Thursday, February 25, 2010

Botanically Speaking


Yesterday I had visitors from the mainland. One of my favorite places to take visitors is to the Hawaii Tropical Botanical Gardens just down the road from us overlooking spectacular Onomea Bay. There, amongst the ferns and palms is an oasis of wonder. The steep climb in and out of the gardens is also good exercise. One can never visit this place without acknowledging that this is one of the most beautiful gardens on the planet. The exquisite beauty of the flora here is truly something incredible. While I do go there often, I never tire of the experience. If you are coming to the big island, this is a "must see".

I would love to share with you some of the botany that made me smile yesterday. Above is my friend Mary visiting from Texas. Be sure to scroll all the way to the end where you will see some very strange treees.

Honeycomb Ginger
Heleconia








Cat's Whiskers
Heleconia

One of the strangest trees I have ever seen, The Cannon Ball Tree
But this one is even stranger, The Sausage Tree

8 comments:

Cloudia said...

you have a cannonball tree too!

it's an odd bird...nothing's like the Big Isle -

Aloha from Oahu, Friend!


Comfort Spiral

Jimh. said...

Wow! Those are some beautiful pics! Your photography is wonderful to behold! I wish I could visit! My SIL visited Oahu, and said we should save our money as Washington (where we live) has better landscape. I don't know about that, I'd sure like to give Hawaii a shot! Thanks for your window into an amazing island!

Claudia said...

Some beautiful shots. I have an artist friend who often goes to the Botanical Gardens for photos, which she bases many of her paintings on.

Jimh. said...

Hope you are well! Hopefully the Tsunami surge has not affected you! Let us know!

Epp said...

Hello from Wyoming. I spent my college years going to UHH and loved the big Island very much around Hilo. Your pictures are fantastic of the lush living plant life. Here we're just getting some snow melt after the snow being on the ground all winter! I really miss the tropical winds through the palm trees bringing the scent of Plummaria and other flowering plants. Take Good Care, My Best, Dennis

Dee said...

The cannonball tree is WONDERFUL when it is blooming! There is a huge one at Foster Garden on Oahu.

bl8ant said...

sigh....how nice it was to visit your blog, everyone has said it perfectly, your photography is wonderful! thank you for sharing xxx

The Garden Lady said...

The delicate "chandelier" of a white bloom with purple stems is Medinilla lalique. The amazing orange bloom that comes right out of the tree trunk is Brownea macrophylla.