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Honolulu International Airport Gardens

Daniel K. Inouye International Airport, Honolulu, HI

Daniel K. Inouye International Airport, Honolulu HI

This photograph says so much about this special garden in a single image:

- Senator Daniel Inouye represented Hawaii in the US Senate for decades. He was of Japanese descent and a senior in a Honolulu high school when he witnessed the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Later, he volunteered for an all-Japanese army unit which served first in Mississippi, then in Italy and France during the war. The airport has rightfully been named in his honor. 
- The building itself was designed - by the great Honolulu architect Vladimir Ossipoff - in the open native Hawaiian concept of the lanai. To native Hawaiians the lanai was a free-standing building with a thatched roof and open-sided walls to allow a fresh breeze to wash through. The main concourses of the airport terminal are all open to the outside air, recreating the concept of the lanai. Upon landing in Honolulu, the freshness of the airport corridors is a heavenly introduction to the subtropical climate...despite the occasional whiffs of jet fuel which only add to the atmosphere of exotic travel. I love the combination of the humidity, the jungly smells of the garden, with a slight note of jet fuel. So evocative of Honolulu for me.
- The open-sided concourses intersect at one point forming a large acre-sized garden in the shape of a large triangle. Each of the three points of the triange are planted with a separate theme of plantings: Hawaiian, Japanese, and Chinese. As passengers scurry from one gate of the airport to another, they can peer over the railings at the lovely gardens.

Hawaiian garden

Hawaiian garden under the monkey pod trees

Many of the plants in the Hawaiian garden are native to Hawaii, but just as many other plants have been introduced to the Islands, first by the ancient Polynesians who came a thousand years ago and later by the whaling ships and other immigrant peoples.

The monkey pod tree (Samanea saman, in the pea family Fabaceae) is originally from Central and South America but it has been naturalized in parts of the tropics including parts of Asia, India, and Polynesia. The plant has many names in all of these places. "Raintree" is a popular name in many countries. Today in modern Honolulu it seems every street in the city is sheltered by these giant trees. They offer great shade cover, grow fast and are quite tolerant of urban conditions. The downside is that the large arching branches can break off and crash to the ground in heavy weather.

Taro plant (large leaves) and ti trees (smaller strap-like leaves of green and red)

The traditional Hawaiian plants represented in the garden are taro plants and ti trees. The taro plant was introduced by the ancient Polynesians for its edible starchy corm - or tuber - which can be pounded and cooked to make poi. The Hawaiian term is 'kalo', but Captain Cook brought the word 'taro' from New Zealand which stuck in our modern language. The Latin name is Colocasia esculenta, in the Araceae family. If you've never tried taro chips with your favorite dip you are missing out, they are a treat.

The strap-like leaves of the ti tree have many uses including cooking, hula garments, and other ceremonial uses. The rhizome can be eaten too. The Latin name is Cordyline fruticosa in the asparagus family. The New Zealand name is 'ti', but the original Hawaiian name for the plant is 'ki'. The letters t and r are not used in the Hawaiian language.

Japanese garden

Japanese garden

Monument to remember the first immigrants invited to Hawaii from Japan in 1868. 

Of all of the gardens in the airport, the Japanese section is my favorite because of the sophistication of the design and the scale of the plants. There is great attention to the stone placement together with dwarf Japanese juniper bushes that look like mini forests floating is a sea of pebbles. Juniperus procumbens is native to the southern Japanese island of Kyushu. The low bush is popular in landscaping and can be shaped into beautiful bonsai trees.

Juniperus procumbens

Chinese garden

A memorial to Sun Yat-sen, called the Father of the Republic of China (Taiwan)

A stone sculpture of Sun Yat-sen oversees the serenity of the Chinese garden. He was a revolutionary statesman, physician and political philosopher who was instrumental in the overthrow of the last Chinese imperial dynasty and the introduction of a modern republic. His statue sits next to an attractive six-sided pavilion with seating where one can relax in the garden.

Jatropha integerrima

Jatropha integerrima; "spicy jatropha"

I'm not sure why the spicy jatropha tree was included in the Chinese garden since it is native to Cuba and Central America. I've read the tree has been introduced to parts of southeast Asia. So perhaps it is common in China too. Anyway, this particular tree was in full flower and represented one of the few flowering plants at this time of the year (early March).

Summary

I've had the pleasure of arriving in Honolulu many times. After a long 8 or 9 hour flight from Minneapolis it is such a treat to walk off the plane and virtually step right into a tropical garden without ever leaving the airport. The garden is such a wonderful greeting for every passenger who chooses to take a closer look if they have the time. What it lacks in horticultural significance is more than compensated by the joy it provides.

My partner and I were able to visit the garden shortly after the covid restrictions were lifted and travelers were allowed back into Hawaii. I have to admit the garden then was looking fairly grim and in need of major attention back in 2022. But now, a few years later it is a relief to see that much work as been done to restore the plantings and infrastructure, approaching the gardens former glory - at least in my mind.

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