Garden temporarily closed during construction project January thru April 2024
Aloha FOHXG Members,
Thank you for your continued support. We have some exciting updates for 2024:
Temporary Garden Closure Dates: We apologize for any inconvenience, The Halawa Xeriscape Garden will be temporarily closed to the public and volunteers from December 2023 thru April 2024 for a construction project. We look forward to some upgrades to our Garden office building and Pavilion including new roofing, lighting, electrical, interior and exterior painting. Please contact us with any questions.
Happy New Year 2023
Reminder General Membership Meeting &
February Garden Opening
Happy New Year 2023
FRIENDS OF HALAWA XERISCAPE GARDEN
Aloha FOHXG Members,
Halawa Xeriscape Garden is pleased to announce we will be open to the public on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 9am-3pm beginning Wednesday, February 1, 2023.
As we reopen Halawa Xeriscape Garden, our focus will be on improving the garden after a long period of being closed to the public. Please contact us if you are interested in volunteering in our garden and/or nursery.
Reminder: Please RSVP by January 25, 2023 to let us know you will be attending our (in person) Annual General Membership Meeting on Saturday, January 28, 2023 at 10am. Click on the link below to view our invitation. The mini plant sale is only for attendees of the meeting. Note: we will only accept major credit cards.
We apologize for the inconvenience, The Friends of Halawa Xeriscape Garden and The Board of Water Supply will not proceed with plans this year for the Annual August Unthirsty Plant Sale at Halawa Xeriscape Garden. The Halawa Xeriscape Garden remains temporarily closed to the public at this time and we will update you when we plan to reopen. For any questions please email us at plantsale@hbws.org. Please take care and stay safe.
Happy Fall! make your own succulent topped pumpkin or pumpkin planter to display or give away. Low maintenance succulents need little water. When the season is over replant after pumpkins get soft.
Due to the recent increase in COVID-19 cases, the BWS Administration has decided to CANCEL the 32nd Annual Unthirsty Plant Sale
at Hālawa Xeriscape Garden
on Saturday, August 7, 2021.
We apologize for the inconvenience.
Attached is the Membership Update Letter notifying our current FOHXG members that we will be extending current members expiration dates forward by one year without charge. Please take care and stay safe.
We’re excited to share that the Hālawa Xeriscape Garden is newly recognized by the Hawai‘i School Peace Gardens (HSPG) as a Peace Garden “in progress.”
On February 6, the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Outreach College hosted a Sustainable Development Workshop. Kyung Hee University students from South Korea spent two weeks learning about sustainability efforts in Hawaiʻi, which included a presentation about the Hālawa Xeriscape Garden and kindness rock art by the Honolulu Board of Water Supply.
Students drew a Hawaiʻi memory on small rocks to take back to Korea, and on a larger rock, they drew positive messages for our new peace gar- den.
Our long-time friends with 808Rocks have gotten us started with some beautiful and positive messages that have been placed around the garden for years, and we look forward to adding some new rocks by Kyung Hee University students.
[When the garden reopens] Come and visit to see these beautiful kindness rocks and enjoy the quiet beauty of Hālawa Xeriscape Garden.
Mahalo to UH and the Kyung Hee students, 808Rocks, Vangie Pange- linan (FOHXG), the STEMgrows program, Debbie Millikin (‘Iolani School), Hawaiʻi Farm to School, and Jeannie Lum for their help in getting us started! We’re excited about ourpeace garden and we hope that more volunteers will join our efforts for this important project.
Aloha! Our sincere apologies for the necessity of this message from the Board of Water Supply.
Due to the confirmed COVID-19 cases in Hawai’i, the Board of Water Supply is taking the extraordinary measures to decrease the potential of community spread of the virus and to protect employees by cancelling or postponing BWS public events/activities and participation in local events until further notice. This includes the temporary closure of the Hālawa Xeriscape Garden, as well as the cancellation of facility tours, workshops and ceremonies.
There will be no workshops or Free Xeric Seed of the Month during this time.
March 4, 2020
Contact: Sheri Mikami
Telephone: 748-5315
FREE XERIC SEED FOR MARCH 2020
AT THE HALAWA XERISCAPE GARDEN
Complimentary seeds are available for pick up on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
HONOLULU—Using Xeric plants, aka drought tolerant or hardy plants, in your landscape is not just a water wise decision it’s part of a responsible solution to help reduce outdoor water consumption. To help you on your journey to create a drought tolerant landscape, each month the Honolulu Board of Water Supply (BWS) and the Friends of Halawa Xeriscape Garden (FOHXG) are pleased to offer visitors to the garden a free Xeric seed or seedling.
A new seed or seedling will be unveiled on the first Wednesday of each month. To find out what’s being featured, please visit Facebook at www.facebook.com/BWSHXG, Twitter at @BWSHonolulu and www.boardofwatersupply.com. If you don’t have access to a computer or social media and need more information, you may call Halawa Xeriscape Garden at 808-748-5315. To receive your complimentary seed packet and information sheet about your future plant’s origin, care, and interesting facts you may visit the garden at 99-1268 Iwaena Street, Aiea HI 96701, on Wednesdays and Saturdays between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m.
Yellow African Iris
The month of March features the Yellow African Iris cutting. This plant looks amazing as ground cover, in a potted container or in a rock or woodland garden. Mass plantings of Yellow African Iris will instantly turn a drab tucked away corner of the yard in to a landscape showpiece that is also low maintenance and drought tolerant. Visitors receive one cutting per household, while supplies last.
The BWS and the FOHXG services the community with conservation workshops, garden tours, volunteer opportunities and a fabulous annual plant sale! Native Hawaiian and drought-tolerant plants have been featured at the Xeriscape Garden since September 1989. Xeriscaping consists of 7 simple principles that promote water conservation through planning and design, efficient irrigation, minimal turf usage, soil improvements, wise plant selection, appropriate mulching and good maintenance. A Xeric landscape takes advantage of the natural environment, saves water, time and money for Oahu’s homeowners. For more information on how you can take that first step in your xeric landscape journey, please visit, http://www.boardofwatersupply.com/conservation/xeriscape, or call Halawa Garden at 808-748-5315.
SEED OF THE MONTH:
Yellow African Iris
Common Name: Yellow African Iris, Fortnight Lily Scientific Name: Dietes bicolor Family: Iridaceae Genus: Dietes Species: D. bicolor Height: 2’-3’ Spacing: 2’-3’ Sun Exposure: Full sun to partial shade
Bloom Color: Pale Yellow with dark brown tepal blotches. Tepals have dark markings that are outlined in orange
Bloom Time: blooms continuously throughout the year; strongest flowering will occur in spring and again in summer.
Other Details: Native to South Africa, this plant looks amazing as groundcover, in a potted container, or in a rock or woodland garden. It has grass-like features and dainty flowers that allow it to stand on its own in any garden. Plus, it is low maintenance which is a plus for any busy gardener.
Soil Requirements: good drainage, no special requirements, poor salt tolerance.
Water Requirements: Drought tolerant when established, water once a week.
Propagation Methods: Start new plantings by dividing older clumps or collecting and sowing seeds. Place woody rhizomes 12” apart, 1 per sq. ft. and bury to a depth of 1”.
Known Uses: Perfect in masses under larger trees or as a landscape plant you want to draw attention to. Mass plantings of African Iris will instantly turn a drab tucked away corner of the yard into a landscape showpiece.
