'Native Plants Hawaii' Launched

From friend and cybrarian Shari Tamashiro comes word of a new resource dedicated to native Hawaiian plants. Native Plants Hawaii — a joint project between Kapiolani Community College and Leeward Community College — aims to be a comprehensive online knowledgebase of the endemic and indigenous plants of Hawaii.

Native plants flourish with much less water than many exotic species, and once established on a site, they require less maintenance than non-native plants, requiring less fertilization and pruning. But perhaps most importantly, using native plants connects modern homeowners and gardens with Hawaii's rich cultural history, and helps preserve often endangered endemic and indigenous species.

The Native Plants Hawaii team includes Tamashiro (who serves as project manager and webmaster), programmer and database administrator Cheryll Aldridge, native plant specialist David Eickhoff and LCC botany professor Priscilla Millen.

Native Plants Hawaii is funded in part by the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture and its Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service (CSREES) for Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Institutions.