinese-Style Choy Sum
4-6 bunches choy sum 
SAUCE
1/4 cup oyster sauce
1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons corn or canola oil
1 teaspoon mirin
6 cloves garlic, slivered or finely chopped
Fish sauce to taste (optional)

Cut and discard choy sum roots. Boil or steam remaining choy sum 3 minutes, then place in cold water so it doesn’t overcook. Drain and cut into 

2-inch pieces. Gently squeeze out excess water; arrange on platter.

To make sauce: In a saucepan, heat all ingredients to boiling. Pour over choy sum and serve immediately. Serves 8.

Nutritional information unavailable.

Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi is a Honolulu-based freelance writer whose travel features for the Star-Advertiser have won several Society of American Travel Writers awards.