Saving native species when clearing land

[Jean H]

I closed on a property in FFVE and was surprised to receive a news report from their association and a nice little guide about building in the forest in the Volcano area from their Community Association.
It said they will actully come visit with you on the lot and help you ID native species and weeds. I think this is great!
Mainly the brochure was educating against clearcutting and leveling of your land and the pitfalls for doing so.
I am wondering if anyone has ever used this service and how long it would take to get someone to come out and do it.
I am planning a trip in September and want to be able to do this while I am there. I am getting so excited and the planning of the trip is going to be so much fun. I don't even know if I will stay or come back to NC. I'm hoping there is a way I can stay, so I am trying to make it mostly a comfy camping trip with some handy things to bring, like an inverter for charging batteries, making coffee, a big knife to hack my way in,( but I see there hasn't been much rain, so maybe it won't be so bad...

Jean Hopper

[lquade]

welcome.. yes, volcano has been very proactive about saving native plants since a large california developer came in and trashed over 20 lots. the National Park HAVO is also trying to spread the word about maintaining native plants and getting rid of the trespassers such as kalihi ginger, australian tree fern etc. i dont know but believe they would be willing to work with you on your schedule as again, they are VERY concerned in the area. camping is usually available up at the volcano campground and little cabins too. have fun and remember sunblock.. we have been having low rainfall in general.

[LuckeyBrown]

aloha
Is that fern forest? congrats, that is my neighborhood as well. I do yard maintenence and hand clearing. I have been clearing a new lot up here from scratch (good fun, hard work). I have found a number of people who need a trail cleared into the lot so they can get in there and move around, make assesments for future use etc. It is a minimal cost, and more realistic for people who are not rugged enough to climb or hack there way in them-selves. If you want to camp on your land, you will need an area cleared as well. I am still considered new to the island, (20 days more makes one year) and am still learning about what to leave and what to get rid of. If you can schedule it, definately use the association for educational purposes, and if you need some work done or have questions contact me @ luckeybrown@netzero.com
Aloha...Luckey
luckey's service w-09202477-01

[Mitzi M]

Hi Jean,

Volcano Community Association's "Building in the Forest" brochure is awesome! It is definitely worthwile to get someone knowlegeable to help you "read" the land you now own and understand which plants belong there, and which ones are harmful to the native forest. Its great to hear you're interested in building with conservation in mind. Hawai'i is so different than other places in that we have a great diversity of native species in a pretty small geographic area. We also have the dubious distinction of being the endangered species capital of the world. That means that each little piece of the land is unique, and even small-scale efforts at consevation can make an important difference. Another issue is that most of our remaining native forests are beseiged with invasive alien species that can eventually overtake them. By controlling these plants on your land you can even improve the condition of the forest and critical habitat for many native creatures. This land really needs good stewards, and its a wonderful adventure to learn about your little piece of Hawai'i's larger ecosystem. I bet if you give the Community Association a call soon there's probably plenty of time to set things up for September. There are a lot of folks up there who have done some really nice landscapes incorporating and even restoring the native forest. If for some reason it dosen't pan out with VCA, contact me.

Aloha,
Mitzi


Uluhe Design
Restoration Based Landscape Design for Hawai'i
uluhedesign@yahoo.com

[Les C]

If you want to start learning about native plant identification and propogation, check the Volcano Art Center schedule
http://tinyurl.com/3ak4pk
for workshops.

[Jean H]

Aloha all,
Thanks for the info.
I am happy that the association is dedicated to this. It would be wonderful to know you can make a difference with the way one lives on a little piece of land.
I feel I picked the right place for us.
The property we bought is off the grid and has been lived on recently, with a small cabin and a greenhouse, but by looking at the real estate photos, there is much (hopefully) untouched and it was marketed as having many ohia trees.
So since someone was living there until last month, I figure there will still be a clear path going into the property in September.
During my lifetime, I have not been the perfect client for realtors. They usually steer me away from the places I like. To me, ambiance, trees and nature are more important than little boxes all put neatly in a row, with lavish decorating, extensive lawns to mow and formal shrubs to prune.
I opt for the more simple, but yet comfy life, maybe taking Mazlow's rules as a way of life and then adding a little technology for internet service and living off the grid comfortably. It will be interesting to see how we can do things differently saving power, water and whatever to make a safe,
comfortable, and pleasant life.
Age will be a big factor here, I'm afraid, I think much more clearer than I can physically DO things.
Twenty years ago, I decided to move 30 miles out from where I worked in Charlotte, NC to a lake. I commuted instead of living like the rest of my fellow workers, intown, I opted for an old mobile home on a lake front. I could either afford a nice moderate house or this.
Mostly everyone thought me kinda crazy, but when I drove home in the hot summer in my old MG (NO A/C), I would go into the trailer, put on a swimsuit, go down the hill and into the lake and relax, listening to many different birds, seeing more of a variety of animals than my friends ever would living in the city and I would lie there floating, (Fluffy people can float easily) and saying "Yeaaah...this is why I bought this place...ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh".
Later my husband and I built a 2 story garage, and lived in the 2nd floor while a cape cod modular was brought in.
I started landscaping to my own needs. Mostly blueberry bushes for shrubbery and edible things, also plants for the birds and butterflies. I replaced some of the grassy areas with natural areas and trees.
So now it is time to move on... The remoteness of this area is gone...the growth has become overwhelming here with developments with large estate size lots and gigantic houses. Luckily for me, it has brought the value of my place up, but it has made my small capecod look like a cabin.
The increase in taxes is getting high without anything new except being able to look at 10,000 sq. ft houses aside of me and across the cove, loss of privacy, clearing land, losing the animals and the peaceful quiet is gone.
So I am hoping to remove myself from this and settle in FFVE with my 3 acres and going back to nature and leaving mostly all behind or selling it.
I feel sorry for all the deer, bear, foxes, birds and other animals around here that are being pushed out of the woods because of the too fast overgrowth of this area. A black bear was shot the other day because the police didn't have tranquilizer guns. They were worried about the children so they killed it...sad, so sad!
Maybe since there isn't large dangerous animals to worry about in Hawaii, we can all live together and help the native species survive to keep this planet a better place.
Mahalo to all


Jean Hopper

[kimtavares]

Hi Jean,

I'm Kim. I sent you the flyer. Small place, eh?

Definitely please call me in September, the phone number is on the Association paperwork that came w/ the flyer.

I'm glad everyone is familiar with the brochure and agrees with the concept.

Thank you very much,
Kim Tavares

[Vicki B]

Does anyone know if ALL palm trees are native to Hawaii? Coconut trees? Aloha, thanks for the help.

vickiboe@aol.com

[Guest]

quote:

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Originally posted by Vicki B

Does anyone know if ALL palm trees are native to Hawaii? Coconut trees? Aloha, thanks for the help.

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The islands arose from the ocean floor... so I would say everything is non-native []

I believe coconuts came from the Marquesas.

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Lower your expectations and be ready for anything.

[JWFITZ]

I think the important thing to realize is that if you clear land, especially if you bulldoze and clear, you've destroyed something that is completely irreplaceable and there is really no way to put any other spin on it. It's a nice sentiment to try to save what you can, but the main issue should be to clear as little or not at all. It's possible to build without clearing, or at least without culling any but a few dead trees, as most lots have a bald spot or two. It takes a savvy builder, and one who's willing to build a ship in a bottle, and a owner willing to live small, but it can be done.

More importantly in my mind than saving native plants, as so far as I can see for many their goose is mostly cooked due to past crimes, is to protect as much as possible the vital climate and rainfall levels we now possess. Clearing in an adiabatic rainfall system like we have in Puna effects precipitation values rapidly, as cleared and non vegetated areas like roads, roof--even lawns and areas that don't have the volume that forest canopy does--all heat much more rapidly and the air from these areas raises faster than in others. The result is that the humidity and rainfall gets swept up high, cloud formation doesn't occur, and rain doesn't fall. This would be a disaster for Hawaii, and something really should be done to finally limit the amount of clearing that can take place. This is why I'm particularly concerned with myopic programs to cut down albezia stands and such, as they're part of the system here now, and the loss of these trees may adversely effect our weather in ways we'll have a hard time predicting. Since we're bound to see a fair bit of new clearing soon as lands get reclaimed for local agriculture, we'll need to be very vigilant. While it's well beyond most people's vision at the moment, there is a HIGH likelihood in the next 20 years of markedly decreased rainfall in the islands, a complete loss of the winter rainy season, and a threat of wildfires that will make the risk of invasive species or elsewise look pale. The local trees have no resistance to fire whatsoever, and one good blaze on one good tradewinds day could blow coast to coast and destroy a thousand years worth of ecology.

So my attitude has been to impact as little as possible, which makes making up for my impact much easier, by re-forestation and giving as much back to the community as possible.

I'm in Fern Forest too, by the way.