"Native Hawaiian plants make up a unique flora because of the extreme isolation of the Hawaiian Islands. When the Polynesian settlers arrived, they encountered many plants that they did not know before. Over the course of generations, the Hawaiian people learned how to use the native flora to meet their needs. Along with the crops that the settlers introduced from the South Pacific, native plants became the basis for Hawaiian society and economy. In addition to describing the plants and their habitats, this guide relates the significance that native and Polynesian-introduced plants had to traditional Hawaiian culture, and tells how these plants are still used today." --Back cover.
Hawai‘i is home to some of the rarest plants in the world, many of them now threatened by extinction. Despite a benign and nurturing climate, native species are declining almost everywhere in the Islands. Human-introduced pests, the spread of competing alien plants, wildfires, urban and agricultural development, and other disturbances of modern life are eliminating native species at an alarming pace. In fact, 38 percent of all plants on the U.S. endangered species list are native Hawaiian plants. A Native Hawaiian Garden is an effort to help stem the tide. Until recent years, few people attempted to raise native plants in their gardens, in schoolyards and parks, or around public buildings. But this situation is changing as essential information about raising native plants becomes more readily available. A Native Hawaiian Garden offers the most in-depth treatment yet on cultivating and propagating native Hawaiian plants. Following an overview of Hawaiian natural history and conservation, the book treats 63 species (many for the first time), giving detailed information on all stages of gardening: from preparing seeds for germination to the care and tending of the young plants in the landscape. Habitats where the plants are most likely to thrive are also described, as well as the uses that native Hawaiians made of the plants. Over 90 color photographs enhance the book. A Native Hawaiian Garden has much to offer professional horticulturists, landscapers, and botanists, and gives reason to hope that more spaces around housing developments, shopping malls, and other commercial buildings will soon include native plants. But the book will prove especially valuable to those gardeners who wish to grow and nurture something truly Hawaiian in their own backyards. Among the many rewards of growing natives, the authors make clear, is the opportunity to contribute your own experiences and findings to a vital preservation effort.
Almost 90 per cent of Hawaii's flora are found nowhere else in the world. This text presents a revised edition of a guide book to these and other plants that comprise some of the most unique ecosystems in the world. In a series of essays, the author weaves cultural and biological, historical and geographic, aesthetic and spiritual aspects of Hawaiian ecology into non-technical accounts of 32 plants important to early Hawaiians.
Hawai‘i is known for its verdant mountains and colorful ocean ecosystems, but few realize the depth and range of the islands’ mushroom diversity. In fact, Hawai‘i is home to over 230 species of mushrooms that are prized by foragers from around the world. In Mushrooms of Hawai‘i, Don Hemmes and Dennis Desjardin present a beautiful and comprehensive guide to the treasure trove of mycological life in the Aloha State. Inside you’ll find information on Mushroom identification; Culinary and medicinal uses of Hawaiian mushrooms; Where to find the best mushroom-hunting spots; The seasonality of Hawaiian mushrooms; And everything else you might need to make your foraging adventure a success. Mushrooms of Hawai‘i also includes beautiful illustrations to help you identify familiar treasures like morels, well-known dangers like Amanita muscaria, and exciting species unique to the islands. Whether you’re hunting Copelandia cyanescens (“magic” mushrooms) in the pasture grasses high in the mountains of Maui, or foraging for Laetiporus (chicken of the woods), an edible mushroom sought after by foodies for its uniquely delicious taste, this book is the must-have guide for fungophiles.
Detailed instructions for growing native Hawaiian plants from cuttings or seeds, air-layering, grafting, watering, xeriscaping, transplanting, etc., and basic landscape maintenance. Also explains the plants' importance in Hawaiian culture.
What? Grow endangered native Hawaiian plants in my home garden? What a concept, but the natives are simple to grow because they belong here! For many, the dream of owning a home in Hawai`i is becoming a reality. Hawai`i has some of the fastest-growing areas of the United States, because the weather is warm year-round, the pace of life is more relaxed than on the mainland, prices are still affordable in many areas, and the spirit of aloha abounds. This book will help readers develop their properties, from clearing the land of invasive plants while maintaining native vegetation, to planting trees, vegetables and more. This is a very useful book with a gardeners joy shining between the lines. Its chock full of new ideas and old ones worth repeating. Its refreshingly written without a know-it-all approach. Instead, its by a humble novice with her curiosity intact. Her grateful attitude includes a sense of wonder at what nature provides in return for a bit of hard work. David Orr, Coordinator of Botanical Programs, Waimea Valley Audubon Center, Oahu. Super Simple Guide to Creating Hawaiian Gardens is far more comprehensive than any other Hawaiian gardening guide! Barbara Fahs offers a unique and perfect solution to the question How? often asked by newcomers and residents in Hawai`i. She not only outlines the essentials of organic gardening in Hawai`i (an important point), but includes easy-to-grow edibles and ornamentals, native, Polynesian and medicinal plants. Furthermore, Super Simple Guide emphasizes land stewardship: plants not to grow, weeds to encourage, and gardens without poisons. As a long-time kamaaina and keen gardener, I heartily recommend this book for both healthy living and an awareness of invasive plants, which can easily spread into Hawai`is diverse natural ecosystems. Angela Kay Kepler, PhD, award-winning author of numerous books on Hawaiian plants
Common Forest Trees of Hawaii, first published in 1989 as USDA Forest Service Agriculture Handbook 679, is an illustrated reference for identifying the common trees in the forests of Hawaii. Useful information about each species is also compiled, including Hawaiian, English, and scientific names; description; distribution within the islands and beyond; uses of wood and other products; and additional notes. The 152 species described and illustrated by line drawings comprise 60 native species (including 53 that are endemic), 85 species introduced after the arrival of Europeans, and 7 species introduced apparently by the early Hawaiians. One chapter is devoted to forests and forestry in Hawaii. Maps of the Hawaiian Islands show the physical features and place names, major forest types, and forest reserves and conservation districts. Each tree species is illustrated by a full-page line drawing.
