Waimea Valley offering plants from exotic and native collections

WAIMEA VALLEY—The Waimea Valley Visitors Center gift shop, Ku’ono Waiwai, has begun selling plants propagated from the Valley’s collections.

“Initially we’ll make a small selection of ornamentals available, and as interest grows we’ll expand what will be available,” said Sarah Wilson, Waimea Valley’s Horticultural Specialist. “We also look forward to hearing from people what they might be interested in seeing for sale.”

Waimea Valley is a national and international resource in various field of plant biology, and the Valley’s plant collections are developed and maintained to support scientific investigation, hands-on cultural education, and plant conservation. The Valley has nine significant collections devoted to Hawaiian plants and features remarkable species from the world’s tropics and subtropics. These include flora of other global island systems including Guam, Fiji, Lord Howe Island, Japan’s Ogasawara (Bonin) Islands, Madagascar, the Seychelles, Sri Lanka and the Mascarenes.

The price range is currently starting at $2 for taro keikis, up to $25 for selected trees and specialty plants like the blue jade vine. Due to State of Hawaii Department of Agriculture restrictions, plants are not available for purchase by out-of-state visitors.