Another double header event, and this time on the west side. HIPS is invited into the garden of HIPS board member Gunnar Hillert for the first time, while Dean Ouer's famous Mana Mauka garden is a long time HIPS favorite.
The gardens are 12 minutes apart. You will have about 1-1.5 hours for lunch between the morning and afternoon tours. Second Tours starts at 1:00 pm. Pack a lunch or grab a quick bite 15 minutes away in Kona town. Lunch suggestions and Driving instructions will be included in confirmation email to registrants.
Mana Mauka - The Ouer Garden
The garden is located at a cooler elevation near the northern end of the Kona Coffee Belt.
This elevation on the “dry” side of the island is often graced with afternoon showers and allows for a an extensive natural forest. Dean is a member of the International Palm Society, Southern California Palm Society and Hawaii Island Palm Society. He administers and moderates the IPS PalmTalk Forum so he definitely knows his palms. Dean Ouer has worked on enhancing his 3 acre forested property with palms, aroids, and other tropical fauna for 14 years.
HIPS last toured Dean's garden in 2016
The International Palm Society toured Dean's garden in 2022
The Hillert Garden
Located in the coffee belt of Holualoa at an elevation of 560m (1850ft) overlooking Kailua-Kona in what might be one of the wettest locations on the dry side of Hawai‘i Island.
The 4 acre tropical garden is home to a diverse collection of tropical and subtropical plants from around the world. The garden's palm collection contains over 400 individual palms, covering over 250 different species (defined as taxa on the species level and/or below) from across more than 100 genera.
The palms are, in general, less than 9 years old, which gives you the chance to have a 1:1 conversation with them at eye level as most palms have not evolved into telephone poles just yet.
Besides palms, the garden also contains an extensive collection of tropical fruit trees and other ornamental plants comprising almost 500 different species across 250 genera and 67 plant families.
The previous owners won several awards for the landscaping such as the Betty Crocker and Scenic Hawaii Foundation, Award of Excellence for landscaping for the best Residential State award in 2012 and the Kona Outdoor Circle for Beautification and Conservation award in 2009.
