Kahanu Garden
Encyclopedia
Kahanu Garden is a 294 acres (119 ha) botanical garden
located on the Hāna Highway
(close to the 31 miles (49.9 km) marker) near Hāna, Maui
, Hawaii
. It is one of five gardens of the non-profit National Tropical Botanical Garden
, the others being McBryde
, Allerton
, and Limahuli Garden and Preserve
on Kauai
, and The Kampong
in Florida.
The garden was established in 1972 on Maui's northern coast, with rugged black lava seascapes, and is surrounded by one of Hawaii's last undisturbed hala (Pandanus tectorius
) forests.
The garden's ethnobotanical
collections focus on plants traditionally used by Pacific Island people. It includes the world's largest breadfruit
collection, first established in the 1970s. Today the garden contains 220 accessions of approximately 120 varieties of breadfruit collected from field expeditions to over 17 Pacific island groups in Polynesia
, Micronesia
, and Melanesia
, as well as Indonesia
, the Philippines
, and the Seychelles
. This collection is used for research and conservation by NTBG’s Breadfruit Institute.
Other garden holdings include bamboo
, banana
, calabash
, coconut
, kava
, kamani (Calophyllum inophyllum
), loulu (Pritchardia
arecina), sugarcane
, taro
, turmeric
, vanilla
, and bitter yam (Dioscorea bulbifera
).
Kahanu Garden is open to visitors. An admission fee is charged.
believed to be the largest ancient temple in the Hawaiian Islands. It is built from basalt
blocks and extends 341 feet (103.9 m) by 415 feet (126.5 m), with a high front wall rising 50 feet (15.2 m). The large central terrace with two separate platforms is situated on a broad ridge that adds to its majesty. The side facing the sea rises steeply in five stepped terraces, and the upper rectangular surface of the main platform contains several smaller walled enclosures and pits, all bounded on the rear by a well-built stone wall up to 8 feet (2.4 m) high.
Construction of the main terrace dates back to the 14th century. Wings were later added and rededicated during the 16th century, possibly after high chief Piilani
from western Maui conquered the fertile, well-watered, and heavily populated Hāna region, thereby unifying the whole island.
Botanical garden
A botanical garden The terms botanic and botanical, and garden or gardens are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word botanic is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens. is a well-tended area displaying a wide range of plants labelled with their botanical names...
located on the Hāna Highway
Hana Highway
The Hāna Highway is a long stretch of Hawaii State Routes 36 and 360 which connects Kahului with the town of Hāna in east Maui. On the east after Kalepa bridge, Hana Highway continues to Kīpahulu as Route 31 , the first section of which is unofficially considered to be part of Hāna Highway...
(close to the 31 miles (49.9 km) marker) near Hāna, Maui
Maui
The island of Maui is the second-largest of the Hawaiian Islands at and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is part of the state of Hawaii and is the largest of Maui County's four islands, bigger than Lānai, Kahoolawe, and Molokai. In 2010, Maui had a population of 144,444,...
, Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
. It is one of five gardens of the non-profit National Tropical Botanical Garden
National Tropical Botanical Garden
The National Tropical Botanical Garden is a group that sponors preservation of plants native to the tropics in a network of botanical gardens and preserves.-History:...
, the others being McBryde
McBryde Garden
is a botanical garden located on the south shore of Kauai, Hawaii. It is one of five gardens of the non-profit National Tropical Botanical Garden .The garden is situated above Lāwai Bay, in a valley transected by the Lāwai Stream...
, Allerton
Allerton Garden
Allerton Garden , also known as Lāwai-kai, is a botanical garden, originally created by Robert Allerton and John Gregg Allerton, located on the south shore of Kauai, Hawaii. The garden covers an area and is situated beside the Lāwai Bay, in a valley transected by the Lāwai Stream...
, and Limahuli Garden and Preserve
Limahuli Garden and Preserve
The Limahuli Garden and Preserve is a botanical garden and nature preserve on the north shore of Kauai island, Hawaii. It is one of the five gardens of the non-profit National Tropical Botanical Garden.-Description:...
on Kauai
Kauai
Kauai or Kauai, known as Tauai in the ancient Kaua'i dialect, is geologically the oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands. With an area of , it is the fourth largest of the main islands in the Hawaiian archipelago, and the 21st largest island in the United States. Known also as the "Garden Isle",...
, and The Kampong
The Kampong
The Kampong is an 11-acre tropical garden in the Coconut Grove neighborhood of Miami, Florida United States. It is one of the five gardens of the non-profit National Tropical Botanical Garden , and is open to visitors. An admission fee is charged.-History:The Kampong was bought as their winter...
in Florida.
The garden was established in 1972 on Maui's northern coast, with rugged black lava seascapes, and is surrounded by one of Hawaii's last undisturbed hala (Pandanus tectorius
Pandanus tectorius
Pandanus tectorius is a species of Pandanus that is native to Malesia, eastern Australia, and the Pacific Islands. Common names include Thatch Screwpine, Hala , Bacua , and Vacquois ....
) forests.
The garden's ethnobotanical
Ethnobotany
Ethnobotany is the scientific study of the relationships that exist between people and plants....
collections focus on plants traditionally used by Pacific Island people. It includes the world's largest breadfruit
Breadfruit
Breadfruit is a species of flowering tree in the mulberry family, Moraceae, growing throughout Southeast Asia and most Pacific Ocean islands...
collection, first established in the 1970s. Today the garden contains 220 accessions of approximately 120 varieties of breadfruit collected from field expeditions to over 17 Pacific island groups in Polynesia
Polynesia
Polynesia is a subregion of Oceania, made up of over 1,000 islands scattered over the central and southern Pacific Ocean. The indigenous people who inhabit the islands of Polynesia are termed Polynesians and they share many similar traits including language, culture and beliefs...
, Micronesia
Micronesia
Micronesia is a subregion of Oceania, comprising thousands of small islands in the western Pacific Ocean. It is distinct from Melanesia to the south, and Polynesia to the east. The Philippines lie to the west, and Indonesia to the southwest....
, and Melanesia
Melanesia
Melanesia is a subregion of Oceania extending from the western end of the Pacific Ocean to the Arafura Sea, and eastward to Fiji. The region comprises most of the islands immediately north and northeast of Australia...
, as well as Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, and the Seychelles
Seychelles
Seychelles , officially the Republic of Seychelles , is an island country spanning an archipelago of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean, some east of mainland Africa, northeast of the island of Madagascar....
. This collection is used for research and conservation by NTBG’s Breadfruit Institute.
Other garden holdings include bamboo
Bamboo
Bamboo is a group of perennial evergreens in the true grass family Poaceae, subfamily Bambusoideae, tribe Bambuseae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family....
, banana
Banana
Banana is the common name for herbaceous plants of the genus Musa and for the fruit they produce. Bananas come in a variety of sizes and colors when ripe, including yellow, purple, and red....
, calabash
Calabash
Lagenaria siceraria , bottle gourd, opo squash or long melon is a vine grown for its fruit, which can either be harvested young and used as a vegetable, or harvested mature, dried, and used as a bottle, utensil, or pipe. For this reason, the calabash is widely known as the bottle gourd...
, coconut
Coconut
The coconut palm, Cocos nucifera, is a member of the family Arecaceae . It is the only accepted species in the genus Cocos. The term coconut can refer to the entire coconut palm, the seed, or the fruit, which is not a botanical nut. The spelling cocoanut is an old-fashioned form of the word...
, kava
Kava
Kava or kava-kava is a crop of the western Pacific....
, kamani (Calophyllum inophyllum
Calophyllum inophyllum
Calophyllum inophyllum is a large evergreen. It is native from East Africa, southern coastal India to Malesia and Australia.-Distribution and description:...
), loulu (Pritchardia
Pritchardia
The genus Pritchardia consists of between 24-40 species of fan palms found on tropical Pacific Ocean islands in Fiji, Samoa, Tonga, Tuamotus, and Hawaii. The generic name honours William Thomas Pritchard , a British consul at Fiji.-Description:These palms vary in height, ranging from...
arecina), sugarcane
Sugarcane
Sugarcane refers to any of six to 37 species of tall perennial grasses of the genus Saccharum . Native to the warm temperate to tropical regions of South Asia, they have stout, jointed, fibrous stalks that are rich in sugar, and measure two to six metres tall...
, taro
Taro
Taro is a common name for the corms and tubers of several plants in the family Araceae . Of these, Colocasia esculenta is the most widely cultivated, and is the subject of this article. More specifically, this article describes the 'dasheen' form of taro; another variety is called eddoe.Taro is...
, turmeric
Turmeric
Turmeric is a rhizomatous herbaceous perennial plant of the ginger family, Zingiberaceae. It is native to tropical South Asia and needs temperatures between 20 °C and 30 °C and a considerable amount of annual rainfall to thrive...
, vanilla
Vanilla
Vanilla is a flavoring derived from orchids of the genus Vanilla, primarily from the Mexican species, Flat-leaved Vanilla . The word vanilla derives from the Spanish word "", little pod...
, and bitter yam (Dioscorea bulbifera
Dioscorea bulbifera
Dioscorea bulbifera, the Air potato, is a yam species. It is also known as Varahi in Sanskrit, Kaachil in Malayalam and Dukkar Kand in Marathi. The Air potato plant is native to Africa and Asia.-Description:...
).
Kahanu Garden is open to visitors. An admission fee is charged.
Piilanihale Heiau
Kahanu Garden also contains the 3 acres (12,140.6 m²) Piilanihale Heiau, a National Historic LandmarkNational Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
believed to be the largest ancient temple in the Hawaiian Islands. It is built from basalt
Basalt
Basalt is a common extrusive volcanic rock. It is usually grey to black and fine-grained due to rapid cooling of lava at the surface of a planet. It may be porphyritic containing larger crystals in a fine matrix, or vesicular, or frothy scoria. Unweathered basalt is black or grey...
blocks and extends 341 feet (103.9 m) by 415 feet (126.5 m), with a high front wall rising 50 feet (15.2 m). The large central terrace with two separate platforms is situated on a broad ridge that adds to its majesty. The side facing the sea rises steeply in five stepped terraces, and the upper rectangular surface of the main platform contains several smaller walled enclosures and pits, all bounded on the rear by a well-built stone wall up to 8 feet (2.4 m) high.
Construction of the main terrace dates back to the 14th century. Wings were later added and rededicated during the 16th century, possibly after high chief Piilani
Pi'ilani
Piilani was a political leader of ancient Hawaii.He ruled the island of Maui as the 15th Moʻi of Maui.The time of King Piilani is synonymous with the Golden Age of Maui...
from western Maui conquered the fertile, well-watered, and heavily populated Hāna region, thereby unifying the whole island.