A native yellow hibiscus. Larry Kimura planted a small, sickly-looking bush outside my office at the university a few years ago. About two years later it grew into a big, sickly-looking bush. Then one day it bloomed, and we had some of the most brillant yellow hibiscus I've ever seen. I took some cuttings home the next day. Unfortunately the blooming only lasted a few days, now all I have is a big, sickly-looking bush again.
Hibiscus arnottianus. A native white hibiscus. Most hibiscus do not have a scent, this one does.There are quite a number of different varieties of native white hibiscus, most all go by the same Hawaiian name. Notice the slender petals, this is indicative of the native varieties. Introduced white hibiscus tend to have wider petals.
We have had a number of these along the side of the Hale Kuamo'o for a few years now, they finally bloomed, and I'm collecting seeds for planting.
No one I've spoken or written to knows of a Hawaiian name for this striking orange-red hibiscus. Apparently it is a fairly recent discovery (a few decades or so ago) from Kaua'i, and is pretty rare, I'm old. I have two now; one's planted and the other still potted. They don't seem to get to bushy from what I've seen. Leaves and flowers are very sparse.
A native hibiscus with brilliant red flowers.
Hibiscus clayi. A small, red hibiscus with petals that curve back toward the stem. We have koki'o 'ula also, the flowers of this are a bit smaller, and the leaves a bit thicker and not as serrated on the edges.
hibiscus kahili. This red hibiscus comes from Mt. Kahili on Kaua'i, its leaves are a bit more rounded than the other red hibiscus I have. My single plant has not bloomed yet, I'm told the flower is a bit more pinkish in hue than some or the other reds. It is supposed to grow into more of a small tree rather than the bush that other koki'o 'ula'ula seem to become.
A native tree, beautiful red flowers. East Hawai'i is famous for its forests of 'ohi'a lehua. Mt. Ka'ala on O'ahu is also famous for the brilliant red of its lehua blossoms. Mine was a graduation present from Kaipo and Kekuhi Frias.
Similar to the 'ohi'a lehua but with yellow flowers. My single mamo is growing nicely alongside (but not too close to) the driveway to our house.
Delissea rhytidosperma. This is an endangered lobelioid from Kaua'i
Gardenia brighamii. You probably have never seen a native Hawaiian gardenia before, they are very rare and endangered. The gardenia that you generally see throughout the state are not native. This one is.
Abutilon menziesii. This fellow has a flower that looks like a small, red hibiscus that hangs upsidedown, usually under the cover of the plants leaves. It is also an endangered species.
There are several varieties of Naupaka kuahiwi, I'm not certain exactly which one we have. They're forming a short hedge along side our car pad.
Alyxia oliviformis. An incredibly fragrant vine that is one of the most popular lei making materials. It is not uncommon in the wild, but is getting harder to find because of demand for it around graduation time. Save yourself a bundle and grow your own.
Hibiscadelphus giffardianus. The flower of the three differen species of hau kuahiwi that we have look a bit like hibiscus that decided only to bloom halfway. A number of species in this genus are extinct, the three that we have are rare and endangered.
Acacia koa. A native tree, koa also refers to warriors in Hawaiian. It was used for the hulls of large, double-hulled canoes in the past; trees large enough for this are rare nowadays.
Ours was planted about three years ago in memory of Israel Kamakawiwo'ole, a friend and inspiration who passed away in June, 1997.
a Polynesian introduced tree. I picked this one up for $1 at a sale by the UH-Hilo Agriculture Club a few years ago. Been growing very nicely. Photo by Keola Donaghy
A Polynesian introduced tree. There are a lot of kukui trees at UH-Hilo, and quite often you'll find seedlings sprouting up around the base of the trunks. I try to dig them up before the grounds people come by and mow over them. When they get a little bigger I'll try to find nice homes for them. Photo by Keola Donaghy
A very nice looking small bush, the leaves look a little like maile, but are generally silvery. We've been getting a decent amount of rain, so ours are a bit more green. Photo by Keola Donaghy
A Polynesian introduced fern. Incredibly fragrant, I've planted a bed in front of our bay window so that the fragrance will be carried in by the easterly winds that come in through this window into the living room. It makes a beautiful lei po'o (head lei).
A native nettle that doesn't sting, but makes a great tea that is reported to help with stomach problems. Its also the primary source of food for the rare Kamehameha Butterfly. Also got these for $1 a piece at a UH Ag Club fundraiser.
A native groundcover with white or blueish-white flowers. Hi'iakaikapoliopele was the younger, favorite sister of Pele. One day Pele took Hi'iaka to the beach, and left her there while she frolicked in the sea. Hi'iaka started to get sunburned, and this plant covered her to protect her skin from the sun. Pa'u is a skirt, so pa'uohi'iaka mean's "Hi'iaka's skirt."
I recently discovered that there are two varieties of pa'uohi'iaka, one indigenous and one Polynesian introduced. Mine turned out to be the latter, it has shinier, deeper green leaves, the native variety is a paler green and not as glossy looking.
An introduced bush from India with fragrant white flowers. It was princess Ka'iulani's favorite, and she named it after her favorite birds, the pikake, or peacock. My favorite lei is maile and pikake. You can smell a lei made from the two from a block away.
An introduced bush/small tree. It has long yellow-orange flowers and makes a popular lei, my daughter's favorite.
A native bush. This plant does better in hot, dry climates. I have a few seedlings I try to keep in an area that catches the morning sun but not too much rain.
An 'olelo no'eau, or Hawaiian proverb states "He 'a'ali'i ku makani au, 'a'ohe mea nana e kula'i" - "I am the wind-resiting 'a'ali'i, nothing can push me over."
A climbing vine. I planted a seedling near a 4' wire fence in our yard, it reached the top of the fence in about three weeks. Wikiwiki is Hawaiian for "fast", it sure is.
a native bush with yellow flowers
There are a large number of different varieties if 'awapuhi (ginger) growing in Hawai'i. Most are not native to Hawai'i, this one is. The juice held in the tennis-ball sized "flower" of this native makes a great hair conditioner.