Keiki to kupuna, there was something for everyone on Saturday during the Arbor Day tree giveaway presented by the Kauai Landscape Industry in collaboration with its network of community partners.
With more than 1,200 tree cultivars to select from, the variety of tree types satisfied the needs of backyard growers, lei makers, and collectors of native species and exotic trees. Five of the trees that ran out within minutes of opening included the milo, with excellent coastal properties to tolerate wind and salt spray; the puakenikeni, grown for its fragrant blooms to create lei; ahinahina, a native drought-tolerant perennial; alahee, that is suggested for a floral hedge; and kooloauloa, an endangered native shrub used to attract pollinators.
Keiki were treated to a planting experience where they learning transplanting skills while planting a variety of vegetables, and even a nasturtium, an edible flower used in fresh salads.
Partner agencies, such as the group neighboring the Kauai Invasive Species Committee, used the opportunity to promote their upcoming event, the 2025 Ohia Love Fest that will take place on Saturday at the Limahuli Garden and Preserve in Haena.
Open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., the free event will feature free ohia plants for the first 40 guests. Other features include native plant sales, educational talks, conservation and community vendors, live music and food.
“Forest birds need trees,” said Dr. Julia Diegmann of the Kauai Forest Bird Recovery Project that will open its 2025 Winds and Woodlands Art Exhibit from Nov. 8-14 at the Kauai Society of Artists gallery at the Kukui Grove Center.
“There is an artists’ reception on Nov. 7 from 6 p.m.,” Diegmann said. “The exhibit opens from Nov. 8 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. We even have an entry from Italy. We’re international.”
Starting from the south parking lot, or the site of the weekly Pau Hana Market, the line of people waiting for free trees snaked backwards along one of the shopping center’s avenues to a point beyond the entrance to Times Supermarket. The line, although disappearing with the onslaught of a mid-morning downpour, did not disappear.
The Kauai Landscape Industry Council got support from the Kaulunani Urban and Community Program of the Hawaii State Department of Land and Natural Resources, Division of Forestry and Wildlife, and the State and Private Forestry branch of the USFS, USDA Region 5, Corteva agriscience, the Goldberg family, Umemoto Cassandro Design Corp., Kauai Nursery and Landscaping, Kauai Invasive Species Committee, Paradise Bloom Landscaping, Tropical Landscaping Services, National Tropical Botanical Garden, and the Kukui Grove Center.
Source: The Garden Island