Category Archives: Plants

The king who united Hawaii

Ceremonies at King Kamehameha Day in Kapaau, Hawaii

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Historical.’ See more responses here.

Here are a few more photos from this year’s celebrations commemorating the birthday of King Kamehameha I, the king who united the Hawaiian islands. The ceremony began with a welcome blown on conch shells.

The procession was led by the four Royal Societies in Hawaii. They are descendants of Hawaiian Ali’i including King Kamehameha I himself. Ali’i were the ruling class who were seen as the link between the people and the gods.

Hula at King Kamehameha Day in Kapaau, Hawaii

Hula dances were performed honoring the king. Hula was created by early Hawaiian settlers. It is often accompanied by chants and the movements are a visual representation of those chants. The subject matter can be anything from light entertainment to a sacred honoring of a god or goddess. Western missionaries disapproved of hula and encouraged Hawaiian rulers to ban it, but while there were some restrictions it was never driven completely underground as happened with some other traditional Hawaiian activities.

Leis draped on the statue of King Kamehameha in Kapaau, Hawaii

See more photos from the Kamehameha Day celebrations here.

Here’s where my garden grows

A gecko on a wax ginger at Hawaii Tropical Bioreserve and Garden — A small Gold Dust Day Gecko climbs over a Wax Ginger. The small yellow parts are the flowers and the red mass is bracts.

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Plant Life.’ See more responses here.

Here are a few plants seen on my last visit to Hawai’i Tropical Bioreserve & Garden. For more information about Hawai’i Tropical Bioreserve & Garden, go to htbg.com.

A Heliconia Longissima Red Wings at Hawaii Tropical Bioreserve and Garden — Big leaves on Heliconia Longissima Red Wings

Towering trees at Hawaii Tropical Bioreserve and Garden — Big leaves on Heliconia Longissima Red Wings

A powderpuff flower at Hawaii Tropical Bioreserve and Garden — A Powderpuff flower growing from a mossy trunk.

A red ginger at Hawaii Tropical Bioreserve and Garden — A Powderpuff flower growing from a mossy trunk.

Foliage reflected in the lake at at Hawaii Tropical Bioreserve and Garden — There are plants on land and reflected in the water.

Hawaii Amakihi feeding

An Hawaii Amakihi feeds on a mamane flower

I saw this endemic Hawaii Amakihi on the slopes of Mauna Kea, feeding at Mamane flowers. The Hawaii in the name refers, not to the state, but to the island of Hawaii, otherwise known as the Big Island. There are different species on Oahu, Maui, and Kauai.

Peach-colored hibiscus

I noticed this hibiscus because the flowers were larger than those I usually see and I liked the color as well.

Kamehameha Day in the pink

Yesterday was the birthday of King Kamehameha I, the first king to unite all the Hawaiian islands under one leader. He was born in North Kohala, and every year the community celebrates his birthday with ceremonies at his statue in Kapaau and with a parade.

The parade features Pa’u riders representing all the main Hawaiian islands. Each island has an official color and flower. Maui’s flower is the Lokelani rose and its color is pink.

Hawaiian men and women started riding horses, soon after their introduction to the islands in the early 1800s. Sidesaddle riding was common for women in those days, but it was never introduced here. Women learned to ride the same way as men. They wore a Pa’u skirt, 12 yards of colored cloth wrapped in such a way as to preserve their modesty and dignity while riding astride their horse.

Lei about to be draped at King Kamehameha statue

Lei being draped at King Kamehameha statue

The ceremonies include draping leis over the arms of the statue. These leis are made as a mark of respect, by groups and organizations. It can be a tricky business getting the leis into place, especially when there’s a good breeze blowing as there was yesterday.

Posted for this week’s Sunday Stills color challenge theme of ‘Pink.’ See more responses here.

Gecko on a banana flower

This week’s Sunday Stills Color Challenge theme is ‘Pink.’ See more responses here.

Here’s a Gold Dust Day Gecko exploring a banana flower, looking for water or something sweeter. Weather permitting, I hope to have another pink post tomorrow!

Abstracts: Leafy lines

Some light and shadow on the veins of a heliconia leaf.

Sunset with palms

I happened to glance out of the window on a recent evening and saw a nice sunset in progress. My house is not great for sunset photos, with power lines and trees getting in the way. If I walk down the drive towards the street, there’s a spot that’s not too bad for photos. But these days I have a new option.

The house below has been empty for months – and falling rapidly into disrepair – but it has some clean and open views (though not the “expansive views of Maui” in the real estate listing). So I marched down there and took advantage of the gorgeous skies and lovely palm silhouettes that were on offer.

Graham's Island

Life on the Big Island of Hawaii