The Halawa Xeriscape Garden is worth visiting. It’s a well-planned, pretty landscape with lots of interesting plants. You can learn a lot about conserving water through landscaping by visiting the garden and going on a guided or self-guided tour. It’s also a very pretty setting in the mauka part of Halawa valley.
The Friends of Halawa Xeriscape Garden and the Honolulu Board of Water Supply partner to malama this very educational garden. They will host the 25th annual open house and unthirsty plant sale there on Aug. 3.
Xeriscaping is the akamai use of water in gardens. There are basic best-management practices and principles that help to cut use of valuable wai, or fresh water, in landscapes.
It’s about selecting the right kind of plants for the climate and landscaping style. In Hawaii, we have lots of plants to choose from, not just cactus and succulents like in arid parts of the mainland.
At the free open house, you can check out all kinds of rare and interesting plants and learn more about less-thirsty gardening from all kinds of experts. Nurseries and specialty growers come to the plant sale and there are tours and classes. Some special featured plants this year are succulent dish gardens, tillandsias and mallow (a relative of hibiscus, ilima and okra).
Some of the new workshops include "5 Steps to a Beautiful Garden" with Diane Moses and "Container Gardening Myth Busters" with Brian and Mhel Cyr.
Returning favorites include "Xeriscape 101" with Mark Takemoto, "Magnificent Neem" with Salem Ahmed and "Plants Drink Tea Too" with Zac Johnson.
There will be keiki games and planting activities, a scavenger hunt in the 3-acre demonstration garden and a free mulch giveaway (bring your own container).
Every year some people complain that all the really fun stuff is for keiki, but this year, there will be a booth where grown-ups can learn to make an origami paper pot using newspapers and plant a seedling or seed in it. Instructions on how to plant the whole thing will be provided. (The newspaper breaks down in the soil and becomes beneficial nutrients for the plant.)
The Friends have a propagators group of very akamai and nice gardeners to help you learn and grow more xeric plants. You can also become a member to get discounts on year-round classes, meet like-minded gardeners and have fun while being "akamai wai."
The event will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., with early 8:30 a.m. admission for members. The garden is at 99-1268 Iwaena St. in Halawa Valley’s Central Park Industrial Area. Visitors should park along Iwaena or Iwaiwa streets. A free shuttle will run along Iwaena Street from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
For more information, visit www.boardofwatersupply.com.
Heidi Leianuenue Bornhorst is a sustainable landscape consultant specializing in native, xeric and edible gardens. Reach her at heidibornhorst@gmail.com.
