Punahou Class of 1959 Memorial Grove

 

Punahou School - Class of 1959

            

 

 

 

 

" You are invited to read on for more information about this exciting project.  Special mahalo's to ALL of the Punahou 1959 classmates and to the other friends of the Iliahi Foundation of Hawai'i and The Nature Conservancy of Hawai'i for their vision, contributions of ideas, resources, support and kala, and their enthusiastic volunteer participation in the physical labor of recreating a native Hawaiian forest on Oahu in our permanent memory. "

Aloha nui, me ke aloha pumehana,  malama a'ina,    Jimbo Haley  and Jon  Larson    Punahou Class of 1959

 

 

The first 30 of 350 planned native Hawaiian trees were recently planted in Honouliuli Nature Preserve.  A koa tree and a wiliwili tree can be seen near the two white plastic watering containers on the ground to the lower right hand side of the sign donated by Susan Hata.  In time the native trees will grow up and replace the non-native trees and plants in the area.  Our Punahou Class of 1959 memorial grove is located on the 3 mile nature trail through the 3,692 acre nature preserve where it can be appreciated by all who walk through the area.

 

 

 

The Vision

       By June, 2004 create a grove of 350 native Hawaiian trees in a special designated 5 acre area within the 3700 acre Honouliuli Nature Preserve in the Waianae Mountains of Oahu, managed by The Nature Conservancy and long-term leased from the James Campbell Estate

Plant one tree for each of the 325 of us who graduated together in June of 1959, 

Plant 25 more trees symbolizing family members and the part timers who attended with us but did not graduate in 1959. 

The 1959 grove of native trees will link with other similar groves being planted and tended currently by seven Oahu high school groups under the supervision of TNC The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii, to create a forest area of greater significance beyond our 1959 grove.  We are also partnering with the Iliahi Foundation of Hawaii on this project, many of whose founders and supporters and financial supporters are members of the Punahou Class of 1959 including Jim Haley, Ron Iwamoto, Susan Hata, ElsBeth McKeen, and Jon Larson.

We will plant koa, iliahi, wiliwili, a'alii, (and kawila if possible), all native plants that existed before the arrival the first immigrants from the Pacific, and were used by the early Hawaiians for special purposes including fishing canoe outriggers, surfboards, fragrance, furniture, and grass hale frames.  We will nurture existing kukui trees already growing within the area.  All other non-native plants and trees will be removed from the area.

We are growing the plants from seed in two special native plant nurseries we built in Palehua south of the preserve, from seeds given to us by TNC and found by us in the existing nature preserve. 

The 1959 grove will live on long beyond the last of us passes on, and will be of interest to our progeny.

We will have a special small dedication consecration service as an event related to our 45th reunion in June of 2004, by which time we hope to have all 350 trees in the ground."

 

 

In a joint project with The Iliahi Foundation of Hawai'i  and The Nature Conservancy of Hawai'i, the Punahou Class of 1959 is creating our own indigenous native Hawaiian tree grove in a special section of the Honouiliuli Nature Preserve in the Wai'anae Mountains near KoleKole Pass south of Schofield in the Kunia area. This special grove is dedicated to the memory of the Punahou Class of 1959.  

Generous donations from members of the Class of 1959 over the past two years provided the majority of initial funding required to create the Iliahi Foundation of Hawaii,  a non-profit 501c3 organization dedicated to the conservation, preservation and restoration of the native forests and trees of Hawaii.  Members of the Punahou Class of 1959 have also volunteered time and resources towards construction of four native plant nurseries in Kunia and Palehua where the native plants will be grown from seedlings and nurtured for the 2-3 years it takes to create plants of sufficient size for successful outplanting. Completing the outplanting of native trees within the Punahou Class of 1959 Memorial Grove in conjunction with our 45th reunion in June of 2004 remains a key objective of the Iliahi Foundation.

We are outplanting 350 iliahi (sandalwood), ohia, koa, kauila, wiliwili, kamane and other trees indigenous to the Hawaiian Islands in this special area in memory of ourselves and our loved ones.  It will be a special event at our 45th reunion in 2004 and at all future reunions as well.  Helemai,,,  come join in the fun. 

If you missed the opportunity to send kala for the initial round, we still are in need of additional funds to assist with our efforts.  Tax deductible donations (a multiple of $59 is nice) can be mailed to:  The Iliahi Foundation of Hawaii,  PO Box 347, Kailua, HI 96734  attn: 'Punahou Class of 1959 Memorial Grove'.  If you wish please also send the name(s) of any of your special loved ones who you also wish to honor.  

 

Punahou Class of 1959 Memorial Grove

An eco-restoration community building partnership between:

 

       Click here to go to ==>>  "The Iliahi Foundation of Hawai'i "   web site        

 

 

       Click here to go to ==>>  " The Nature Conservancy of Hawai'i "  web site      

 

       

       Click here to go to ==>>  " Punahou Class of 1959 "   web site                    

 

 

Jon Larson walks through the Honouliuli Nature Preserve in the area designated by The Nature Conservancy for restoration with Iliahi and other native trees and plants by the Friends of the Iliahi Foundation including Punahou ’59 alumni working with other Iliahi Foundation friends to out-plant and tend an entire forest of indigenous Hawaiian plants and trees. Note the light green leaves of huge kukui trees (introduced by native Hawaiians) providing shade, and the dark green macadamia nut tree, also an introduced species.  Other invasive introduced eucalyptus trees and introduced vines and ground cover will be selectively removed from the area and replaced over the years with indigenous plants and trees.

 

 

 

Ililahi sandalwood blossoms, fruit and seeds

 

Iliahi fruit contains a single seed and turns purple when ripe.

 

 

   

Success! Jimbo finds a single mature Iliahi seed. It will be picked and taken to one of the native plant nurseries of the Iliahi Foundation where it will be planted and nurtured for 2-3 years before it is large enough to be outplanted back in the Honouliuli Nature Preserve.

 

 

 

Jimbo Haley and Judith Flanders carefully place Iliahi seeds into special trays with differing media to scientifically determine the ideal method to germinate the Iliahi seeds. The Iliahi seeds have been pretreated with gibberellic acid, a plant hormone that is being evaluated for contributing to a faster and a higher rate of germination. The light crushed rock is vermiculite and the darker brown rock in the flat on the right contains special cinder cone gravel brought over from a place on the Big Island where another species of Iliahi that are unique to the Big Island called paniculatum, is known to be flourishing. The darkest tray in front is crushed black volcanic cinder. The different planting mediums are being evaluated scientifically to determine which ones yield the best results.  One of the techniques being evaluated to speed germination of Iliahi seeds is to crack them open long ways in a vise before they are planted.   

 

 

Iliahi takes 2-12 months to germinate from seed. The plants will be carefully handled in the nurseries for 2-3 years. They are transplanted several times into larger holding pots with differing soil before they are large enough to be out-planted. These Iliahi plants growing in University of Hawaii’s Lyon Arboritum greenhouse are the more common elipticum bush variety found at lower altitudes and at sea level. The “frey” tree species of most interest to us are upland dry forest sandalwood trees that grow above 1000’ in the dryer areas of the mountains.

 

 

 

Here is an adult lowland species of Iliahi, a more common bush variety with pink blossoms and smaller seeds that are common at lower altitudes.

 

 

 

 

This photo shows a mature Iliahi tree of the Santalum freycinetianum “frey” species which are still found in small numbers on Oahu, Kauai and Maui.  The Big Island has its own unique species of Iliahi called paniculatum. The island of Lanai has its own variety of sandalwood, lanaiense, which is federally listed as endangered.

   

 

 

The Iliahi Foundation has gifted two large native plant nurseries to The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii. Here they are under construction at the Kunia site. 

   

 

 

Prefabricated in Oregon and shipped to Honolulu, these two large nurseries will grow native plants for outplanting in the 4,000 acre Honouliuli Nature Preserve located nearby.

   

 

 

The first two native plant nurseries are already producing hundreds of maturing trees for outplanting.  

 

 

 

 

Seeds are sprinkled on top of the rocky soil used to germinate indigenous seeds, similar to the rocky ground upon which they germinate in the wild.  

 

 

 

 

The first two native plant nurseries are already producing hundreds of maturing trees for outplanting.  TNC staff members carefully nurture native plant seeds from flats and small pots and transfer them into larger deeper pots for continued growth until ready for outplanting.  

 

 

 

 

 

Education is an important part of our mission.  Here Jimbo leads a tour group through the newly constructed Palehua nursery #1 and explains the process by which native plant seeds are gathered, germinated, and nurtured for outplanting.  

 

 

 

Plants and a portable water system must be carried to the planting area.  Here Judith guides the irrigation pipe while McD pumps water from the supply on the back of his truck.  Todd loads up a supply of healthy wiliwili tree plantings supplied from the native plants nursery and carries them to the planting area.

 

 

 

 

 

 

A koa tree is planted by Jimbo Haley and Judith Flanders. 

 

 

 

 

 

A recently planted koa tree shows signs of new growth, a sure sign it is well planted and tended and on its way to survival and continued growth to a permanent place in the native plants grove within Honouliuli Nature Preserve where it will be seen by all who visit the area. A temporary plastic container drips water to the roots. It must be refilled every 2-3 weeks.

 

 

 

 

Reverend Dr. James Fung, pastor of Kawaiahao Church of Honolulu performs a traditional purification ceremony and blessing of the lands upon which Iliahi seeds are being found, where our first native plants nursery has been built, and where more Iliahi plants that germinate in our nursery will be out-planted among existing koa in the area on the left.  This blessing ceremony mixes fresh water purified with Hawaiian rock salt which is then sprinkled on the blessing site and among those in witness with the traditional three Ti leaves. This ceremony is intended to purify the surrounding land and manmade structures as well as the minds and hearts of the leaders who will manage the enterprise for the public good.

 

 

 

 

 

Here in the right foreground are some small but healthy Iliahi trees with new growth, growing wild in the forest on the wind-swept ridgeline of the southern Wai'anae mountains at about 2,000 feet altitude.  Seeds taken from this area will be germinated in the nurseries and eventually out-planted within special pre-designated areas within the Honouliuli Nature Preserve managed by The Nature Conservancy of Oahu for specific purposes of protecting and maintaining native forestation.  This view looks north from the southern end of the 3,672 acre Honouliuli Nature Preserve towards Kunia and Wahiawa. The Koolau mountain range is in the far background.

Honouliuli Nature Preserve:

This 3,692 acre area of the south eastern Wai'anae Mountain range has been recently leased long term by The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii for purposes of creating a permanent nature preserve allowing protection of existing native species of flora and fauna and restoration and reintroduction of indigenous species.  The natural species that flourished in the area for thousands and some for millions of years were decimated in four waves over 200 years from 1790 until 1990 when the land was leased by TNC and placed under long term management and protection.

In spite of this onslaught the past 200 years, the Honouliuli Nature Preserve today is home to over 200 species of native flora and fauna which continue to exist in very small numbers. 70 of these species are considered rare and endangered.  Native tree species still surviving include iliahi and koa.  Native fauna include the Oahu Elepaio (Hawaiian flycatcher), the Pu'eo Hawaiian owl, and the brightly colored Hawaiian kahuli tree snail.

Click here to go to ==>>  " Honouliuli Nature Preserve "  web site      

 

Punahou Class of 1959 Memorial Grove is being outplanted and attended alongside other groves being outplanted and tended in the forest areas nearby by high school groups on Oahu including:

Campbell High School
Leilehua High School
Kailua High School
Mililani High School
Wai'anae High School
Waipahu High School

In the future it is expected that other organizations and high school groups including Kapolei High School will sponsor and outplant their own groves of native trees. It is the vision of The Nature Conservancy that eventually (many years from now) these separate groves will join into a large area of reforestation within which the native flora and fauna of Honouliulii Nature Preserve will once again flourish.  The Nature Conservancy has been kind enough to allow the Punahou Class of 1959 Memorial Grove to be located in the more readily accessible area at the entrance to the preserve in the lower flatter area which is easier for us "middle-aged" folks to access for outplanting and tending.  The younger and more agile high school boys and girls have been allocated groves further up the mountainside than ours.

 

 

 

 

In Hawaii  unique species developed like none other on the planet; co-adapted and balanced as the curved bill of the ‘i‘iwi is a match for the tubular flowers of the koli‘i, a native lobelioid. 

 

 

Restoration of the indigenous forests of Hawaii:

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Hawaiian Islands are the most isolated island chain on Earth. In this satellite photo, from left to right you can see Ni'ihau, Kaua'i, Oah'u, Molokai, Lana'i, Maui, Ka'oolawe and The Big Island of Hawai'i.

 

 

 

 

Friends of the Iliahi Foundation include (from left to right) McD Philpotts, craftsman, designer, woodturner and member of the Steering Committee of the Iliahi Foundation, Cyrus Siu, co-founder and Director of the Iliahi Foundation and CFO of the Oceanic Institute of Hawaii, Pauline Sato, Oahu Program Director of The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii and member of the Steering Committee of the Iliahi Foundation, Jim Haley, co-founder and director of the Iliahi Foundation and manager of Oahu operations, Judith Flanders, co-founder and Chairperson of the Iliahi Foundation’s Steering Committee, and Jon Larson, co-founder and director of the Iliahi Foundation.