Kokua Line
Kokua Line
Question: Do you know how, why and what is causing my mother's grapefruit and guava fruit skins to turn light brown and hard like a shell instead of soft and normal coloration? She lives in Manoa, but I've noticed it in Hawaii Kai where I live. Should I spray with diazinon or malathion? Tough brown fruit skins
caused by feeding insectsAnswer: It is a common problem caused by thrips or mites feeding on very immature fruit, when the skin is still quite soft.
"Although the fruit continues to grow, and the inside is usually unaffected, the skin is so rough and tough, it's almost like light-brown sandpaper," explained Desmond Ogata, a plant specialist in diseases with the University of Hawaii College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources.
For grapefruit and other citrus fruits, you can use a mixture of malathion and Volck oil (a horticulture oil), he said. However, guava is not one of the fruits approved for use with malathion or most other pesticides, he said.
Ogata suggested trying a soapy water solution for the guavas.
To prevent the bug bites, you have to "catch the fruit when they're very young, smaller than your thumb -- about thumbnail-size," he said. "Spray maybe until they reach the golf-ball stage, (when) the skins start to toughen and get a little harder. Then the insects will leave it alone after that."
He cautioned that if you use the pesticides when trees are flowering, you may end up killing a lot of bees as well.
"Bees are the primary pollinators for the citrus plants," he said. "When they blossom there are a lot of bees."
Ogata said most of the citrus fruits experience the problem you describe. He's heard similar complaints with eggplants, with people calling about their eggplants being "brown and scabby" and twisted out of shape.
For eggplants, don't use Volck oil. Instead, look to malathion or diazinon, Ogata said.
Q: My former doctor quit her practice, and I have been trying for more than a year to get a copy of my medical records to give to my new doctor. I have written to her but she has not responded. Other former patients are having the same problem. Who can we contact?
A: The Hawaii Medical Association said your former doctor is not a member of the nonprofit, voluntary professional organization of doctors and medical students.
If she were, the association could possibly help you obtain the records, said HMA Executive Director Paula Arcena.
That not being the case, she suggested first having your new doctor write directly to your former physician, asking for the records. If she still doesn't respond, Arcena said your next recourse is to file a complaint with the state Regulatory Industries Complaints Office, which is part of the Department of Commerce & Consumer Affairs. Call 587-3222.
"Hawaii state law (HRS 622-57) requires that a physician, as a custodian of medical records, provide copies when a patient requests them," unless he or she believes that doing so would harm the patient, Arcena said.
The law specifies that if the health-care provider is refusing to release the records, he or she is supposed to advise the patient that copies of the records will be made available to an attorney authorized by the patient. The health-care provider is then required to give copies of the records "within a reasonable time, not to exceed 10 working days."
Mahalo
My friend and I took bus No. 42 to visit a friend in Ewa Beach on Feb. 21. I left my purse with all my important cards on the bus, but a nice lady passed it to the young lady driver. I would like to thank them both for their kindness. God bless them, and my prayers will always be with them. -- Mrs. V.B.
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