Puakahi, Oahu

On Halloween, I arrived in Honolulu for my two-week work/vacation.  My first night in Hawaii, I was fortunate enough to be a guest at the home of the local landscape architect with whom I was collaborating.  Despite the jetlag, the first order of business, upon arriving at his and his wife's home, was a quick tour of their garden, accompanied by their sweet dogs.

The site rambles down a hill on the north side of Oahu, and grass paths were terraced out of the slope.  

When the path changes direction or pitch, these intersections are punctuated with fountains, significant trees or other garden follies.

Since the grade descends behind the house, the bedrooms are on the ground floor and open out to the pool terrace.  Above, my wonderful hostess smiles out from the living/dining area balcony.

A small pool structure is perfect for a drink or a poolside meal.

Balinese columns support planters of orchids.

The view of the pool and the harbor beyond from the upper balcony.

This property is made available for rent for Hawaiian vacations or weddings,  You can find more information here: http://www.puakahi.com

Triangle Palm

As you may know, I was working in Lanai, Hawaii for the first week of November (tough gig).  The second week, I spent traveling.  Over the past two years, I've been fortunate enough to spend a total of eight weeks in Hawaii; I had visited Lanai, Maui, the Big Island and Oahu.  This trip, I made a point to spend a few days in Kauai.  Kauai is the oldest island and thus the greenest, which made it a refreshing change from the drier climate of Lanai.

While in Kauai, I went horseback riding at Silver Falls Ranch, a great place near Hanalei.  I took a private ride so my guide and I could canter and trot (though I was still a little too cagey to all-out gallop!).  Somewhat spoiled by all my Hawaii travels, I didn't feel the compulsion to stop and take photos during the ride; I wanted to just enjoy the moment, not to mention I must have THOUSANDS of pics of Hawaiian landscapes by now (and am not near finished sharing them with you all, either!).

However, I did have to stop a take a few library shots of this unusual palm: Dypsis decaryi, or triangle palm (not to be confused with triangle man). Dypsis has long fronds with leaves ascending from the main stems.  These fronds emerge from three points, forming a triangle. Native to Madagascar, the plant is popular for its odd shape.

I'm not sure I'd use this in a landscape design, though the bluish tint of the foliage and the shape is kinda fun to look at.  It is just so odd; I feel like seeing it takes you out of the moment, like seeing a mega star take on a cameo role in a movie. Botanical stunt casting, perhaps...

Strelitzia nicolai and the Japanese White Eye

The Saturday before I left town for Hawaii, I met my students at Brookside Gardens.  If you remember, Saturday the 29th was snowy, sleety, rainy and cold.  To wit, we covered some plants in the conservatory.  One of which was the giant bird of paradise, or Strelitzia nicolai.  While looking at it, we wondered what kind of pollinators would frequent it, and its relative, the regular bird of paradise, or Strelitzia reginae.  We suspected perhaps birds, due to the large, perchable flower and in the case of S. reginae, the parrot-colored flower.

While it's not certain that this bird, the Japanese White Eye, is the primary pollinator, its relationship here is pretty clear.  The bird, also known as Zosterops japonicus, is an introduced bird to Hawaii, originally brought to the islands with the good intent of using it to control populations of destructive insects.  As you can guess, this did not work out too well and now the bird is a vector for avian diseases that affect the native bird species. 

Back to the plant -- this may look familiar -- in fact the plant is very similar to traveler's palm, which I blogged about on NYPAOS.  Aloha!

Rhapis excelsa

First of all, spring is absolutely here.  Thank goodness.  First of all, last Friday, on an afternoon run by the Potomac, I saw this:

How wonderful to finally see bulbs sprout.  Then on Saturday I met my students at the USBG and spied Galanthus, Crocus, Hamamelis, Abeliaphyllum, Jasminum nudiflorum, Helleborus, Iris reticulata and a new plant that I'd never seen before, Edgeworthia (more on that later). 

But before we completely abandon the tropics for the season a final post, courtesy of my aunt: Rhapis excelsa or lady palm.  My aunt sent me the photo above and it was a sure bet she was shooting Rhapis.  The plant is native to China but was first popularized elsewhere in Japan, since the plant can handle low light levels and indoor environments.

We used Rhapis as a hedge at the Edition: Waikiki.

That's me, running quality control (smirk) on the plants we got for the hedge.  As you can see Rhapis spreads by sending up new shoots and though the plant is in the Arecaceae or palm family, many think it looks somewhat like bamboo because of this habit.  

My aunt sent this shot above, too and it demonstrates well the effects of high levels of sunlight on the plant.  If the plant gets too much light, it yellows (that's because the sun is basically overcooking the chlorophyll in the leaves, it's not because the plant has become chlorotic). Getting a deep, rich green hue is important to Rhapis growers.  In fact, a nurseryman in Waimanolo told me he fertilizes the plant with chicken droppings which works very well.  It probably can be left unsaid that the nursery itself had an unbearable stench!

 

It's quite possible the leaf in this gate detail at Park Guell is of a lady palm.  The plant became quite popular in Europe  during the Victoria era and Park Guell began construction right at the end of this period.   Rhapis is derivative of the ancient Greek work for rod and refers to the sharp shoots on which the leaves are borne.

Pittosporum tobira

Yesterday, I received a comment that Coccoloba reminded the reader of jade plant (Crassula).  They commented that the loose architecture of the branches reminded them of that houseplant.  While I can see that resemblance, they are not related.  Neither is Crassula related to Pittosporum tobira, though when my aunt texted me this photo from her Florida trip, she had the same suspicions.

I had no doubt the photo she sent was Pittosporum, or Japanese cheesewood.  Though native to Japan, the plant is salt and drought tolerant and thus very popular as an ornamental in Florida.  Left unchecked it can become a small tree though often it's used as a low, sprawling shrub or hedge.

The specimens above, growing in the Parc del Clot in Barcelona, could possibly be the smaller cultivar, 'Wheeler's Dwarf.'  A half-hearted attempt to find out why the plant is called "cheesewood" -- which I think is an awfully unappealing name -- brought no specific results.  Presumably the wood smells, or tastes like, cheese.  I'll have to check this out the next time I see it...

Coccoloba uvifer

It seems like it's been ages since I've been blogging -- at least about plants!  We're gonna wrap up this week with some tropical plants my aunt photographed while in Florida a few weeks ago.  I love that these days, any one of my friends or family members can send me a text message with a photo of a plant and the simple question, "What is this?"

This plant was an easy call -- Coccoloba uvifera, or seagrape, is ubiquitous in Florida.  It's a multistemmed sprawling low tree with large, thick leaves.  The plant is incredibly tolerant to salt and wind.  The flowers are diminutive, but the fruit are pendulous bunches of grape-like berries.

The plant is native to Florida and the Caribbean and the fruit can be harvested to make a jelly.  The roots have been used to treat dysentery and a gum from the wood can be used as a remedy for sore throats.

Coccoloba literally means 'lobed fruit' and uvifera means 'bearing eggs' - presumably both refer to the distinctive fruit of this plant.

Palm Decor

I couldn't have spent so much time lately blogging about palms, without including these shots of a shelter at Waimea Valley Botanical Garden.
 

Massive palm fronds (my guess is from the classic Cocos nucifera or coconut) were used to wrap the posts of this lovely but simple shelter.

It's hard not to look at this and begin fantasizing about my future home in one of the more remote corners of Oahu or the Big Island. Such a nice way to decorate and bring the palms inside.  

Pygmy Date Palm

My aunt (of the "Norwegian Maple") has been in Florida this week and has been sending me pics on her iPhone.  It's been fun to identify the plants, or if they are unfamiliar, to look them up.  I'll be posting most of them next week, wrapping up the last of these escapist, tropical themes before we move head-on into spring. 

I was delighted with the photo she sent me above, as it's a nicer pic of Phoenix roebelenii than any of my own.  The genus name should sound familiar since I blogged about its cousin, Pheonix dactylifera, just last week.   

Here's a shot of a pygmy date palm, growing in a lackluster spot in Jean Nouvel's Parc del Centre de Poublenou.  Pygmy dates, as the common name suggests, is a smaller version of the regular date palm.  It's often used in containers or in small areas.  It demands a regular supply of water but can handle both full sun and partial shade. You can eat the dates on this species, but they aren't as fleshy or sweet as the regular date palm.

 Those of you New Yorkers may remember the June we had two years ago where it rained 25 days of the month.  I had a desperate rant about it on NYPAOS and posted this photo of a rooftop bar.  At the time, I was focusing more on this band of people, happily drinking a magnum of champagne, ignoring the deluge.  I had failed to point out the Phoenix roebelenii.

Schefflera

Since I've somehow stumbled on the topic of "mall plants" (yikes), here's some Schefflera, growing in Puerto Rico.  My students already know how I feel about variegated plants, in general (double yikes), but the white and green variegation isn't all THAT bad.  It does brighten up an otherwise dark corner. 

The yellow and green however...Not so much.

Schefflera is an easy genus to make a guess on its etymology -- it's named for a German botanist, Jacob Christian Scheffler. 

Spathiphyllum

Here's another shot from my Puerto Rico trip a two years ago.  Though the weather is warming up here in DC, these photos aren't helping, as even a touch of spring weather can't compare with the thought of being on a tropical island.  I'm suffering withdrawal!

Anyhoo, you don't need to go to Vieques to see this plant.  Chances are it's growing in your nearby shopping mall, or you can spot it in a building's atrium.  It's Spathiphyllum, or the peace lily.  It's a very, very shade tolerant plant so it's often used in interiorscaping. 

But they rarely look this good in a mall.  The leaves here are large and lusciously jade green.  The flowers, which are a spathe-and-spadix structure.  The white part is the spathe, which is a bract, or modified leaf.  The yellow spike in the center is the spadix, which is an inflorescence, consisting of many small flowers.  The plant is called peace lily, evidently due to the white color of the spadix. 

Carissa macrocarpa

Carissa macrocarpa or natal plum is a plant you're likely to encounter in the tropics as it's unusual in fulfilling various purposes.  One, it's quite thorny and is often used as a barrier.  Two, it takes to pruning very well and can be trimmed into a hedge shape without much trouble.  Three, it's absolutely salt and wind proof.  If you've ever been to the Halekulani in Waikiki, or walked past the beachfront restaurant, you've passed a manicured hedge of  Carissa.

Finally, reason number four is the plant is quite attractive, as far as somewhat stiff hedge-like plants go.  The pinwheels of white flowers look almost like jasmine and are faintly faintly fragrant. 

All the time I spent walking past the specimen at the Halekulani, and damn if I can't find a photo of the plant's habit.  I only have these close-ups from Puerto Rico.  Next time, I promise.

Ruellia angustifolia

The plant below is Ruellia angustifolia, or Mexican petunia.  It's also known as R. brittoniana.  As you may guess, it's not related to the bedding plant Petunia at all, it just has similar tubular flowers.  

Ruellia is an upright, stalk-forming perennial that grows in almost any condition, in areas of the tropics, as far north as Texas and Florida.   Its hardiness accounts for why this is considered a top-ranking invasive in Florida. 

Bauhinia purpurea

Yesterday, we had temperatures in DC reaching 59° yesterday, which was downright heavenly.  I took some time away from work to go for a run along the mall, eying all the trees' buds, which are slowly fattening up to burst this spring.  Today, we're back to colder temperatures, so I've decided to commit this week to more tropicals and live in denial. 

This was a specimen I shot in March 2009 in San Juan, Puerto Rico.  I don't know how I failed to post about it at NYPAOS, but I didn't so I'm happily introducing it now: Bauhinia purpurea, AKA Hong Kong orchid tree, Hawaiian orchid tree or purple camel's foot. 

That last common name should be evident when considering the assymmetrical bilobed leaves which look similar enough to the footprints of a camel.

The flower, as the other common names suggest, is orchid-like, with long slender petals and showy, spurred stamens. Of course, the other huge clue to identify this plant appears in the photos above and below and that's the long, flattened fruits which clue us in that we're looking at a member of the Leguminosae family.

Bauhinia is a popular ornamental tree int he tropics and it native to Southeast Asia.  In the states, it's prevalent in Texas, Florida, Hawaii and Puerto Rico.  There's some debate about its invasive quality --the plant sets very successful seedlings which can be a management problem. 

Bottle Palm

Below, a specimen of Hyophorbe lagenicaulis, in Waimea Valley Botanical Garden, Oahu.  Bottle palms are named such for its trunk, which suddenly enlarges at the base, looking much like a bottle.  This specimen, is quite old and is reaching its species height limit of 30-35'.  Most bottle palms have a more obviously bottle-like trunk, because they are usually found in shorter sizes.

Bottles rarely have more than 5-7 leaves on them and they are self-cleaning.  That means that when the frond senesces, it simply falls off, unlike today's earlier royal palm, which has persistent leaves.  The leaf texture is much more coarse, with thicker leaflets.  This does make it easier to appreciate the clear, jade green color of the leaves.
 

A younger specimen of bottle palm is below.  Bottles are endemic to Mauritius Island, where wild stands of this tree are very rare and diminishing. Bottles are however, very popular as container plants due to their small size and striking silhouette.

Roystonea regia, or Royal Palm

Below, royal palms, Roystonea regia, formerly R. elata, line a street in Oahu.  That's a bit of Diamond Head you see in the left background.

After you start to see the differences among palm species, you begin to understand the subtle choices you can make in plant selection.  Royal palms, with their stout upright trunks, create a much more formal setting than a looser, arching coconut palm.  The austerity of this look is enhanced when you consider the regularly-occurring smooth rings that line the trunk.

In most cases, palms like this are maintained and the dead fronds and fruits are removed.  The plant has a close association with bats in its native range of Cuba/northern Caribbean, Florida and Mexico.  The pinnately compound leaves have fine, thin leaflets which create a softer texture than say, the foxtail palm. 

Pritchardia Palms

When I first started working on projects in the tropics, I was intimidated by all that I didn't know about palms.  For a while there, they all looked the same.  But eventually with enough exposure you begin to notice the finer details separating one species from another.  

The very first step in that direction is by noticed whether or not the leaves are fans or fronds.  The way that here on the east coast, when encountering a tree, the first thing we note is leaf orientation (opposite or altnerate?) with palms, noting if it's a fan leaf like the tree in this post, or a compound frond like this morning's date palm, narrows down the possibilities.

The genus in this post is Pritchardia or Pritchard palm, named so after William Thomas Pritchard, a British consul at Fiji during the turn of the last century.  If you pressed a gun to my head (please don't), I would speculate that this is Pritchardia affinis or loulu palm, which can become quite tall (many species stay shorter) and is more common than the other 28 species.

P. affinis is endemic to Hawaii and is registered as an endangered species. There are another 18 species of Pritchardia that are also endemic and all are in decline.  The genus is unusual in that the flowers and fruits occur on the same stalks.  Note the bright yellow flower buds above and the unripe fruit below.

Date Palm

Yesterday, I posted about Datura with some hesitation.  Not because the plant is not worthy of a post, but because it's a summer annual and here we are in the middle of February.  I try to keep this post relevant to the seasons, but this is a tough time of year to find much inspiration outdoors (though now that some of our snow has melted, I have spied some daffodil foliage!).  I'll keep looking for remarkable flora for February, but for the rest of this week, we're going to focus on palms.

Above, Phoenix dactylifera is growing in a Versailles box at Luxembourg Gardens in Paris.  Date palms are easy to spot, as they almost look like a Chrysanthemum firework that is slowly drifting back to earth.  The leaves (or fronds) are long and pinnate, with leaflets reaching up to 14".

The shots above and below are at Park Guell in Barcelona.  The texture of date palms are so fine - almost furry looking -- it's hard to miss them.  Date palms have been cultivated since at least 6000 BC and they are thought to be native to the middle east.  Though it's hard to know for sure since they are now found in any tropical or Mediterranean climate.

The plants are dioecious, which means there are males and females.  Obviously, only the females have the wonderful edible dates.  I must have had dates on the brain this week, since just yesterday I had a terrific salad -- arugula, dates, ricotta salata and walnuts.  Delicious.

 

Above, date palms in Oahu, Hawaii. As you can see the crown or head of the palm works its way up, leaving dying and dessicated leaves further down the trunk.  Often these are removed manually as part of the tree's maintenance.