Water that drains from plants growing in hydroponic greenhouse systems at Kitayama Brothers, Inc. (KBI) flows through filters and treated here with UV light to clean the water for use on plants growing in nearby nursery fields in Watsonville, CA, on Thursday, August 27, 2015. The family business that was founded in 1970, and currently includes 40 acres of green houses plus outdoor fields that grow wholesale flowers. Agriculture has been a part of the Kitayama family for three generations, since before WWII, when family patriarch Takeshi Kitayama began growing flowers and vegetables on Bainbrid
Water that drains from plants growing in hydroponic greenhouse systems at Kitayama Brothers, Inc. (KBI) flows through filters and treated here with UV light to clean the water for use on plants growing in nearby nursery fields in Watsonville, CA, on Thursday, August 27, 2015. The family business that was founded in 1970, and currently includes 40 acres of green houses plus outdoor fields that grow wholesale flowers. Agriculture has been a part of the Kitayama family for three generations, since before WWII, when family patriarch Takeshi Kitayama began growing flowers and vegetables on Bainbridge Island, in the Pungent Sound, of Washington. In 1945, after WWII, and the family’s internment at the Manzanar camp, in California, Takeshi’s sons Tom and Ray, returned to wholesale flower growing, and established their own nursery business in 1948. The family became leaders in the industry and more family members joined with their California operations in Hayward and San Jose. Additionally they were able to acquire other local operations. Kitayama Brothers, Inc. currently produces a variety of lisianthus, lily, Gerbera, snapdragon and others, additionally; land is leased to other growers for strawberries and a variety of other crops. Located ¼ mile from the Pacific Ocean (Monterey Bay) Kitayama Brothers, Inc., employs 100 - 300 people depending on the time of year. To water all the flowers, the business uses a combination of irrigation water sources that include ground water wells; sterile reclaimed and recharge water from Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency (PVWMA), a rainwater collection system and a hydroponics water system. Over the past 15 years, the amount of water from PVWMA has been reduced by 2/3s, making onsite ground water wells ever more important, and a factor in groundwater deletion. Today, there is a high demand on well; this has been a factor in (seawater) salt intrusion in all of their wells, one having to be shutdown, because of the salty water
Size: 1651px × 1211px
Photo credit: © Archistoric / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: agriculture”, aquifer, basin, blending, ca, conserva, conservation, department, drought, filter, hydrop, hydroponic, intrusion, irrigation, irrigation”, management, nrcs, ocean”, pond, pond”, rainwater, reclaim, recycle, resources, reuse, salt, saltwater, service”, system”, usda, water, water”, watsonville, wells, “, “ground, “inline, “irrigation, “line, “micro, “natu, “natural, “pacific
