Well, I'm not getting to go to Hawaii. Someday....
But if you were going to Hawaii and could bring any of their plant back, which plant would you bring home?
If you were going to Hawaii, what plant would you bring back
I collect Taro Plants, --I would love to bring back some more of the traditional Taro Plants, --I have quite a few, --but HI. is about the only place not ruined by the Taro blight, --michael
The fresh papaya that we had on Maui just this past February was magic. Then there was the fresh banana and lime and mango and avocado and brugs and coffee and duranta and and and. So very many it would be impossible to choose. These are not even a tip of the iceburg. (what an absurd analogy, since Hi is never , ever cold).
LouC
Sorry, I didn't correctly answer your question. There is also Ti, and multiple ee's and bougs and and and and and
LouC, LOL! That's how I would be...
hmmmm i think i'd probably have to devise some genius plan to to somehow strip all the islands of all their tropical goodness and bring it ALL back here.... to share of course
You want a list? If I start now I might be done by the next weekend, LOL.
So far I've brought back Ti logs and cuttings, Plumeria cuttings, Bird of Paradise, Monstera cuttings, Heliconia, and a variety of gingers. In two weeks I hope to bring home a few more newbies. Hawaii is like my big box store for plants since tropicals are the only thing I grow. I really want to get a piece of the pothos in the jungle - I love the vining plants.
I would bring back a Ficus pseudopalma, I have heard that they have naturalized on the island of Maui. Just a small one back here in the states will cost you several hunderd dollars.
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/showimage/128385/
Lonny
I see the plant Ti listed several times. What is the technical name of this plant so I can search and see what it looks like. And post some pictures of your Ti.
Ti's were one of, if not the first, Hawaiian plant I started growing. Some I started from logs, and then others from cuttings. Only real problem with Ti's - you have to repot them almost yearly if they're growing strong, else their tap root will literally put them up out of the pot. My largest Ti has a tap root as big around as my arm at the base, it's huge.
Here's one of my largest ones about a year ago. Over the last summer I had to move it up to a 24" pot. It's already pushing itself up again out of that pot - so I'm not sure what I'm going to do this year.
I've always called my Ti's "Cordyline terminalis" and I only grow the natural green variety. Many folks like the red variety instead though.
Ti's do actually bloom, and they are quite pretty when they do so. All of mine bloomed last year, and the sheer number of (very tiny) flowers on the stalk surprised me.
Here's a few more of the Ti plant in Hawai`i. The Garden of Eden on Maui claims to have the largest collection of Ti plants in the world. They do have some amazing hybrids.
A beautiful clump of Red Ti.
Ti Plant heaven in Ke`anae Arboretum on Maui.
One of the many rows of Ti in the Garden of Eden on Maui. I think the palm is a Royal Palm (I prefer its smaller 'cousin' the Christmas (Manila) Palm - which if you could bring back, is beautiful too).
This message was edited Mar 31, 2008 9:56 AM
Keonikale, your pictures take me instantly back to our recent visit to Maui. I had two small red Ti's potted in the house. I got so excited that I planted them out too soon and one of our under 40 degree nights got them. I am waiting to see if they recover before I trash them. The fact that they are actually trees, as so many other things we saw was a surprise. The huge ficus was another surprise.
My only experience has been the ficus benjamin that is so finicky that if you even turn the pot around it looses all its leaves.
What a glorious land of paradise is the island of Maui.
I shall play my Bradduh IZ tapes today and dream of Maui.
Mahalo nui loa
Aloha,
Kilikina
Your biggest problem is that plants aren't allowed to be brought into Calif.; even by air unless it's phytocertified. For the past 4 yrs, I've been drooling over a book I bought on sale: A Native Hawaiian Garden by Culliney and Koebele.
Here's my list!
1) Santalum spp.-Hawaiian Sandalwood
2) Alyxia oliviformis-Maile or to create a name, Vanilla scented vine.
3) Gossyium tomentosum-Yellow flowered cotton.
4) Hibiscus arnottianus -White fragrant hibiscus, or related species.
5) Erythrina sandwicensis-seeds of the yellow variety. The plants are infected with a new bug that's wiping them out. We don't need this on the mainland.
Of course, any and all would need to be not collected from the wild. Any or all rules dealing with threatened or endangered species must be followed.
www.pctgardens.com has fantastic specimens. I've been absolutely wow'd by the large size and health of the material I've ordered previously. Just order during the summer.
Keonikale...Ti are actually related to Dracaena and are now Cordyline fructicosa. The flower stalks are very geometric and make wonderful flower arrangements. They were one of (still are) my passions and I collect unusual ones.... There are about over 400 different varietals as seedlings pop up AND some of them 'morph'...
Carol
Thanks Aloha. I actually was just reading on that and I don't think the name I've been using is even real. According to Wiki it's just an alternate name that was used because the plant was grown between properties. Interesting... didn't know that.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ti_plant
Have you ever been able to see the full length of a Ti plant Aloha? I've always wondered just how far those buggers go into the ground. Some of the older ones you see in the forest (which are basically trees as another poster noted) must have incredibly deep roots.
I also meant to ask. None of my flower stalks created any kind of berries this year. Can I attempt to cross pollinate my plants next year if they bloom again? I know I could just cut them and propagate them easily that way, but I'd like to try growing them from seeds if I could just get the berries.
Does seem like the flowering stalks stressed the plant a bit though. Especially since I had them indoors by then.
Oh yes There are some growers who cross Ti all the time and since they are all varietals, all the seedlings are different....some are duds but once in a while if you have TONS of room to grow them out....
Wow! The colors on those leaves are beautiful. I think when I die, I want my ashes spread in Hawaii and in Halong Bay. Hmmm. Can't decide.
LOL i have friends here to claim to have the largest collection too. Me...it isn't large but it is varied! Interesting thing, too, is that different growing conditions can produce slightly different coloration which adds to the fun of IDing them Each Ti has a different list of names depending on whom you get it from "Aunty Lolo", Tutu Wahine, leilani or 'dat one' can all be the same one. The one book that is WAAAAAAY off is the only book on Cordylines.....