A free event on Saturday, Nov. -23 offers a wonderful opportunity for gardeners to meet local growers and talk plants. The Plant People Road Show returns to the Makaeo Pavillion at the Old Kona Airport with five different growers offering a wide variety of plants and lots of information. The event runs from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m.
You’ll find anthuriums, orchids, lots of cactus and succulents as well as veggies and herbs, fruit trees, poinsettias and other ornamentals featured here. The best part of this gathering is the chance to talk to the growers about their plants and learn the best way to grow and care for them successfully.
This event was started by Jennifer Snyder and her husband Bob Harris eleven years ago when they decided to hold plant sales when their orchids were blooming. That has worked out to be every year in February, around Valentine’s Day as well as in mid-November, just after Halloween. Their Waimea business, OrchidPeople is aptly named since their focus is on propagating and hybridizing Cymbidium orchids. They’ll be bringing some exciting new varieties to the Road Show and offering them accompanied by some excellent growing advice.
If you are looking for anthuriums, you’ll find many different varieties and colors at this show presented by Chitosi Tsumura. She’s growing them in Kea’au and offering them though her company C&T Products. If you want to add some “Heart of Hawai`i” flowers to your garden or home this is a chance to do so. Local anthuriums can be a perfect addition to any occasion. Chitosi will be sure to include some growing instructions with every anthurium sale.
DeMello Air Plants of Kona will also be represented at the Road Show. Peter and Kay DeMello have been growing air plants for years and they’ll have more than fifty varieties on hand for those who want some easy-care plants. Many of their varieties have unusual growth habits and will thrive in some unique places adding some eye-catching interest to your garden. This is a chance to see their collection and talk about integrating air plants into your garden.
Kari Hagerman will bring an assortment of edibles and ornamentals next Saturday. She started growing herbs in the greenhouse in her Waimea backyard and by 2000 began selling them through her Pomaika’i Plant Company. She has expanded her nursery over the years to include veggies as well as grafted fruit trees and bedding plants. She’ll also be bringing some of her special favorite Brindabella roses and Silver Dollar eucalyptus plants in addition to lots of her Waimea grown poinsettias. With over 35 years as a grower, she’s got a wealth of knowledge to share.
Phoenicia and Bob Zeller of Pele’s Island Plants in Oceanview will be offering some hard-to-find orchid varieties and lots of succulents and cactus at the Road Show. This is a great opportunity to add to your orchid collection and expand your succulent garden. Bob can always suggest ways to grow his drought tolerant plants in pots or as part of a desert-themed garden. Phoenicia has years of orchid growing chops and is good at imparting information that de-mystifies the cultivation of these gorgeous plants.
It is rare, today to have an opportunity to talk to actual growers and get growing information from them about their plants. This is a chance to support these small local “mom and pop” nurseries, while meeting their owners and expanding your garden as well as your plant knowledge.
After talking to Jennifer and Bob or Phoenicia, you might find venturing into orchid cultivation is not as difficult as you imagined. Armed with lots of information, you can add these beauties to either an indoor or outdoor location on your property.
As we face drought conditions here, growing air plants or succulents might be the perfect solution for those of you who prefer plants that are easy to grow while requiring little water or care. Maybe you’d like some advice on starting an interesting cactus garden. Bob Zeller can help with that.
Make this a plant-happy holiday season. This sale gives shoppers the chance to explore ways to include fresh flowers and live plants in their holiday decorations. Most of the plants on sale can adapt to either indoor or outdoor settings and will definitely add interest and beauty wherever you decide to place them. Some of them are pictured in this article.
Don’t miss this opportunity to expand your garden as well as your plant knowledge. For more information on the Plant People Road Show, call Jennifer at 808-987- 3231 and follow Plant People Road Show on Facebook.
Gardening events
Now through Sunday, Nov. 10: Kona Coffee Cultural Festival. Numerous events. Go to https://konacoffeefest.com/events/ to find out what’s happening and where to get
Tuesday, Nov. 19: Crop Insurance Webinar, starting at 9:30 a.m. Learn about crop insurance from several insurance services. Free. For more information or to register go to https://hawaiicoffeeed.com/cropinsurance.
Now: Pre-order leaf resistant coffee trees from UH CTAHR office in Kainaliu. Catimor hybrid seedlings and grafted trees are available. Conventionally grown, not organic. Trees grafted on liberica rootstock (coffee root-knot nematode-tolerant) are $15/ ungrafted seedlings $10. Available on a first come, first serve basis. Email andreak@hawaii.edu to express interest. A waiver and release form must be signed prior to purchase.
Save the date:
Tuesday, Feb. 25: Coffee Symposium and Trade Show at the Outrigger Kona’s Kaleiopapa Conference Center with the Trade Show immediately adjacent. Sponsorships and registration available at the Kona Coffee Farmers’ Association website.
Farmer direct markets
(Check websites for the latest hours and online markets)
Wednesday and Friday: Ho’oulu Farmers Market, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Sheraton Kona Resort at Keauhou Bay
Saturday: Keauhou Farmers Market, 8 a.m. to noon at Keauhou Shopping Center; Kamuela Farmer’s Market, 7:30 a.m. to noon at Pukalani Stables; Waimea Town Market, 7:30 a.m. to noon at the Parker School in central Waimea; Waimea Homestead Farmers Market, from 7:30 a.m. to noon at the Waimea middle and elementary school playground.
Sunday: Pure Kona Green Market, 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. at Amy Greenwell Garden in Captain Cook; Hamakua Harvest, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Hwy 19 and Mamane Street in Honokaa.
Plant advice lines
Anytime: konamg@hawaii.edu
Tuesdays and Thursdays: 9 a.m. to noon at UH-CES in Kainaliu: 322-4893 or walk in.
Mon., Tues. and Fri: 9 a.m. to noon at UH CES at Konohana in Hilo, 981-5199 or himga@hawaii.edu
Diana Duff is a plant adviser, educator and consultant living part time in Kailua-Kona.