Folks around Hawaii are complaining about the summer heat. Highs in Honolulu as well as Kona have been above what seems normal. When temperatures are reported at 90 degrees or more, it feels pretty hot, and if you’re in the sun, on a shopping center parking lot, the temperature can be well over 100 degrees.
Just when it seemed we were beginning to appreciate well-landscaped roads and parking lots, it looks like we are degenerating into our past behaviors of wholesale tree chopping again. In Kona, the trees we rely on for shade and beauty are being cut down along some of our major roads and in shopping center and hotel parking lots.
The justifications for tree trimming include reduced maintenance costs and increased public safety. What it boils down to is that these shopping centers were given building permits based in part on them including attractive landscaping. The community supported the developers’ plans based on the inclusion of sufficient landscaping. When landscaping is removed or not properly maintained, it is a break of trust.
Highway maintenance is another issue. The opportunity to have a really beautiful entrance from the airport to Kailua-Kona is ignored with excuses of cost and upkeep. We are a visitor destination that counts on a beautiful environment. If we mess up too much, there are many other places folks may find more desirable.
Over the past several years, well-landscaped areas along Alii Drive, Henry Street and Palani Road have gradually deteriorated with several hundred palms cut down. It happened so gradually that most folks don’t even notice.
There are ways to mitigate concerns for safety and maintenance if we are willing to explore them. The absolute last resort is to destroy the trees. Unfortunately, one of the great community guardian organizations across the island, The Outdoor Circle, has lost it support and momentum since the beginning of the Great Recession. At one time, developers and politicians went to these community service groups before any plans were considered. The Outdoor Circle statewide has been instrumental in keeping our islands “Clean, Green and Beautiful.” Thankfully, the Waikoloa Outdoor Circle is still active in these endeavors. What we need around the rest of the island is a rebirth of the local Outdoor Circles.
Over thousands of years, human cultures have had an impact on the planet. Some fought to subjugate the natural order and some worked within the ecological system. The most successful cultures were those that were in tune with the environment. Within the past few hundred years, populations expanded and impacted one another through territorial wars, colonization and thinking that land was just another commodity to be used.
During the past 50 years, a new awareness of our relationship with our world has been building. Rachael Carson’s “Silent Spring” brought environmental concerns to the American public. Since then, organizations such as Sierra Club, Nature Conservancy and Audubon have expanded and become mainstream.
This environmental awareness has made a tremendous impact on the agricultural and landscaping industries.
Here are some things all of us should know about gardening in a way that is friendly to the animals and plants that share the space around us. The concepts of conservation and sustainable gardening are based on these and other principles.
First, design a landscape using the correct plants in the right place. Massing plant materials to discourage unwanted plants or pioneer species is one approach. Use materials that are adapted to the location and will not require lots of extra water, fertilizer, pesticides, pruning or other expensive inputs. Native plants should be considered where appropriate, but nonnative or multicultural heritage plants are commonly used since most of these have been tried and tested in many environments and have proved readily adaptable. Polynesian heritage plants include coconut, kukui and breadfruit; Filipino heritage plants include jackfruit and moringa.
Second, use the resources already available on the land. For example, some folks bring a bulldozer to the property, flatten it and start from scratch. The value of existing trees, land contours and rock formations are often ignored. Today, sensitive developers take advantage of these features. Developments along the West Hawaii coast have preserved lava formations around golf courses, hotels and residences.
The third rule has to do with pesticides. More effort is being made to reduce the use of any pesticides where possible. Where they are necessary, using the safest available products, such as neem and pyrethrums, is a must. If you selected the right plant for the right place, pesticides will seldom be required. Be prepared to live with a few bugs, both the pesky types and their predators, unless you plan to sterilize your environment.
Fourth, don’t over water or over fertilize plants. High-nitrogen fertilizers can give plants a quick boost which actually makes them more susceptible to insects and disease.
It is important that we learn to appreciate all the life on this planet by practicing wise management of all our resources. Maybe then, we can learn to treat other humans with the same respect.