LICH Landscape Hawaii Magazine - November/December 2013 Issue

Sustainability Awards
Four industry leaders honored at the LICH Sustainability Awards
Landscape Industry
Council of Hawai’i
P. O. Box 22938
Honolulu HI 96823-2938
Landscape Industry
Council of Hawai’i
P. O. Box 22938
Honolulu HI 96823-2938
U.S. POSTAGE PAID
HONOLULU, HI
PERMIT NO. 1023
PRESORTED
STANDARD
NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2013
T h e V o i ce o f H A W A I’ S G R E E N I N D U S T R Y $5.00
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ADAPTIVE REUSE, GREEN
INFRASTRUCTURE, CULTURE,
AND NATIVE PLANTS COME
TOGETHER
Conference
Features Student
research
MORE
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FIRST STUDENT POSTER
COMPETITION ENDS IN A TIE
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15
DEPARTMENTS
4 PRESIDENT’S MEMO
4 LICH NEWS
23 NATIVE PEST
24 TURFGRASS
27 TOOL TIPS
30 HAWAII-ICOLOGY
FEATURES
10 SUSTAIABILITY AWARDS
15 KAURI TREE
17 HORTICULTURE MEETS HAWAIIAN CULTURE
21 PLANT PONO
26 HAWAII’S BERMUDA TRIANGLE
28 EXPANDING TREE DIVERSITY
COVER STORIES
6 LICH CONFERENCE AND TRADE SHOW
12 NOAA
18 MORE MANGOS!
Formed in June 1986, the Landscape Industry Council
of Hawai‘i is a state wide alliance representing Hawaii’s
landscape associations: Aloha Arborist Association,
American Society of Landscape Architects Hawaii
Chapter, Hawaii Association of Nurserymen, Hawaii
Island Landscape Association, Hawaii Landscape
and Irrigation Contractors, Hawaii Society of Urban
Forestry Professionals, Kauai Landscape Industry
Council, Maui Association of Landscape Professionals,
Professional Grounds Management Society, Big Island
Association of Nurserymen, and the Hawaii Professional
Gardeners Association.
Landscape Industry Council of Hawai‘i
P. O. Box 22938, Honolulu HI 96823-2938
Editor
Christopher A. Dacus
chris.dacus@gmail.com
Advertising Sales
Michael Roth
rothcomm@lava.net
Phone: 595-4124
Membership
Cheryl M. Dacus
cheryldacus@yahoo.com
Designer
Darrell Ishida
Cover Photo
Photo by Orville Baldos
2 0 1 3 Board of D irectors
Chris Dacus Brandon Au
President Vice President
Matt Lyum Rick Quinn
Treasurer Secretary
Aaron Agsalda Chris McCullough
Orville Baldos Clifford Migita
Chuck Chimera Karen Ostborg
Carl Evensen Edmundo Reyes
Randy Liu Mark Suiso
Christy Martin Josh Sand
Director Emeritus
Jay Deputy Steve Nimz
Lelan Nishek Boyd Ready
Garrett Webb
Website Sponsors
Sharon’s Nursery, Ltd. Geotech Solutions, Inc.
Platinum Sponsor
Hawaiian Turfgrass.
Mahalo to LICH Sponsors

event really brought together the indus-try
2013 was a year to celebrate, with nu-merous
events and activities at LICH.
The year started with the annual board
meeting and the nomination of five
industry icons as LICH Director Emeri-tus.
Before the dust had settled LICH
was writing testimonies and testifying at
the state legislature. LICH introduced an
irrigation conservation bill and it made
it to the final stage. LICH also played a
big role in supporting Senator Malama’s
Gray Water bill that was signed into law.
In March, led by board members Rick
Quinn and Josh Sand LICH participated
in the Hawaii Farm Bureau Ag Day at the
Capitol talking to legislators and provid-ing
native plants to legislative offices
provided by Kauai Nursery & Landscape,
Hui Ku Maoli Ola and Ultimate Innova-tions.
March was also the launch of our
new logo featuring the Ohi’a flower. In
April LICH began the planning for the
Native plant poster led by two master
gardener candidates, Jadine Lee and
Marla Musick. April was also the launch
of the LICH website sponsored by
Hawaiian Turfgrass, Sharon’s Nursery
and Geotech Solutions. LICH planted
over 200 native loulu as seedbanks for
future industry collections at various
sites. Then May and June quickly became
a blur with the LICH Project Greenway,
a plant fashion show, directed by Steve
Sue showcasing sixty new plants, and
clothing fashions designed by juniors
and seniors in the UH College of Tropi-cal
Agriculture and Human Resources
Fashion Design and Merchandising Pro-gram,
with the models’ hair and makeup
by cosmetology students from Honolulu
Community College, local-grown food
prepared by culinary arts students from
Kapiolani Community College. The
4 LANDSCAPE HAWAII NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2013 with fantastic volunteers and great
sponsors including Neiman Marcus,
Hawaiian Turfgrass, D.R. Horton, Ali‘i
Turf Company, Wilhemina Models, and
Hawaii Floriculture and Nursery Asso-ciation.
July and August LICH conducted
successful LICT examinations on the Big
Island and O‘ahu. It was also the begin-ning
of a LICT committee to focus on
the improving the training and the test.
I get tired just thinking of all LICH
accomplished this year. And we ended
the year with a bang with the wonder-ful
conference featuring native plants,
sustainability awards, native plant poster,
student research posters. One board
member really shined this year, Randy
Liu. Coming full circle from the Janu-ary
board meeting we recognized at the
conference four of the new LICH Direc-tor
Emeritus – Steve Nimz, Jay Deputy,
Garrett Webb and Lelan Nishek. And the
industry stepped up with a record num-ber
of sponsors which are highlighted in
Randy’s article. The LICH Conference is
an event that really brings the industry
together, that’s after all what LICH is all
about… bringing a wonderful and diverse
industry together. A perfect ending to a
very busy year.
We’re lucky to be in the original green
industry and to have the best board of
directors in the islands bar none.
May you have a great holidays and an
even better year ahead
Upcoming Issues:
Tell a great story! Email the editor at chris.dacus@gmail.com.
JAN/FEB 2014
Theme: Arboriculture
Story Deadline:
December 20th
MAR/APR 2014
Theme: Erosion Control
Story Deadline:
February 24th
MAY/JUN 2014
Theme: LICT & Landscape
Tools
Story Deadline: April 18th
Chris Dacus
President
President's
Column
Happy Holidays!
lich
NEWS
Whats Happening
What inspired
me to become
a landscape
professional?
By Robin Lee Gyorgyfalvy,
Oregon ASLA
My best friend is Brenda Lam, a
long-time leading landscape architect
in Hawai‘i. We were the first all-women
landscape architecture and planning firm
in Hawai‘i. Brenda is also a landscape
contractor and an active builder with
Habitat for Humanity. She has been in-volved
with the Hawai‘i State Agricultural
Leadership Program as an orchid farmer
and organizer for Kona Outdoor Circle’s
Hawai‘i Native Plants conferences. She
has been a huge inspiration to me as
she was the one who encouraged me to
attend an accredited graduate program
in landscape architecture. We were both
mentored by Beatrice Krauss of Lyon
Arboretum, the foremost ethnobotanist
in Hawai‘i, and hiked many mountains
and valleys in search of Hawai‘i’s native
plants. Our years of playing on Hawai’i’s
first women’s soccer teams together were
valuable in terms of appreciating well-designed
sports venues and discussing
our future roles in shaping and improv-ing
outdoor recreational spaces. Not
everyone has a best friend who is also a
landscape architect, so I have been lucky
from the very beginning.
03-10-09/0000229489
3009 PMP-PENARO Proofed By: KOOLAU SEEDS & SUPPLY R 2.00 X 2.00
Susan Owen
Manager
Contact
(808) 239-1280 Office
(808) 239-2151 Fax
E-mail
owens001@hawaii.rr.com
48-373 G Kamehameha Hwy
Kaneohe, Hawaii 96744

Landscape Hawaii Signs Ad Sales Agreement
Landscape Hawaii is please to intro-duce
Michael Roth, president of Roth
Communications as the new sales repre-sentative.
RC is a Honolulu based ad sales
firm that represents trade and consumer
publishers in Hawaii. Opened in 1992
they have a long history of professional
representation for magazine publishers
who do not have their own staff.
“Helping our publishers reach out
Notice Regarding
the Landscape
Architectural
Registration Exam
Please be informed that the Council
of Landscape Architectural Registra-tion
Boards (“CLARB”) has instituted a
new exam registration process for the
computer-based exams. Besides filing an
application for exam approval with the
Board of Professional Engineers, Archi-tects,
Surveyors and Landscape Archi-tects
(“Board”), exam candidates will
be required to start a CLARB Council
Record in order to sit for the exams. For
more detailed information, please go
online and visit the CLARB’s website at
www.clarb.org.
LARGEST NURSERY SELECTION ON KAUAI
60,000 SF Greenhouses 150 Acres of Plants & Material
KAUAI NURSEY &
LANDSCAPING, INC.
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LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE
& DESIGN/BUILD
RESORT, COMMERCIAL & RESIDENTIAL
INSTALLATION / MAINTENANCE
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ARBORISTS
IRRIGATION DESIGN
INSTALLATION/REPAIR
Mon. - Fri. 7:30-5 / Sat. 7:30-4
WEB: www.kauainursery.com
MAIL: knl@kauanursery.com
Toll Free: 888-345-7747 Fax: 808-245-9289
to new advertisers
while maintaining the
current core advert-ing
base is our focus
every day. Landscape
Hawaii is an impor-tant
publication that
deserves professional
representation and we
look forward to work-ing
with them and introducing them to
media buyers and clients in Hawaii and
across the United States. There is an
untapped market that will benefit by do-ing
business with the Hawaii landscape
professionals. It is our job to make sure
they all know about Landscape Hawaii
magazine” said Roth.
Call Michael to inquire about advertis-ing
in Landscape Hawaii at 595-4124.
Michael Roth
Wishing you
a Happy
New Year in
2014!
Thank you for all of your support throughout the years.
I have enjoyed working in this wonderful profession of
landscape architecture.
It has been a pleasure helping to create beautiful
landscapes for our magnificent Hawai`i.
Dana Anne Yee, FASLA, ISA CA, LEED AP
Dana Anne Yee, Landscape Architect, LLC
Email: dana1@hawaii.rr.com
‘Ōhi‘a Lehua Tree, Wiliwilinui Ridge Trail, Hawai‘i.
Original photo and silkscreen print. Dana Anne Yee, 2013.

6 LANDSCAPE HAWAII NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2013 LICH 11th Annual
Conference and trade show By Randy Liu
The 11th Annual LICH
Conference and Trade
Show turned out to be a
success. The air that day
was filled with synergy
as nearly 300 conference
participants, including property managers
and 40 trade show vendors, converged at
the Neal Blaisdell Exhibition Hall for the
LICH annual conference and trade show.
Attendees were greeted at the registra-tion
desk with smiles, hot coffee and pas-tries
for a great start to what was an event
packed day. Our President spoke, and put
together, along with the awards commit-tee,
the first ever sustainable awards, that
were given to well-deserved landscape
professionals, teams and projects that
exemplified sustainable practices. He also
surprised nearly everyone by a heartfelt
honoring of four Director Emeritus for
their long term contributions to the
LICH and the landscape community. Gar-rett
Webb, Lelan Nishek, Steve Nimz and
Jay Deputy were all given the highest level
of prestige in the Landscape council, and
the emotions, thankfulness and apprecia-tion
were felt through the standing room
only crowd.
This year’s theme was an in depth look
at growing native plants, and the day was
filled with interesting sessions and panel
sessions.
Lunch time sessions included two
sessions geared to our property manag-ers
and their specific challenges they
may face in their work. And the vendor
track this year was geared to the benefits
of smart irrigation. Hunter industries,
Motorola Solutions, Tucor and Weather
Trak all gave talks about smart timers, the
benefits of water savings and how to best
achieve this goal.
During lunch, we had a gathering of
Hawaii’s best and brightest university
students posting their horticultural and
agricultural research on the trade show
floor. Their posters were displayed
through the day for all to see. They were
Standing room only at this year’s conference.
judged by some of Hawaii’s prominent
professors and authorities in the industry.
Two were picked as the overall winners,
but all showed great effort and knowledge
on their projects.
The trade show floor seemed alive
this year with a layout that allowed for
inquisitive browsing, impromptu meet-ings
and social gatherings all in a relaxed
and casual setting right out on the trade
show floor. Tables were abundant, the
snack bar was open, and it seemed that
there was a nice flow throughout the day.
There were a total of 44 vendors this year
with lots to show.
And then came the afternoon social, a
time of celebration, thankfulness, food,
drinks and prizes! But probably to me, the
best part was the awesome entertainment
from someone right in our own lanscape
industry, Aaron Agsalda. His soothing
contemporary folk music lifted the trade
show floor and everyone had a good time.
The food was great, the music was awe-some,
the drinks were flowing, and the
door prizes were giving.
And on the second day, the day after
tour to some of the notable native land-scapes
on the island was an enjoyable
adventure as always. If you can make it to
the tour on the second day, you should
make it a point to sign up as they are
always a hit with the attendees. This year
Photo: Orville Baldos
they visited UH Manoa’s C More Hale,
built with special energy efficient features
and drought resistant native plantings.
The C&C’s native planting on the edge
of Waikiki on Monsarrat Avenue and
Papahana Kualoa, a non-profit organiza-tion
that is connecting the Haiku Valley’s
history with a sustainable future.
With all of these great happenings this
year, I can only imagine that next year
will be equally exciting if not more so. For
those that attended this year, we want
to thank you for spending the day with
us, and hopefully you came away with a
few ideas, inspirations, or connections.
For the vendors, we also want to thank
you for your support and participation; I
hope you as well found some merit to our
annual event.
And lastly to our Sponsors, a big Ma-halo
Nui for your exceptional generosity
and kindness. None of this would have
happened without your commitment
to Hawaii’s Landscape community. We
hope you all enjoyed yourselves and look
forward to seeing you all in 2014 with
renewed vigour and the successes of this
year in mind.
Randy Liu is the Grounds Manager for the
Starwood Hotels & Resorts in Waikiki and a
member of the LICH Board of Directors.

A Big mahalo to all of Our sponsors of the
2013 LICH Conference & Trade Show!
B Hayman Co.
DLNR Division of Forestry and
Wildlife
Netafim USA
Focus Industries
Hunter Industries
Dura Plastics
T Christy
Waipahu Lawn Equipment Sales
and Services
HISCO
Atlantic Water Gardens
Certified Hydropoint Manufactur-ers
Rep US & Hawaii
Hawaiian Earth Products
Hawaii Geophysical Services, LLC
Rainbird
GOLD sponsors SILVER sponsors
BRONZE sponsors
CCH-Env. Storm Water Quality
Motorola Water Management
Paige Electronics
Container Storage Company
Pacific Agricultural /
Hawaii Grower Products
LCC Plant Biology & Tropical
Agriculture/LCC Native Plants
Hawaii
Geobunga
Crop Production Services
Rooftop MicroFarms, LLC
Hui Ku Maoli Ola
Hawaiian Turf Grass
Leilani Nursery
Valent Professional Products
Hawaiian Sunshine Nursery
Tucor Inc
A To Z Rentals And Equipment
Ness Turf Equipment
Diamond Head Sprinkler
Hawaii Landscape and
Irrigation Contractors Association
Spec Management Group/
Eco Spec Products
Aloha Arborist Association
Pacific Pipe Company
Sharon’s Plants
ONGA Oahu Nursery Growers
Association
Coordinating Group on
Alien Pest Species (CGAPS)/
Plant Pono/WRA
LICH Landscape Industry Council
of Hawaii
Kona Irrigation Supply LTD
Niu Nursery
DÉCOR sponsors

First STUDENT
8 LANDSCAPE HAWAII NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2013 Poster COMPETITION
Two tie for top prize in LICH’s inaugural student contest
By Christy Martin and Orville Baldos
Ten students from the
University of Hawai‘i
(UH) at Mānoa entered
LICH’s 1st Student Poster
Competition during the
13th Annual LICH Green
Industry Conference and Trade Show.
Their posters were displayed during this
daylong event, and the student authors
were on hand to discuss their find-ings
and answer questions about their
landscape-and nursery-oriented research.
Two top posters tied and were awarded
first prize based on five judging criteria,
which included an assessment of utility to
the landscape industry.
Jay Bost’s poster entitled, “Investigating
the agronomic and landscape potential of
Hawaiian heirloom sweet potato (‘uala)
varieties,” (authors: Jay Bost and Ted Ra-dovich.
Department of Tropical Plant and
Soil Sciences, UH Mānoa), is a wonder-ful
example of the intersection between
culture and food, with an eye towards
utility in landscaping and a reconnection
of people to plants.
“We are assembling the many varieties
of ‘uala, including Hawaiian heirloom
and others that are being grown across
Hawai‘i,” said Jay. “So far, we have col-lected
and planted around 90 varieties in
a plot in Waimanalo, and we are docu-menting
their different forms, shapes,
colors and textures in a database. Those
showing the most potential for contribut-ing
to Hawaii’s food security in agricul-tural
settings, home gardens, and edible
landscape installations will receive further
attention via replicated trials, virus testing
and nutritional analysis.”
Jay received his undergraduate degree
from Prescott College in Arizona, and
master’s from the University of Florida.
When asked how he chose to work on
‘uala for his PhD, he replied, “I love the
idea of having plant diversity in people’s
gardens. It is a much better way to
preserve diversity, especially of heirloom
Front row: Jonathan Lance, Alberto Ricordi, Xinxin Li, Shikha Srivastava, Minhee
Kim, Kalani Matsumura. Back row: Jay Bost, Douglas Hunefeld, Scott Lucas
Nathan Ortiz.
varieties, and it helps people build a real
relationship and understanding of these
plants. There is a lot of research and
documentation being done on heirloom
taro and bananas, but not much on ‘uala.”
Thinking ahead a couple years, Jay envi-sions
hosting a field day in Waimanalo
to showcase the different ‘uala varieties,
have a discussion about the project and
encourage people to plant ‘uala. He said,
“The more people that can grow these,
the better!”
Sharing first place with Jay was Nathan
Ortiz who presented his poster entitled,
“Landscape mapping and inventory
project,” (authors: Nathan Ortiz, Austin
Stankus, Roxanne Adams. Department
of Tropical Plant and Soil Sciences, UH
Mānoa, Buildings and Grounds Manage-ment,
UH Mānoa). This poster provided a
look at how a mapping and data invento-ry
project can help quantify time and cost
of landscape maintenance and present an
environmental value of that landscape,
while also serving as an accessible infor-mation
tool for all.
For this project, Google Earth™ was
used to provide the map and satellite
image of the 257-acre UH Mānoa cam-pus.
Nate and his colleagues digitally
outlined each plant canopy on the map
and identified all 3,155 plants on campus
to the species level using information
provided by Drs. Rich Criley and Gerald
Carr. They then developed a searchable
web-interface that allows the public to
display plants by location, species name
or inherent characteristics (e.g. medicinal,
native, endangered, etc.). Lost freshmen
on campus can even click on the “Where
am I?” button to display their current
location.
“That’s a cool feature,” said Nate, “But
this was also set up as a management
tool. Roxanne really wanted to quantify
the man-hours and resources needed for
each area. We are severely understaffed
and there is a hiring freeze, yet this is a
big campus with a lot of trees, bushes,
hedges, grass and irrigation, and every-thing
need care and attention if we want
to have respect as a University.”
The internal data associated with this
project allows the UH Mānoa Buildings
and Grounds Management staff to plan
ahead for additional work. “There are

different needs for different species, and
even a seasonality for fruiting trees such
as monkey pods, where we spend a lot
of time keeping the pathways swept off
sticky pods and seeds certain times of the
year,” said Nate.
“Because we had all of the tree data
mapped and identified, we were able to
assess the environmental value of a por-tion
of the campus tree inventory using
i-Tree, the USDA’s urban tree analysis and
benefits assessment software tool,” said
Nate.
Managers of hotel grounds and golf
courses know how long it takes and what
it costs to maintain different parts of the
landscape at different times of the year,
but quantifying and passing the informa-tion
along is key.
“There are so many other pieces of
information that we are keeping. For
example, we have a map of storm drains
and waterways, which we use for main-tenance
to avert another campus flood,”
said Nate.
When asked what sort of training he
had for this job, Nate laughed. “I’m a
non-traditional student. I’ve worked in
solar, had my own business automat-
‘uala leaves by Jay Bost
ing homes, and now I’m back at school
working on my undergraduate degree in
Tropical Plant and Soil Sciences. But I was
lured by this job description, said Nate,
as he pointed to a laminated paper on his
cubicle wall. It said, “Huge, EXTREMELY
VALUABLE project. Real world experi-ence!
CHANGE the way UH operates
FOREVER!”
“That’s the best written job description,
ever.” For a look at the project to date, go
to http://manoa.hawaii.edu/landscaping/
plantmap.html.
LICH Board members Christy Martin
and Orville Baldos are the organizers of the
1st Student Poster Competition at the 2013
LICH Green Industry Conference & Trade-show.
SCENIC HAWAI‘I, INC. IS VERY APPRECIATIVE TO OUR MANY SPONSORS OF THE
11th ANNUAL 2013 BETTY CROCKER LANDSCAPE AWARDS EVENT
Friends of Halawa Xeriscape Garden
DR Horton-Hawaii/Schuler Homes
Old Republic Congratulations Title Escrow of Hawaii
to: Foster Botanical Garden – Legacy Award Paul Weissich – Volunteer of the Year
PRIVATE GARDENS
GreenThumb, Inc.
Tony and Linda Keeling Residence
Chip and Alice Matsushima Residence
Marilyn Nagel and Wayne Hodges Residence
Harry and Jeannie Yee Residence
DIAMOND
The Crocker Family
PROFESSIONAL GARDENS
Kamehameha Schools Middle School
Kapalama Campus
Manoa Falls Viewing Area Renovation
PLATINUM
HONBLUE
PBR Hawaii
United Laundry
AWARDS OF EXCELLENCE
VOLUNTEER/COMMUNITY GARDENS
Freeman Seabird Preserve
Native Hawaiian Campus Arboretum
Kawananakoa Middle School
Palolo School Rainforest Garden
Storybook Theatre Hawaii
And to all awards winners from O‘ahu, Maui, Big Island, and Kaua‘i for their outstanding gardens.
http://scenichawaii.org • P.O. Box 10501 , Honolulu, Hawai‘i 96816

Inaugural
by Chris Dacus
LICH Sustainability
The first LICH Landscape
Sustainability Awards
were held at the 2013
LICH Conference on
October 10th. It rec-ognizes
advocates of
sustainability and landscape projects that
demonstrate a high degree of innova-tion,
commitment and achievement in
increasing our understanding of the com-plex
interactions between constructed
and natural systems and are in harmony
with the natural environment, result-ing
in ecological regeneration, social
and improving public health outcomes.
The awards additionally recognize that
sustainability is everyone’s business and
the need to share sustainable innovations
and techniques within our industry.
There were two levels of awards were
given the La‘au Ku Kahi Award for Excel-lence
and Mohalu Honor Award. One
La‘au Ku Kahi Award for Excellence may
be awarded in each category, if deter-mined
by the judges. Any number of
Mohalu Honor Awards may be given in
each category. The awards were named
by Kekuhi Kealiikanakaoleohaililani. Six
awards were provided representing five
award categories including Sustainability
Award, Native Plant Design Award, Na-tive
Plant Advocacy & Research Award,
Plant Pono Invasive Species Advocacy
Award, and Water Conservation Award.
The La‘au Ku Kahi Award for Excel-lence
– Sustainability was awarded to the
NOAA Pacific Regional Center designed
by Ki Concepts LLC. NOAA is located
on a national historic landmark site on
Ford Island in Pearl Harbor. It features
the adaptive reuse of two World War
II-era aircraft hangars and their adjacent
tarmac. The new campus design features
high-performance architectural and land-scape
architectural elements with a focus
on adaptive re-use, green infrastructure,
Hawaiian culture, native plants, and the
10 LANDSCAPE HAWAII NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2013 awards
site’s layered history. Vivian Arita from Ki
Concepts LLC accepted the O‘o Stick for
the LICH 2013 La‘au Ku Kahi Award for
Excellence – Sustainability.
The 2013 Mohalu Honor Award - Sus-tainability
was awarded to the Punahou
School Omidyar K-1 Neighborhood
designed by PBR Hawaii & Associates,
Inc. The Omidyar K-1 Neighborhood
at Punahou School was designed to
provide an interactive, hands-on learn-ing
experience focused on educating
students about natural science, sustain-ability,
and environmental stewardship
from an early age in the convenience and
safety of their school neighborhood. Stan
Duncan and Julia Harrison accepted the
award on behalf of PBR Hawaii & As-sociates,
Inc, The project team included
Micah McMillan, Marc Shimatsu, and
Chris Billete
The 2013 Plant Pono / Invasive Plant
Advocacy Award was awarded to the
Kaulunani Urban and Community
Forestry Program. Since its inception in
1991, Kaulunani has awarded $1 million
to over 190 organizations across the state,
in the form of cost-share grants that were
matched with $3.7 million in cash and in-kind
contributions. Key to the success of
this grassroots program is the unique blend
of partners, people and projects – partners
who donate their time, resources and skills
and people from all walks of life, ethnic
backgrounds and ages who share a concern
and need to improve their environment by
taking on tree planting projects
The 2013 Mohalu Honor Award - Water
Conservation was awarded to the Ulu
Garden at the Harold L. Lyon Arboretum
& Ki Concepts LLC. The Ulu Garden was
designed to inform and educate the pub-sion
Recognizing Great Leaders
and Great Projects
Photo: Ki Concepts
The La‘au Ku Kahi Award for Excellence – Sustainability awarded to NOAA
Pacific Regional Center designed by Ki Concepts.

lic on the modem practices of sustainabil-ity
in the landscape. A collection of sus-tainable
landscape practices are meant to
mitigate the impact of development and
to work as a tool to inspire the average
homeowner to adopt low impact devel-opment
practices. Bernice Fielding from
Lyon Arboretum and Wayne Baldwin of
Ki Concepts LLC accepted the award.
The 2013 Mohalu Honor Award -
Native Plant Project was award to the
Wai‘anae Boys & Girls Club of Hawai‘i
designed by the Dana Anne Yee, Land-scape
Architect, LLC. The emphasis
was in the planting of endemic Native
Hawaiian plants, indigenous Hawai-ian
plants, and Polynesian plants used
in the Hawaiian Culture. Plants were
specified and obtained from local Native
Top: Left to Right: Garrett Webb, Lelan Nishek, Jay Deputy
and Steve Nimz.
Left: The 2013 Mohalu Honor Award - Sustainability awarded
to Punahou School Omidyar K-1 Neighborhood designed by
PBR Hawaii & Associates, Inc.
plant growers, creating cultural signifi-cances
and cultural diversity with plants
already found growing in the Wai‘anae
region.
The 2013 Native Plant Advocacy Award
was awarded to Heidi Leianuenue Born-horst.
Heidi is an Oahu horticultural icon.
She wrote the first book on native plants
- 2005 book “Growing Native Hawai-ian
Plants.” Heidi’s passion has always
centered around Native Hawaiian Plants
and her love of trees. Currently she
works as the Landscape manager at UH
Manoa and as the Oahu coordinator for
the Breadfruit Institute. Heidi has been a
popular contributor to the Honolulu Ad-vertiser
with her gardening column. She
writes exactly the way she talks; with pas-
Photo: Orville Baldos
and verve! For a time, she appeared
weekly on KITV Channel 4’s early-bird
morning news with her television feature
“The Morning Garden”.
LICH recognized four Director Emeri-tus
- Jay Deputy, Garrett Webb, Lelan
Nishek and contributions to the Land-scape
Industry Council Steve Nimz. Di-rector
Emeritus recognizes LICH board
members who have made significant of
Hawaii. It was very humbling to recog-nize
these four incredible individuals
who have been pioneers in the industry.
Chris Dacus is the
President of the Land-scape
Industry Council
of Hawaii.

The NOA Pacific Regional Center
How Adaptive Reuse, Green Infrastructure, Culture,
and Native Plants Come Together at a National
Historic Landmark
Located on a national
historic landmark site on
Ford Island in Pearl Harbor,
the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administra-tion’s
(NOAA) new Pacific
12 LANDSCAPE HAWAII NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2013 Regional Center will soon open, featur-ing
the adaptive reuse of two World War
II-era aircraft hangars and its surrounding
airfield. The 22-acre campus consoli-dates
two massive adjacent hangars by
constructing a new building in the space
between, thereby creating a new 350,000
square foot administrative headquar-ters
and research center. All of NOAA’s
administrative functions for the Pacific
region will be housed on the campus
complex; this includes the Pacific Tsuna-mi
Warning Center, the National Marine
Sanctuaries, and various other offices and
laboratories. Local landscape architecture
and urban design firm Ki Concepts led
the site design effort, collaborating with
a team led by architects from HOK San
Francisco. The new campus design fea-tures
high-performance architectural and
landscape architectural elements with a
focus on native plants, Hawaiian culture,
and the site’s layered history. This project
represents a promising and evolving
design ethic in Hawai‘i.
Using landscape as a medium, the de-sign
artfully reveals the many facets of the
historic site and its regional and cultural
context. To achieve this, the site is orga-nized
along a strong central axis that can
be drawn from the distant Wai‘anae and
Ko‘olau Mountains, across Pearl Harbor,
through the heart of the building and out
the other side, across the parking area to
a restored compass rose in the historic
former runway. The entry promenade is
anchored by the restored compass rose
and welcomes visitors as it slices through
the bullet-strafed former airfield tarmac,
recalling the 1941 attack on Pearl Har-bor
and the site’s military history. The
NOAA Pier, the waterfront park’s outdoor
and the amphitheater are all com-ponents
along this central axis. The new
pavilion between the renovated aircraft
hangars is primarily glass and steel, which
allows the various elements of the linear
design axis to be visually connected, even
through the building.
The project expresses the strong envi-ronmental
ethos of NOAA and that of the
indigenous Hawaiian culture. The tarmac
has been repurposed, serving simultane-ously
as vehicular parking, a wartime
artifact and green infrastructure. The
expansive concrete surface is peeled away
in strategic places following the remnant
20’ x 20’ grid which is still visible in the
former tarmac. These interventions allow
the site to perform storm water mitiga-tion
via constructed native grass bio-swales
that detain, cleanse and infiltrate
rainwater runoff from the impervious
parking surface. The bio-retention areas
were planted with a rugged native grass
mixture of Mau‘u ‘aki‘aki and ‘Aki‘aki,
to withstand drought, periodic flood
inundation, salt spray, and high soil
salinity. They are also well suited to filter
sediment and pollutants from the storm
water runoff generated by the vast tarmac
surface. Trees were intentionally omit-ted
from the repurposed historic airfield
area in deference to the historic cultural
landscape character.
Continuing along the central axis from
By Wayne Baldwin, Brian Stuhr
and Brad Kurokawa
Photos courtesy: Ki Concepts LLC
Front entrance to NOAA Pacific Regional Center

the tarmac and entry promenade, visitors
will pass through the building’s expansive
central lobby space, which contains inter-pretive
displays and exhibits. Immediately
beyond the lobby on the mauka side of
the building is Wasp Boulevard and the
outdoor terrace area. Wasp Boulevard
functions as a fire access route, but is
paved with porous gravel and reinforced
grass paving, which reduces and treats
storm water runoff. Concrete bands tran-sect
the porous paving, running from the
building’s rainwater downspouts, across
Wasp Boulevard and the large pedestrian
path, where they visually and symbolically
flow out into the landscape. The bands of
concrete allude to the fact that the water
from the down spouts is used to irrigate
the landscape. These concrete bands also
bear the Hawaiian names of correspond-ing
traditional land division units, called
ahupua‘a, which can be observed in the
distant mountain landscape. The simple
act of indicating the ahupua‘a in the
ground plane helps connect the site to
the mountain watersheds that feed into
Pearl Harbor, while also speaking to the
native cultural practices of the Hawaiian
people. Interpretive signage and other
design features highlight the movement
of water and man-made interventions,
inviting reflection on modern and ancient
approaches to resource management.
The diverse native plant palette is criti-cal
to the successful performance of the
landscape systems. The dry coastal envi-ronment
of the site informed the plant
selections. The landscape planting is com-prised
of roughly 85% native plants, in-cluding
trees, shrubs, and groundcovers.
The selected species included Kou (Cordia
subcordata), Hala (Pandanus tectorius),
Variegated Hau (Hibiscus tiliaceus), Milo
(Thespesia populnea), Loulu (Pritchardia
spp.), Naupaka (Scaevola sericea), Koki‘o
‘ula (Hibiscus kokio), ‘Ilima papa (Sida fal-lax),
Naio papa (Myoporum sandwicense),
Pōhinahina (Vitex rotundifolia), ‘Akia
(wikstroemia uva-ursi), ‘Uki‘uki (Dianella
sandwicensis), ‘Aki‘aki (Sporobolus virgin-icus),
Mau‘u ‘aki‘aki (Fimbristylis cymosa),
and Pili grass (Heteropogon contortus).
Between Wasp Boulevard and the na-tive
grass meadows, architectonic bands
of low shrubs, groundcover, gravel and
concrete form an undulating landscape
buffer whose edge traces the original, his-toric
shoreline of Ford Island. The wispy,
fine textured, reddish-green upright
foliage of Pili grass is layered against the
coarse, drooping, shiny green leaves of
‘Uki‘uki and the dense, grey-green mass-terrace,
Bands of native Hawaiian plants along Wasp Boulevard. Note pervious paving
and flush concrete bands with ahupua‘a names.
ings of ‘Akia, creating a bold edge along
Wasp Boulevard. Kou trees punctuate
the ground plane of contrasting textures,
color and plant habitat. The entire system
works to filter storm water runoff and
provide a visually appealing, partially
shaded, kinesthetic foreground to frame
distant views. The central spine that
extends from Wasp Boulevard features
an outdoor dining terrace on alternat-ing
areas of paving and lawn. A double
allee of Loulu palms provides structure
and spatial definition to the terrace. The
shoreline zone is planted with Milo,
Niu (Cocos nucifera), Hala, Naupaka,
Pōhinahina, Pili, and other coastal plants,
providing a distinct edge and erosion
protection. The large open meadows on
each side of the terrace are planted with
the same native grasses utilized in the
parking lot’s green infrastructure systems.
These native grasses have excellent salt
and wind tolerance, ease of maintenance,
and a naturalized aesthetic.
Adjacent to the outdoor terrace is the
site’s focal point: an amphitheater with a
bronze Hawaiian star compass at its cen-ter.
The compass is set into cut lava and
concrete paving, surrounded by repur-posed
concrete salvaged from the partial
demolition of the historic tarmac. As
visitors take in the view of Pearl Harbor,
they are invited to pause and contemplate
the relationships between the ancient Ha-waiian
mariners and the NOAA scientists
whose stories are so important to this
landscape. On one hand, there are those
who skillfully navigated the vast Pacific
Ocean using stars, currents, wind, and
careful observation as their instruments.
On the other hand are those who employ
extremely sensitive instruments and
other cutting edge modern technology to
make their observations and understand
the environments of the Pacific and be-yond.
This relationship between ancient
and modern is one of the underlying
themes expressed throughout the design
of this project.
Water is a strong theme in the design
of the NOAA Pacific Regional Center.
The design team utilized the movement,
transport, and treatment of water as
another opportunity to express the blend-ing
of ancient and modern practices.
The relatively flat site required careful

engineering of bio-retention areas and
porous paving which treat, infiltrate and
transport storm water before it flows into
Pearl Harbor. These green infrastructure
strategies are derived from processes
found in nature and ancient techniques,
very similar to the intricate engineering
and ingenuity of the Hawaiian ‘auwai.
The ‘auwai were systems of stone water
channels that tapped into streams and
directed fresh water, primarily to irrigate
lo‘i kalo, taro fields. The ‘auwai controlled
flooding, moderated microclimates and
recycled nutrient flows. The landscape
and building work together to harvest
water from three primary sources; rain-water
runoff from the roof, grey water
from the building, and condensate from
14 LANDSCAPE HAWAII NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2013 the building’s cooling system. The water
from these various collection networks
is reused in the high performance,
evapotranspiration-based central control
irrigation system to water the landscape.
In this way, the project provides a con-temporary
response to the native wisdom
of the Hawaiian culture while honoring
the cultural significance of the site.
Ford Island was referred to as Moku
‘ume‘ume by the ancient Hawaiians,
which means “the isle of attraction”. In
the time since the first westerners arrived
in their ships, changes have taken place
in Hawai‘i, to both the people and the
land. In this project, ancient wisdom and
modern technology merge to tell the
complex story of water, land, climate, and
navigation. While 20th century develop-ment
may have paved over and obscured
many of the historic qualities of this site,
doing so created yet another layer of his-tory
and meaning. The restorative and
regenerative design of NOAA’s Pacific
Regional Center is an important first step
in revealing the many nuanced layers of
cultural and environmental history that
are present on Ford Island. This project is
a step in the right direction. It is a small
contribution to a growing body of exper-tise
in sustainable, sensitive, and innova-tive
design projects in Hawai‘i.
Wayne Baldwin, Brian Stuhr, Brad Kuro-kawa
work at Ki Concepts LLC.
NOAA Pacific Regional Center overall site plan.

Sustaining a Legacy
A Historic Tree
Lives On With
Many Partners
By Joshlyn Sand
In the green industry, we love
trees. It’s hard to say goodbye. It’s
really hard when it’s one of the
great ones…historic…iconic…
exceptional. We had a kauri tree
(Agathis robusta) at Foster Botani-cal
Garden we said a painful goodbye to
in 2007. But, this story has an unexpected
bright ending. I look back at all the people
involved in this tree’s story, from begin-ning
to end, and think how everyone just
did it right.
The tree was planted in Foster Garden
between 1853-1871 by Dr. William Hil-lebrand
who leased the land from Queen
Kalama for his personal residence. Dr.
Hillebrand was ahead of his time in the
sustainability movement. He traveled the
world in search of plants that could help
the islands become less dependent on
imports and more economically viable.
He campaigned for increasing locally
made goods for the people and building
strong export industries. He introduced
the kauri to Hawai‘i as a timber source for
the new (but short-lived) shipbuilding in-dustry,
as well as other lumber needs. He
planted it on the Main Terrace along with
his other historic introductions, which
stand proudly today as Exceptional Trees;
the earpod, the kapoks, and the tropical
almond.
The Foster kauri was also one of the
Exceptional Tree Act “pioneers”. It was
nominated in 1975; just a few years after
this tree preservation program began as
a statewide effort to protect our urban
forest from rapid development. It was
nominated by The American Forestry As-sociation,
who noted it at the time as the
largest kauri in the United States at 105’
high, 13’8” in circumference, with a crown
spread of 88’.
But, the old giant had been markedly
declining for about 15 years prior to its
removal. Previous pruning cuts failed to
compartmentalize leaving large cavities
in the canopy and trunk. It was moni-tored
and repeatedly evaluated by City
arboriculture staff and independent
Bart Potter sawing kauri billets. Bart is the owner of C. Barton Potter, Co.
Sawmill and founding member of HFIA. As musician and producer of tonewood
& veneers for fine instrument builders, Bart is passionate about forest preservation
and responsible stewardship.
contractors. Both resistance drill analysis
and sonic tomography was used over the
years. In fact, this was the first tree in the
state to be evaluated using tomographic
technology by consulting arborist Steve
Nimz. Ultimately, the Department of
Urban Forestry, in agreement with the
Mayor’s Arborist Advisory Committee
on Exceptional Trees, concluded the tree
was a hazard due to the extensive decay
and high-target location and removal was
unavoidable.
The removal was performed by Trees of
Hawai‘i whose contract included removal
and disposal of the wood. Individual
agreements with woodworkers were the
sole responsibility of Trees of Hawai‘i.
The wood was expertly milled and pre-served
to its fullest by Bart Potter.
Enter master woodworker, Joel Bright.
Joel’s craftsmanship has been recognized
with numerous awards at the Hawai‘i’s
Woodshow including several first place
categories. Joel is a contemporary wood-worker
who has even designed custom
pieces for the Imperial Family of Japan.
This year, Joel entered a credenza made
from the Foster Garden kauri that had
the woodworking community talking. In
addition to the kauri, Joel used accents
of pheasant wood (Senna saimea) from
trees removed from the grounds of St.
Andrew’s Cathedral in 1996. These trees
were planted around the cathedral’s
1867 dedication, making them roughly
the same age as the kauri. At this year’s
Hawai‘i’s Woodshow, Joel was awarded
the Award of Excellence, Career Recogni-tion,
Furniture.
Missed the 2013 Hawai‘i’s Woodshow?
It’s usually held in September at the Ho-nolulu
Academy of Arts at Linekona. And,
you can go online anytime and be in-spired
by the craftsmanship of Hawai`i’s
woodworkers thanks to The Hawai‘i For-est
Industry Association (HFIA) website
(www.hawaiiforest.org). There’s an excel-lent
photo gallery of entries dating from
1993. You’ll be astounded at the talent
we have here locally. Hawai‘i has master
artisans creating tropical wood pieces
that hold their own against any work
being done worldwide. While you’re there
check out the many ways HFIA promotes

Photo: Robyn Buntin of Honolulu
Joel Bright was honored with the Award of Excellence,
Career Recognition, Furniture at the 2013 Hawai‘i’s
Woodshow. The show has been sponsored for 21 years
by the HFIA and features world-class woodworking by
local artisans.
16 LANDSCAPE HAWAII NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2013 • Specimen Trees in Boxes
• Fruiting Trees
• Palms
• Topiaries
• everything else
in Kona
329-5702
sustainable Hawaiian forests. This non-profit works hard ad-vancing
programs that encourage sound forestry practices for
our $30.7 billion dollar forestry industry. Hat’s off to HFIA!
So, our old kauri lives on an amazing piece of art worthy of
the great tree it came from. It lives on in the young tree propa-gated
from it and planted just 75’ from where it once stood. It
lives on in the lessons we learned while caring for it over the
years; I think everyone would agree it made them better arbor-ists.
And, who knows? Maybe someday in the distant future
our baby kauri will be an Exceptional Tree, too.
And, for the tree nerds out there, two other kauri trees are
listed on the Register of Exceptional Trees. One is at Lyon
Arboretum (always worth a visit) and the other looms large and
in-charge at the Mililani St. sidewalk by the Judiciary Building.
Check them out!
Joshlyn Sand is a horticulturist and arborist for the Honolulu
Botanical Gardens.
(Special thanks to Diana Tusher and Bart Potter for their kind
help, photo assistance, and for interpreting the kauri so beautifully
at the Hawai‘i’s Woodshow).

Horticulture Meets
Hawaiian CULTURE
By Christopher McCullough
The Hawaii Island Land-scape
Association has
taken a new and inter-esting
direction in 2013
due to the influence of
Vice President Winston
Ka‘uhane Morton. This direction is an
exploration of Hawaiian culture, par-ticularly
of native plants and the natural
fibers produced from them and their use
in old Hawaii.
Many of you may know Ka‘uhane
already, as he is a well-known Hawai-ian
plant expert and educator. Ka’uhane
currently works on the Kona coast as
landscape assistant manager for Kukio, a
private residential community and golf
and beach club. In addition, he plays a
role as a cultural monitor and regularly
gives tours of the Kukio property high-lighting
historical trails and native Ha-waiian
plants to the resort membership.
Ka‘uhane’s horticultural background
began at the Waimea Arboretum and
Botanical Garden on the north shore
of Oahu working as a plant propagator.
Later he worked for the Office of Ha-waiian
Affairs as an Agricultural techni-cian
for the Ho‘oulu Mea Kanu project
teaching Hawaiian families how to grow
native plants for economic development.
Ka‘uhane’s next career change came when
the National Park at Honaunau offered
him an opportunity to live and work on
the Big Island.
Ka‘uhane is a cultural artisan and prac-titioner
interested in natural fibers and
the ways plants were used in old Hawaii.
Ka‘uhane joined our HILA board in 2012
and has endeavored to integrate cultural
use of the landscape and education.
As a result of this endeavor HILA has
held two cultural learning meetings oc-curring
in early March and late August
at the Kaupulehu Interpretive Center at
Kalaemano, Kukio Resort.
These sunset time events opened with
Ku‘ulei Keakealani, the Curator of the
Kaupulehu Interpretive Center at Kalae-mano,
telling of the history of this aina (as
well as her own family roots in this area)
followed by Gary Eoff, Flynn Baggs, Kaipo
Kalua‘u and Winston Ka‘uhane Morton as
the cultural presenters for our member-ship
and guests.
At the first meeting these cultural prac-tioners
shared their mana‘o speaking about
provisions of the canoe used by people of
old Hawaii. They also highlighted some
of the history of Kalaemano, and told the
story of the Fair American incident, which
took place at Kalaemano, and had a signifi-cant
effect on the history of Hawaii and
Kamehameha uniting the islands.
The topic at the second cultural event
was how natural fiber and culture go hand
in hand when looking at history and how
people evolved in an island setting isolated
from other continents. The cultural pre-senters
discussed some of the ways natural
fiber was used in old Hawaii for fishing.
The presentation also showed replicas of
fish traps, cordage, and lures for catching
fish and octopus, and touched on the future
of shoreline conservation in West Hawaii.
Both of these events were well attended
Photo: Erin Lee
by both HILA membership and the Kona
community. The event guests enjoyed
the interesting cultural presentations, the
beautiful coastal views of the Kona coast
from the Interpretive center, and compli-mentary
pupus and beverages served by
HILA.
HILA would like to thank Kukio Resort,
Ku’ulei Keakealani, Gary Eoff, Flynn
Baggs, Kaipo Kalua‘u, Winston Ka‘uhane
Morton and all of our attendees of the
event. This new direction of cultural
exploration and discovery will be an
interesting and ongoing HILA activity
thanks to the manao of Ka‘uhane and his
cultural ohana.
Christopher McCullough
is the President of the
Hawaii Island Landscape
Association and a Board
Member of the Land-scape
Industry Council of
Hawaii, as well as the Head
Horticulturist for DFI Resources LLC.
Gary Eoff, cultural practitioner.

Infatuated with Mango? Maybe it’s Time to Meet the Relatives
low hanging
FRUIT
18 LANDSCAPE HAWAII NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2013 Ahhh Mango… easily the
most ubiquitous back-yard
tree of the Hawaiian
Islands, and probably
one of the most widely
consumed tropical fruits
in the world, right up there with bananas
and avocados. For many years Mango
was my favorite fruit, with its sweet, rich
flavor and enticing aroma. Of course that
was before I discovered the wide world of
fruits beyond the supermarket. But I still
treasure a good mango, especially since
learning to appreciate the wide diversity
of cultivated varieties, or cultivars, grown
in Hawaii. In fact today there are literally
hundreds of different cultivars of Man-gos
coming in a dazzling array of colors,
textures, scents, and flavors. But all this
diversity is from the same species, botani-cally
speaking, Mangifera indica.
The Indian Mango, also called the
Common Mango (M. indica), is native to
Southern Asia, primarily India
and Burma (Myanmar).
Its cultivation
stretches back
for many
millennia,
and from
India it
spread
widely
across
much of tropical Asia and into Africa.
After Spanish colonization of the Philip-pines
in 1521, the Mango was brought
to tropical Nueva España (present day
Mexico and Central America). Likewise,
Portugese traders carried the Mango from
their African colonies to Brazil, from
which it spread to the Caribbean. In a rel-atively
short period of time it had become
as common throughout tropical America
as it was in tropical Asia. Sometime in the
early nineteenth century the Mango was
brought from Mexico to Hawaii, where
it was received favorably. Early introduc-tions
became the “common” or “Hawai-ian”
mango, vigorous but small-fruited
and stringy. After the initial introductions
more varieties, first from the Caribbean
and later from India, further enriched the
Islands’ Mango selection. Over the years
homegrown local varieties have been
selected, while newer improved cultivars
have continued to be introduced from
Mango growing regions of the world
and have added to the wide diversity of
Mangos that now fill the backyards and
markets of Hawaii.
Anyone who’s had a truly prime Mango
could understand why it has often been
referred to as the “King of Fruits.” But
not so many people are aware that over
sixty other species have been identified
in the genus Mangifera, with at least
twenty-six of these bearing edible fruit! If
Mangifera indica is the King, surely some
of these other species must qualify at least
as members of the royal court, perhaps
even princes (or princesses) worthy of
more attention. Why have so few people
ever heard of these Mango relatives? For
one, many have much more restricted
distributions than their kingly cousin,
with the highest diversity of species in
the under-explored and under-studied
islands of Borneo, Sumatra, Java and in
Peninsular Malaysia. Another reason is
that within the areas where these species
may occur naturally they are often spread
ADAM M. WILLIAMS
Photo: Adam M. Williams
Kasturi (Mangifera casturi)

out in otherwise very thick forest, appear-ing
singly in low densities across the land-scape.
Lastly, fruits of these species may
be locally abundant when in season, but
are seldom commercialized or exported
beyond their place of origin.
However, pioneering efforts by tropical
fruit collectors and explorers have started
to shine some light on at least a handful
of these lesser-known Mango relatives. In
Hawaii, Frank Sekiya and his wife Lynn
Tsuruda having been growing the follow-ing
trees at their Waimanalo nursery and
orchard:
Mangifera lalijiwa: known simply as
Lalijiwa, just like the specific epithet,
this handsome tree closely resembles the
Common Mango, in appearance of plant
and fruit. Indigenous to Indonesia (Suma-tra,
Java, Bali) where it is highly valued in
local markets, this Mango relative is only
starting to get some attention among
rare fruit growers and tropical fruit con-noisseurs
beyond its native range. It is
vigorous and bears good size fruit that are
enjoyed as an excellent green Mango. If
allowed to fully ripen the fruit turns from
light green to yellow, and tastes very simi-lar
to pure sugar cane juice. The smooth
sweet flavor is widely appealing, especially
to those who may not like the stronger
tones of many Common Mango varieties.
This tree can bear regularly every sum-mer,
and sometimes even produces a sec-ond
winter crop. Propagation can be by
grafting, either onto seedlings of the same
species, seedlings of M. indica, or perhaps
even other Mangifera species. The seeds
are polyembryonic and should also come
true if planted directly. In its native range
wild Lalijiwa trees are threatened by
encroaching agriculture and logging, and
the International Union for the Conser-vation
of Nature (IUCN) includes the
species on its Red List under the category
of Data Deficient.
Mangifera casturi: Referred to as Kas-turi,
or in English as Kalimantan Mango
(I would definitely prefer the former
name so as not to confuse this with the
Common Mango; Plums, Cherries, and
Peaches are all in the same genus too, and
we don’t call them by different variations
of the same name!), this mango relative
might not earn a second glance from the
casual observer if you were to just see
the tree without the fruit. But the fruit is
noticeably different from the Common
Mango. Kasturi fruits look like diminutive
versions of a regular Mango, maybe half
or a third of the size, with a uniform pur-ple-
black skin speckled with tiny yellow
spots. The skin may have a slight glaucous
covering that is easily rubbed off, reveal-ing
a glossy surface. Within, the flesh is a
deep orange, somewhat fibrous but very
rich and aromatic, with a flavor that is
reminiscent of a good Mango combined
with the complexity of Passion Fruit.
Sweet and juicy, it is easy to overlook the
fibers when consuming one of these deli-cious
rarities. Native to the far Southern
tip of Borneo, within the Indonesian
territory of Kalimantan, the Kasturi has
a very restricted natural range and is
believed to be endemic to the area around
Benjarmasin. There are apparently several
different types of Kasturi fruit, with vary-ing
skin color and even flavor. In Hawaii
the tree bears regularly in early summer.
Propagation can be through grafting onto
seedlings of the same species or other
Mangifera species, or by planting the
polyembryonic seeds directly. The high
quality of Kasturi fruits have long been
recognized and it is cultivated and locally
common in markets of Benjarmasin. This
is fortunate, because M. casturi is listed as
Extinct in the Wild on the IUCN Red List,
and it is feared that due to illegal logging
all natural occurrences of this tree may
have been extirpated from what remains
of the surrounding forests.
Bouea macrophylla: Even though its
not in the genus Mangifera and may
not be as closely related to the Com-mon
Mango as the Lalijiwa or Kasturi,
its still a Mango relative (in the same
family, Anacardiaceae) worth mentioning
and deserving of more attention. I was
introduced to this delicious gem by the
Adam M. Williams

name Maprang, a Thai name, but it has
several others across the range of its pres-ent
cultivation. The native distribution of
B. macrophylla is restricted to Northern
Java, Western Sumatra and Peninsular
Malaysia, but it is cultivated across parts
of Borneo, the Philippines and up into
Thailand. It is known variously as Gan-daria
(Indonesia, Philippines), Rembunia
(Malay), Somprang or Maprang (Thai), as
I first heard it. This tree does look a little
different than the Common Mango, hav-ing
smaller leaves that are arranged op-posite
each other (instead of alternating
in Mangifera species). Maprang fruits look
kind of like small yellow Mangoes (even
smaller than Kasturi, only slightly bigger
than eggs), with some varieties having a
typical oblong Mango shape, while others
can be perfectly round. But due to a very
thin skin, the Maprang can be eaten with-out
peeling, bitten into directly out of
hand! The flavor is sweet and lightly tart,
like a combination of Plum and Mango.
The texture is smooth with hardly any
fibers and very juicy. In Hawaii, Maprang
bears reliably in early summer, similar to
the Kasturi. Propagation can be by graft-ing,
but only onto seedlings of the same
species; it is not graft-compatible with
Mangifera species. The seeds are believed
to be polyembryonic and, if sown directly,
will likely come true. Maprang seedlings
grow quite slow and have a long juvenile
period during which they need protec-tion
and pampering. As the tree matures
it does become stronger, but will still
benefit from sheltered, moist conditions
with regular water. Maprang has become
quite important as an expanding fruit
crop in Thailand, which has even started
to export the fruit and select cultivars for
improved qualities.
Although most of the obscure and rare
Mango relatives will never achieve the
level of fame and fortune of their Kingly
cousin, Mangifera indica, Mango lovers
and growers the world ‘round would be
foolish to overlook them. The Indian
Mango may be widely adapted to a range
of different environments, from tropical
to subtropical across four continents, but
its native range is primarily dominated
by a monsoon climate. This means a rela-tively
dry winter when flowers develop
and very wet monsoon rains June through
September. As anyone who’s observed
Mango trees in the wetter, windward
sides of Hawaii has seen, if winter rains
occur while the Mango trees are flowering
it will often result in ruined flowers and
little to no harvest the following season.
20 LANDSCAPE HAWAII NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2013 Or, if fruits do develop, they are frequent-ly
afflicted with ugly black spots. Both of
these conditions are caused by Mango
Anthracnose, a fungal disease that is the
most serious pathogen to Mango growers
all over the world. Choosing a variety of
Common Mango that has been shown to
have some Anthracnose resistance is help-ful,
but overall this disease has restricted
Mango cultivation to hot, dry, leeward
sides of all the Main Islands.
However, the Lalijiwa, Kasturi, and
Maprang (as well as many of the other
rare Mango relatives) are all indigenous to
ever-wet tropical areas and have dem-onstrated
almost complete resistance
to Mango Anthracnose, bearing consis-tently
in Hawaii even following very wet
winters. Not only do many of these trees
have great potential for improvement
and development as successful fruit crops
on their own, there also exists a huge
potential for these and other Mangifera
species to be used to breed Anthracnose
resistance into the Common Mango, to
serve as invaluable genetic resources for
the continued improvement of the “King
of Fruits.” Much dedicated work remains
to be done on this front, but only if the
rare relatives can be preserved in their
native range, saved from the destruc-tion
of logging and deforestation which
continues unheeded throughout much of
Tropical Asia.
But breeding Mango trees, or
any long-lived tropical fruit
tree, is a very lengthy process
that will require decades-long
commitments and
dedicated researchers. If
you live in a wet area and
wish you could grow a
Mango tree but don’t
want to wait for tree
Photo courtesy: Wikimedia Commons
crop improvement programs, perhaps
you should consider planting one of these
delicious alternatives. Or maybe you just
want to appreciate and enjoy something
different and do your part to preserve and
promote the cultivation of spectacular
rare fruit tree in your own backyard. To
try fruits in season, acquire a grafted tree,
or for more information, please contact
Frankie’s Nursery in Waimanalo, Oahu,
at (808)-259-8737.
References and further reading:
Kostermans, Andre J.G.H, Jean-Marie
Bompard, and International Board for
Plant Genetic Resources. The Mangoes:
Their Botany, Nomenclature, Horticulture
and Utilization. Waltham: Academic Press,
1993. Print.
World Conservation Monitoring
Centre 1998. Mangifera lalijiwa. In: IUCN
2013. IUCN Red List of Threatened Spe-cies.
Version 2013.1. www.iucnredlist.org.
Downloaded on 13 October 2013.
World Conservation Monitoring
Centre 1998. Mangifera casturi. In: IUCN
2013. IUCN Red List of Threatened Spe-cies.
Version 2013.1. www.iucnredlist.org.
Downloaded on 13 October 2013.
Adam M. Williams is an
avid gardener, native plant
advocate, and tropical
fruit enthusiast.
Maprang (B. macrophylla)
Photo courtesy: Frankie’s Nursery
Lalijiwa (Mangifera lalijiwa)

Plant Pono: Native Plant Alternatives
The landscaping industry
in Hawaii utilizes many
plants to create gorgeous
landscapes across the
state. While not everyone
agrees on which plants are
or have the potential to become invasive
and should be avoided, it is agreed that
planting attractive, well suited, easy to
maintain plants are universally desirable.
The use of native plants in our landscapes
provides many benefits: promotion of
Hawai‘i’s unique plant species, native
plants inability to cause harmful effects
in the ecosystem if they spread, and lower
fertilizer and water requirements when
planted in the appropriate places.
Below are eleven commonly used
landscaping plants that have received a
Hawai‘i Pacific Weed Risk Assessment
(HPWRA) score determining high risk
for becoming invasive, and an alternative
native plant to consider using instead. To
learn more about the HPWRA, find ad-ditional
pono plants, and to see results for
screened plants, visit www.plantpono.org.
1. Wedelia (Sphagneticola trilobata),
HPWRA score 16
Wedelia is a creeping, mat-forming
groundcover often
planted in poor soils. ‘Ilie‘e
(Plumbago zeylanica) is a long-lived
spreading ground cover that grows
in partial shade to full sun and can toler-ate
both wet and dry conditions. It can
be planted in dry, wind prone areas and
is somewhat salt tolerant. ‘Ilie‘e is a very
strong groundcover and can be planted
to address soil erosion, but is also attrac-tive
with white flowers and wavy leaves.
Growing up to 24”, it spreads easily, grows
quickly and tolerates heavy pruning.
Other possibilities: Nehe (Lipochaeta
succulenta; Melanthera lavarum), Koo-koolau
(Bidens hillebrandiana)
2. Chinese Privot (Ligustrum sinense),
HPWRA score 11
Privot is a quick growing,
thick shrub often used as a
privacy hedge. Alahe‘e (Psy-drax
odorata) grows in both wet and dry
areas, and is noted for its resemblance to
mock orange. Alahe‘e makes an excellent
privacy hedge; it has glossy green leaves
and bears small, white fragrant flowers.
This plant will tolerate pruning and will
typically grow to about 30’. While this
plant is tough, it is slow growing.
Other possibilities: Naupaka huahiwi
(Scaevola gaudichaudii), Aalii (Dodonaea
viscose)
3. Australian Tree Fern (Sphaeropteris
cooperi), HPWRA score 8
Australian Tree Ferns
(ATF) were very commonly
used up to 10 years ago,
but due to severe impacts to
watersheds in Hawaii, ATF are no longer
used in the industry. Perhaps the most
obvious replacement for the ATF, espe-cially
for sites with partial shade and wet
conditions, is the native tree fern, hapu‘u.
It prefers moist areas with well-drained
soil. Cibotium glaucum is perhaps the
most popular and easy to grow hapu‘u,
but Cibotium meniesii is also a great
choice, especially for sites at higher eleva-tions.
Loulu palms (Pritchardia sp.) are also
a good alternative for ATF in sunny
areas; there are many native species of
Wedelia (Sphagneticola trilobata)
Loulu and each has different needs; most
require moist conditions in well-drained
soils. Due to cross-pollination concerns,
conservationists prefer to keep Loulus
separate and on the island they originated
from. Pritchardia minor is a lovely palm
from the Alakai Swamp on Kaua‘i which
grows to about 30’, and takes partial shade
to full sun. Oahu’s Pritchardia martii can
grow to 15’ with a 10’ canopy spread in
partial to full sun. Pritchardia beccariana
is believed to have grown on lowlands
throughout the state; it is a shorter palm
(15’) that requires partial to full sun.
Maui’s Pritchardia glabrata is a very short
palm with a canopy up to 12’; it tends to
prefer partial sun, especially at sea level.
4. Black Eyed Susan (Thunbergia alata),
HPWRA score 14
Thunbergia is a very popu-lar,
fast growing vine offering
colorful flowers grown in
hanging baskets, on fences,
and on trellises. Alternatively, the Nuku‘i‘iwi
(Strongylodon ruber) is a vine with a stun-ning
red flower that is related to the jade
vine. The clusters of 1 inch red flowers look
spectacular when they hang down. It pre-fers
partial shade and requires well-drained
soil; this vine will need to be draped on a
very strong tree or other support.
16
14
8
11

Other possibilities: ka‘e‘e (Mucuna
gigantea), ‘Awikiwiki (Canavalia spp.), or
Nanea (Vigna marina)
5. Bronze leaf Clerodendron (Cleroden-dron
quadriloculare), HPWRA score 11
Clerodendron is a small tree
with green and dark purple
leaves that produces many
suckers and runners. The
native ebony, lama (Diospyros
sandwicensis or D. hillebrandii), is a tough,
attractive tree; most leaves are dark green,
but new growth is a striking red color.
The sapwood is white and is said to rep-resent
enlightenment. Lama grows well
in dryer areas and will reach a maximum
height of about 35’ with a spread of about
20’. It does not do well in a pot and must
be out-planted for ideal vigor.
Other possibilities: Kolea lau nui
(Myrsine lessertiana), Maua (Xylosma ha-waiiense),
Kulu‘i (Nototrichium spp.)
6. Lantana (Lantana camara),
HPWRA score 32
Lantana is a commonly
used groundcover that
thrives in dry areas; flowers
are arranged in small rosettes
and come in multiple colors. Maiapilo
(Capparis sandwichiana) grows in coastal
lowlands and rocky cliffs. It has silvery
leaves and produces a very large and very
fragrant flower. The stunning flower
opens in the evening and will fade away
by midday. The plant grows to 2’ in height
and can have a spread of up to 10’. Maiap-ilo
will grow well in dry areas or in rock
gardens and is a wonderful low-growing
specimen plant.
Other possibilities: Puakiawe (Lepteco-phylla
tameiameiae), Hinahina (Artemisia
spp.)
7. Formosa koa (Acacia confusa),
HPWRA score 11
Formosa koa is a small
tree that grows to about
40’ and is drought tolerant.
The native lowland koa, or
koai‘a (Acacia koaia), grows well in low
elevations and is smaller in stature than
the koa; koai‘a grows to about 35’ with a
spread of about 20’. It is fast growing and
pest resistant. Koai‘a’s hard wood can be
used for woodworking, and the sickle
shaped leaves very much resemble those
of its cousin, koa. Because of its drought
tolerance and small stature, koai‘a is an
ideal native tree in urban landscapes.
Other possibilities: Ohi‘a (Meteroside-ros
22 LANDSCAPE HAWAII NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2013
polymorpha), Uhiuhi (Mezoneuron
kawaiensis)
8. Myer’s asparagus fern (Asparagus
densiflorus), HPWRA score 15
The common asparagus
fern as well as the foxtail as-paragus
fern are fast-growing
15 8
and aggressive, and armed
with sharp spines. A better
groundcover is ulei (Osteomeles anthyl-lidifolia),
which has fine, attractive foliage
and produces small, white flowers. This
plant can thrive in a variety of environ-ments,
including both wet and dry, but
will best flower in a dry area. Ulei is fast
growing and will spread throughout a
planting bed, requiring little maintenance
once established. It tolerates pruning and
drought, and requires very little fertiliza-tion;
ulei may grow to 2’ with a spread of
10’.
Other possibilities: Maile (Alyxia olivi-formis),
‘Ahu‘awa (Cyperus javonicus)
9. Autograph tree (Clusia rosea),
HPWRA score 9
The autograph tree has
been designated by DO-FAW
and DLNR as one of
Hawai‘i’s most invasive hor-ticultural
plants. Lonomea (Sapindus oa-huensis),
or the endemic soapberry tree, is
a wonderful alternative. It is a large shade
tree with large, dark green leaves that can
also provide screening. Once established,
this tree is drought resistant and requires
little to no supplemental water. While it
will tolerate partial shade, it grows best in
full sun. Lonomea is found naturally on
Kaua‘i and Oahu. Manele (Sapindus sapo-naria)
is indigenous and found naturally
on the Big Island and in other tropical
areas; it is more capable than the lonomea
to tolerate moist conditions. Both species
can grow to 50’ and will need adequate
space in the landscape.
Other possibilities: Hao (Rauvolfia
sandwicensis); Keahi (Nesoluma polynesi-cum)
10. Purple ruellia (Ruellia tuberosa),
HPWRA score 8
Ruellia is a tall, spreading
groundcover known for its
dark purple flowers.
Pohinahina (Vitex rotunda-folia)
has a similar habit – it can grow
up to 3’ and is a sprawling groundcover.
It has very attractive silver foliage and
purple flowers. Pohinahina is salt tolerant
and grows in dry areas; it will not tolerate
wet feet. Pohinahina is a common native
plant found in coastal areas, but it can
also make a nice cascading plant when
used in a planter.
Other possibilities: ‘Uki‘uki (Dianella
sandwicensis)
11. Yellow Alder (Turnera ulmifolia),
HPWRA score 10
Turnera has been used
in Hawai‘i for many years
because it is easy to grow and
has yellow flowers year-round.
Ma‘o hau hele (Hibiscus brackenridgei) is
also known for having beautiful yellow
flowers. It is an upright shrub with large
yellow flowers sometimes containing
red or maroon, and it may be grown as
a shrub or be trained into a tree. This is
Hawai‘i’s state flower and it makes an ex-cellent
specimen. Ma‘o hau hele grows to
up to 30’ and can have a spread of 25’, but
is easily pruned to any height. It grows
best in sunny areas and does not respond
well to over watering. Soil must be well-draining
for it to thrive.
Other possibilities: Any other native
hibiscus, ‘Ohai (Sesbania tomentosa)
Amanda Skelton is Plant Pono and Weed
Risk Assessment Liaison.
11
11
9
10
32
Myer’s asparagus fern (Asparagus densiflorus)

Pesticides
vs. Biological
Controls
pest
COLUMN
CAROL KWAN
What is better, pesti-cides
or biological
control agents?
Well, it depends.
Most people in
the green industry
know Steve Nimz. In the early days of his
career back in the 1970s, Steve swore by
chemicals. If there was a pest, spray it!
In 1978, the spiraling whitefly was first
reported on Oahu and by 1979 it had be-come
a major economic pest. The infesta-tions
were so heavy, the flocculent (white,
waxy material) would cover the ground
under infested trees so that it almost
looked like snow. No amount of pesticides
could control this pest as it reached epi-demic
proportions, so extensive searches
were made for biological controls. Five
natural enemies were introduced and in
1980-1981, peak populations of whitefly
were reduced by 79% at lower elevations
and up to 98.8% at higher elevations. The
whitefly was under control. As Steve tells
the story, that experience opened his eyes
to other options and made him realize
that pesticides were not the only tools in
the toolbox.
Those of us who were in the industry in
the early 1990s may remember when Er-ineum
mites were introduced to Hawaii.
This pest attacks hibiscus, particularly
the Chinese red hibiscus. Hibiscus was
a popular plant, to the point that it was
probably over-planted – a practice called
“monoculture”. This made it particularly
susceptible to pests because there were
plenty of host plants on which to increase
the pest population. The high number of
hibiscus plants
also made it more noticeable that there
was a major problem in the landscape, as
all of the leaves were distorted and cov-ered
with galls. Landscape maintenance
crews had to rotate the pesticides used
because the Erineum mites developed
resistance fairly quickly and a pesticide
would become ineffective with repeat
applications. A reasonable level of control
was finally achieved by predatory mites
previously introduced as biological control
agents of other pest mites. As with any bi-ological
control agent, care must be exer-cised
to avoid killing the good guys along
with the pest when applying pesticides.
In addition, cultural control methods
helped. More resistant hibiscus varieties
or different shrub species altogether were
planted to replace the infested Chinese
red hibiscus.
As for our original question, I think we
can safely answer that pesticides and bio-logical
controls both have their place. In
some circumstances, pesticides may be the
only way to help the plants survive until
the biological control agents are released.
It takes time – often years – for Hawaii
Department of Agriculture to identify
biological control agents, to test them to
be sure they won’t harm other species in
Hawaii besides the target pest, and to get
government approvals for their release
into the environment. That was the case
for the native wiliwili (Erythrina sandwi-censis)
when the
Erythrina gall wasp was at epidemic levels
and millions of dollars’ worth of Erythrina
sp. trees were killed. Pesticides helped the
wiliwili hang on until the biological con-trol
agent could come to its rescue.
Carol Kwan is the President of Carol
Kwan Consulting, a Certified Arborist, and
a Director of Aloha Arborist Association and
the Western Chapter International Society of
Arboriculture.
References:
Aleurodicus dispersus (Russell), by Jayma
L. Martin Kessing and Ronald F.L. Maui,
Crop Knowledge Master Spiraling White-fly,
Department of Entomology, Univer-sity
of Hawaii Manoa, January 1993.
Hibiscus Erineum Mite, by Arnold Hara,
Dick Tsuda, James Tavares, Julie Yogi, and
David Hensley. College of Tropical Agri-culture
and Human Resources, University
of Hawaii, Insect Pests April 2001, IP-7.
Photo: FOREST AND KIM STARR
Pesticides helped the native wiliwili
to survive the Erythrina Gall Wasp
until a biological control agent could
be released.

COLUMN
DANNY GREEN
24 LANDSCAPE HAWAII NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2013 turf
TURFGRASS
SELECTION
AND GROUND
PREPARATION
Nitrogen is normally not tested in
chemical soil tests unless requested.
Nitrogen levels change quickly and are
mobile therefore, N recommendations
are based on the turfgrass requirement
of N.
Most “red dirt” soils found in the is-lands
are iron oxide type soils and tend to
tie up nutrients such as phosphorus. Use
of a starter type fertilizer, such as 10-30-
10, at a rate of 1 pound actual P/ 1000 ft2,
will allow new planting to have available
phosphorus.
very low pH due to high levels of Ammo-nium
sulfate used in production. If pH is
below 6.0, a lime requirement test should
be run in the test as well. A lime require-ment
test will determine how much lime
is required to increase the soil pH to 6.5.
Ground preparation should include
amending clay and sandy soils with green
waste compost. Do not use material that
has not been composted as this will lead
to weed seed germination and nitrogen
depletion in the root zone. Addition
of compost improves Cation Exchange
Capacity (CEC), and helps buffer pH and
microbial activity in the rootzone. As
micro-organisms decompose the organic
material, thatch material from the turf-grass
will replenish and provide future
organic material to the soil.
A soil test should be done to determine
fertilization and amendments to be used.
Hawaii has an extensive number of soil
types and each will have different require-ments.
Many new developments are on
former agricultural land and may have
Selecting a turfgrass variety
for a residential lawn or
commercial property is a
crucial step in the process
of any new installation or
renovation. To be suc-cessful,
choosing the correct grass for
the right location is key. In some situa-tions
several different genus or species
may grow well agronomically and offer
the customer choices in characteristics.
Soil analysis and preparation is equally
important to the health and aesthetics of
the grass plants.
Sunlight and length of day are an es-sential
component in the decision. All
of our warm season turfgrasses may be
grown in full sun. As sunlight is decreased
so are choices of turfgrass varieties.
A tight canopy of turf is the result of
healthy individual grass plants thriving.
Many customers feel their property has
plenty of sun because of the area, such
as Kapolei or Kihei. What is not thought
about is the direction of travel of the sun
and obstructions such as homes, walls,
trees and plantings. Usually an area with
the least sunlight will determine the
variety selection for the property. For
example, Punchbowl Cemetery decided
bermudagrass was required for their
renovation. Large trees shaded out exist-ing
Tifway Bermuda and grassy weeds
dominated the dripline areas under these
trees. When I met with representatives
of the Veterans Administration this was
a key concern. Celebration, a new shade
tolerant bermudagrass, was chosen and
maintains coverage.
General guidelines for minimum light requirements:
Dwarf St. Augustine 2-3 hours
Zoysias, Centipede, some new Bermuda varieties 4-5 hours
Seashore paspalum 6 hours
Bermudagrass, Bahia, Buffalo 8+ hours
Suggested Ranges for Mehlich-I Extractable Soil Nutrient Level
MACRONUTRIENTS MICRONUTRIENTS
P K Mg Mn Zn Cu
ppm
16-30 36-60 20-30 3-9 0.5-3 0.1-0.5

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organic material and breaks up clay
soil allowing better water and
nutrient retention.
■■ Rake tilled soil smooth and water
level. This means saturating the area and
letting air pockets settle.
n Allow the surface to dry, then rake
smooth and to the desired grade.
This takes an extra day or two but,
greatly improves final grade.
■■ Roll the surface smooth with a
water filled roller.
■■ Fertilize with starter fertilizer such
as 10-30-10. Sod will be laid over the
fertilized soil.
■■ Sod should be laid beginning with
the longest straight edges working out to
areas that will require cutting and trim-ming
to fit the perimeter.
■■ Water after completing the sod
installation. The first day of watering
may take several applications to push the
water down into the soil, to a depth of 2”.
■■ Daily watering of sod for the first
2 weeks will be required. Pop up spray
heads will need to water 20 to 30 minutes
depending on time of year.
■■ Reduce water frequency after 2
weeks. Gradually reduce until watering 2
to 3 times per week, as necessary.
■■ The goal is to have deep, infrequent
watering cycles.
■■ After 2 weeks apply a good slow
release turf fertilizer every 3 months.
■■ Once a year, or as needed, de-thatch
the lawn to remove excess dead material
above the soil surface.
This will improve water infiltration and
limit disease susceptibility.
Much of this is common knowledge to the
experienced landscape contractor. Each per-son
has a favored way of installing a lawn and
each situation brings its’ own set of challeng-es
to the job. Following the basics ensures
your success and the clients’ satisfaction.
Danny Green is the Managing Partner for
Southern Turf Hawaii.
A system of preparation will include:
■■ Spray non-selective herbicide,
glyphosate product such as RoundUp
with spreader/sticker.
n 41% active ingredient concentrate
should be mixed in a 5 % solution
with water.
n ( 6.5 oz. per gallon)
■■ Wait 10 – 14 days.
n Allows the herbicide to be taken
up by the roots and translocated
throughout the plant. Kills roots,
stolons and leaves
■■ Repeat application on any remain-ing
green weeds or grasses.
■■ Remove dead plant material from
the soil surface. Wait several days until
planting.
■■ Spread 1” - 2” of soil conditioner
over the area to be planted.
■■ Rototill the soil conditioner into the
rootzone. If soil is heavy clay add gypsum
at this time.
n Helps to create a rootzone higher in

26 LANDSCAPE HAWAII NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2013 Hawaii’s
Bermuda By Triangle Brandon Au
A homeowner decides to
landscape their property
to include the frontage
of their O‘ahu prop-erty.
Most homeowners
believe that the frontage
is their property. Unfortunately, they are
usually mistaken. On City streets, it is
the property of the City and County of
Honolulu.
The portion between the road pave-ment
and the adjacent property line is
defined as the sidewalk area of the City’s
right-of-way. The sidewalk area is intend-ed
for pedestrian use, access for utilities,
and any setback areas acquired by the City
for road widening purposes. The sidewalk
area varies in measurement, ranging from
three to twenty feet, depending on the
area or neighborhood.
Typically in the sidewalk area, there
is grass and a tree. Usually, the tree is
under the maintenance jurisdiction of
the Division of Urban Forestry (DUF),
Department of Parks and Recreation
(DPR), and is considered a “street tree”. At
times, there are trees, shrubs and/or other
plants, irrigation systems, cement, rocks,
etc. in the sidewalk area that are not
City-maintained. These are unauthorized
plantings or installations unless the prop-erty
owner has a Surface Encroachment
Variance (SEV) approved by the Depart-ment
of Planning of Permitting (DPP).
Unauthorized plantings or installations
are still the maintenance responsibility
of the property owner, even if they were
planted or installed by prior owners.
A property owner may be issued a
Notice of Violation by DPP for unauthor-ized
plantings or installations in the City
sidewalk area. It is the responsibility of
the property owner to correct the viola-tion
within the specified amount of time.
During this time, the property owner can
apply for an SEV to possibly retain the
trees, plants, or other features. However,
there are standards and guidelines that
must be met for an SEV to be approved. If
the violation is not corrected within the
allotted time frame, the work is contract-ed
and the property owner will be billed
for the work performed.
Under DPR’s Park Rules and Regu-lations,
it is the responsibility of the
abutting property owner to maintain the
sidewalk area to include watering and
weeding around the trees. It is unlaw-ful
for any person to plant, prune, spray,
injure, or remove trees in the sidewalk
area without prior approval from DPR or
DPP. Any person conducting any of these
actions will be subject to prosecution by
the City and County of Honolulu.
In addition, the Revised Ordinances of
Honolulu, Chapter 14, Article 20, Section
14-20.1 Cleaning of Sidewalks, requires
that “Every property owner whose land
abuts or adjoins a public street shall
continually maintain, and keep clean,
passable and free from weeds and noxious
growths, the sidewalk and gutter area
which abuts or adjoins the property
owner’s property…”
The sidewalk area may appear to be
land belonging to the property owner, but
it belongs to the City for public and utility
access. Landscape contractors should
make sure that the property owner has
the necessary permits and approvals when
performing work in the sidewalk area.
Brandon Au is the head of the Nursery
and Landscape Section for the City’s Depart-ment
of Parks and Recreation, Division of
Urban Forestry, O‘ahu Co-Chair for the
LICT program, and Vice President for LICH.
Photo courtesy: the Department
of Planning and Permitting
Above: Unauthorized plants
in the planting strip.
Photo: Brandon Au
Right: Authorized street tree
in the City’s right-of-way

TOLS OF THE
TRADE
NEED AN
AGRICULTURAL
LOAN?
Purchase open land, build a dwelling, operating
loans, line of credit, equipment purchase, truck or
automobile purchase, refinance a mortgage or agree-ment
of sale, etc.
Both the Federal Land Bank Association of Hawaii, FLCA
and Hawaii Production Credit Association can custom design a
loan to meet your needs.
We offer: Long term loans, short term loans,
competitive interest rate programs, flexible
repayment schedules, excellent loan servicing
options, etc. We also have programs for Young,
Beginning, Small and Minority Farmers.
FARM CREDIT
SERVICES OF
HAWAII, ACA
Federal Land Bank Association of Hawaii, FLCA
Hawaii Production Credit Association
CALL ONE OF OUR LOAN OFFICERS AT:
Oahu Office 99-860 Iwaena Street, Suite A
Aiea, HI 96701
Phone: 808-836-8009
Fax: 808-836-8610
www.hawaiifarmcredit.com
Hilo Office 988 Kinoole Street
Hilo, HI 96720
Phone: 808-961-3708
Fax: 808-961-5494
From the Neighbor Islands Call Toll Free 1-800-894-4996
FCS of Hawaii, ACA is part of the Farm Credit System, a nationwide system of leading agricultural financial institutions
which started in 1917. FCS of Hawaii, ACA has been doing business in Hawaii since 1966 through its subsidiary the Federal
Land Bank Association of Hawaii, FLCA. The FCS of Hawaii, ACA is not a Federal Agency of the Federal Government.
TIPS tool
PHY L L I S JONES
When you go to
the doctor, do
you expect him
to take out his
instruments—
his tools—and
examine you and give you a diagnosis?
Why would you expect any less from your
mechanic? Without the proper tools your
mechanic cannot do his job. If you expect
him to do his job in a correct and timely
manner get him the tools he needs. (Re-cently,
we needed to check the oiler sys-tem
on a particular brand of chain saw.
In order to check the part, we needed to
remove the clutch using a clutch removal
tool. We were surprised to learn that the
dealer did not have the tool. )
Here is a basic list of tools that should
be on your bench. The tools will vary
depending in the types of equipment that
you use, and some tools are brand specific
and will only fit particular brands.
■■ SCREWDRIVERS—flat head,
Phillips, Torx, allen head (metric
and/or standard)
■■ PLIERS—needle nose (small and
large), wire cutters
■■ WRENCHES—crescent, open end,
box (metric and standard)
■■ SOCKETS—standard/metric)
■■ COMPRESSION TESTOR
■■ SPARK PLUG TESTER
■■ FEELER GAUGE
■■ CONTINUITY TESTER
■■ CLUTCH REMOVAL TOOL
■■ GREASE GUN
■■ MOWER BLADE BALANCER
■■ BENCH MOUNTED ELECTRIC
CHAIN SHARPENER
■■ PISTON PIN REMOVA/INSTALLER
TOOL
How many of these tools are on your
bench? What would you think if your
surgeon holds up a kitchen knife and
tongs and tells you that he is ready to do
your surgery? Why should you expect
your mechanic to repair your equipment
with only a hammer and a nail?
GET THE CORRECT TOOLS FOR
THE JOB? (If you are having problems
locating the tool, email me at atozhi@
yahoo.com and we will help you.) That’s
my tool tip to you. Happy holidays to you
and your family.
Thanks to all those who stopped by the
booth at the LICH Conference, particu-larly
the women who shared words of
support. It is wonderful to be able to
share knowledge with people who can
put it to use. And a big MAHALO to all
those who put the conference together—
what a great event!!
Phyllis Jones is with A to Z Equipment
and Sales, formally A to Z Rental Center, in
business for over 25 years.

Part 1 Part 2 in Jan/Feb issue
Diversity
Tree
Hawaii’s green land-scapes
28 LANDSCAPE HAWAII NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2013 By Dr. Richard Criley
and John Montoya
Expanding tree species in Hawaii’s landscape
are comprised
of relatively few tree
species. A drive along
Kalakaua Avenue in
Waikiki reveals mostly
coconut palms (Cocos nucifera) and rain-bow
shower trees (Cassia × nealiae) with
occasional kukui (Aleurites moluccana),
Clusia rosea, satinleaf (Chrysophyllum
oliviforme), and variegated hau (Hibiscus
tileaceus) trees. Elsewhere, Honolulu’s
street trees include Chinese banyan (Ficus
microcarpa), Hong Kong orchid tree
(Bauhinia blakeana), rainbow shower trees,
monkeypod (Samanea saman), fiddlewood
(Citharexylum spinosum), royal poinci-ana
(Delonix regia), fern tree (Filicium
decipiens), and perhaps a dozen others. In
2005-06, the common coral tree (Erythrina
variegata) was mostly eliminated from
parks and streets by the Erythrina Gall
Wasp (Quadrastichus erythrinae). Periodi-cally,
the monkeypod tree comes under
attack from a caterpillar that defoliates
them and damages growing points until
parasitic and predatory insects bring it
under control. Another insect pest, the
spiraling whitefly, also causes defoliation
and unsightly masses of white fibers on a
number of tree species, fiddlewood being
one of the more severely attacked. In 2007,
plumeria (Plumeria obtusa, P. rubra) trees
were attacked by the papaya mealybug.
New insect pests are being identified in
the South and in California landscapes that
could have severe effects in Hawaii should
(when) they arrive here. Hawaii has been
fortunate to have escaped, so far, the loss of
coconut palms due to the lethal yellowing
disease that has all but eliminated coconut
palms in Florida and Texas landscapes
or the red palm weevil that is becoming
a worldwide pest. Hawaii’s native loulu
palms are susceptible to Lethal Yellowing.
If an insect were to enter Hawaii that at-tacks
the rainbow shower, it would have a
very great impact, particularly in Honolulu,
where the cultivar Wilhelmina Tenney is a
principal street and park tree. The Lobate
Lac Scale on weeping banyan and a new
stem gall-forming wasp on Chinese banyan
are the most recently reported insect chal-lenges
to Hawaii’s landscapes. As a result
of a limited palette of tree species used in
Hawaii landscapes, we are vulnerable to
loss of green canopies when an epidemic of
insects can causes losses in the landscape.
While Hawaii enjoys a green landscape,
there is need to expand the palette of
tree species employed in residential and
public landscapes and street and highway
plantings. Urban tree trends include a call
for columnar and native trees, smaller
trees, adaptability to varied urban growing
conditions, and trees that can modify the
urban environment. Large trees are recom-mended
for reducing stormwater runoff,
improving air quality and maximizing
shade along streets, in parking lots, and in
commercial areas. Producers look for new
plants to keep up with consumer demand
for unique landscape plants. A number
of underutilized and exotic species have
been identified, but information on their
production (propagation, growth rates),
environmental requirements/ tolerances,
and functional uses needs to be devel-oped.
A CTAHR project proposes to fulfill
these needs by identifying new (to Hawaii
landscape use) or underutilized species and
providing this information. Bringing a new
urban tree to market may take 20 years
or more, including the time that it takes
for success “in the landscape setting” to
stimulate demand for it; thus, this project
has a long timeline.
Landscape architects and designers tend
to specify plants that they are familiar with,
and the result has been hotel landscapes
with much the same package of plants and
residential developments with the same
trees used throughout. They are less likely
to try new trees because their firms’ repu-tation
depends on success of their plant-ings.
While the movement towards using
native plants in landscapes is growing,
there are few truly native trees employed in
local landscapes. The “Expanding Tree Di-versity
in Hawaii’s Landscapes” project has
enabled the evaluation of species beyond
the few identified in Heidi Bornhorst’s
Growing Native Hawaiian Plants (2005)
and Kerin Lilleeng-Rosenberger’s Growing
Hawaii’s Native Plants (2005), especially
their propagation.
The Tropical Plant and Soil Sciences
Department at the University of Hawaii
has composed a list of suitable trees to
help expand urban tree diversity in Hawaii.
These trees have been selected with special
attention to natives, although some trees
are introduced. The trees have a wide
range of use in the landscape. The follow-ing
trees are in the first list to be released
while others are being worked on to meet
a goal of 30 trees. These were presented at
the 2012 LICH Conference.
Look for downloadable descriptions of
underutilized trees that can expand tree
diversity in Hawaii’s landscapes on the
free publications website of the College of
Tropical Agriculture and Human Resourc-es:
http://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/site/Pubs.
aspx?key=free+publications
Dr. Richard Criley and John Montoya are
with the Tropical Plant and Soil Sciences,
University of Hawaii at Manoa.
Colvillea racemosa
Common name – Colville’s Glory
Native to Madagascar, Colville’s Glory is a
medium-sized tree up to 50 feet tall (mature
crown diameter of 35-40 feet) with showy fall
blooms and becomes deciduous in January-
March. It can be used as a color accent or
specimen tree in public open spaces and
courtyards or along streets, in both residen-tial
or commercial settings. It attracts bees,
but there is little seedpod set, unlike Royal
Poinciana. It is propagated from seed, and
the WRA (Weed Risk Assessment) value is
-3. It is moderately salt and drought tolerant
and should be planted in full sun in a rich,
well-drained soil. Its chief disadvantages are
surface roots that can protrude above sur-rounding
turf and the flowering branches that
die back and fall to the ground in high winds.
Otherwise, it has proved wind tolerant.

LICH Landscape Hawaii Magazine - November/December 2013 Issue

LICH Landscape Hawaii Magazine - November/December 2013 Issue

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LICH Landscape Hawaii Magazine - November/December 2013 Issue