Record of forest plantings in Hawaii

Abstract

Few areas in the world have so many introduced plants as the Hawaiian Islands. Government agencies, private organizations, and many individuals have engaged in sometimes major efforts to bring in useful species. lntroducing new species for forestry purposes began well before the turn of the century and is still continuing. Follow -up appraisal of the . adaptability of introduced trees forms an important part of forestry research. The Hawaii Forestry Division (and its predecessor agencies) has probably been the most active in tree introduction work. As early as 1887 Walker (1887) reported that "The Government Plantation on the hills between Makiki and Pauoa ... now contains ... about 200, 000 trees of useful species which have by selection from a much larger number experimented upon, been cultivated as amongst those found to' flourish ' in this climate .... " In 1912; Ralph S. Hosmer, Superintendent of Forestry, emphasized: "An important phase. of forest work in Hawaii is the introduction into the Territory of exotic trees of economic importance. This is a line of investigation that should receive much greater attention than has been given it in recent years" (Hawaii Board of Commissioners of Agriculture and Forestry 1912). In the same report he described some experimental plantings. Such tree introduction work has continued over the years; the Waiakea Arboretum in Hilo includes the latest major group of introduced species (Richmond 1963). Many but not all of the introduced species have been appraised for forestry purposes. In 1886, Lubker (1886) wrote of Acacia dealbata and A. pycnantha: " ... already it is plain, that there cannot be any other kinds of trees, which are better adapted to these islands for the purpose of Arbor culture... " Zschokke (1930) reviewed the adaptability and use of several species, mainly as windbreaks and for erosion control and fuelwood. Bryan (1947) made a significant contribution by rating the adaptability and use of most species introduced to the Big Island up to 1946. Carlson and Bryan (1959) provided detailed information about several important timber species. No sustained efforts have been made to maintain organized records of all introductions throughout the Islands. Nor has an organized attempt been made to evaluate their adaptability on the many different sites in Hawaii. Among the many hundreds of introductions are possibly some valuable "sleepers." .Similarly, some potentially valuable species that could and should be brought in have, no doubt, been overlooked.