Waikoloa: A Community that Gardens Together, Grows Together

A Community Garden Announcement

The Waikoloa Community Garden

This was posted in the Waikoloa Breeze, our community newsletter a while ago:

“Soil, garden beds (8 x 3) and mulch will be provided free of charge. All items grown in the community garden will be organic, meaning No pesticides. Individuals are free to take home, share, trade or sell whatever is grown in their beds. There is a fee of $40 per year to cover the cost of water usage. For more information contact Beverley Brand.”

Sample Garden

What a concept! A community garden being started in Waikoloa Village. Immediate joy would have been my first response, however, as the Treasurer for the Waikoloa Outdoor Circle, I knew that something incredible was about to happen.

Gardens Available

Gardens are now available for people young and old to grow and plant their own veggies, herbs, or flowers in Waikoloa Village. Yes, Beverly Brand, the Waikoloa “go-getter” that has started and completed more projects in Waikoloa that I know of, was at it again. The Dry Forest Initiative, the Dusty Donkey Emporium, and now the Waikoloa Community Garden, funded in part by the Waikoloa Outdoor Circle are a few of her completed visions.

Photo Credit: Greg Klicker

Her Vision for the Community

Out of my own curiosity, I finally caught up with Beverley to see what her inspiration was for the Waikoloa Community Garden. Pretty simple. She loves to garden and was inspired by a recent trip to Canada where all of the communities had gardens. She said, “she wanted to watch things grow and bring the community together.” She came up with the slogan, “A Community that Gardens Together, Grows Together.” By golly, it appears Beverley has accomplished this goal in such a wonderful way and it’s starting to blossom. No pun intended. More on the individual gardens later.

Love to Garden

Let it Grow

Being a gardener myself, who just loves to dig in the dirt and get dirty, I wanted to find a home with a garden. My husband wanted a view, and I wanted a garden. We were surprised; we got both. When I started learning about gardening in Hawaii, I learned pretty much anything grows here. What joy. Unlike Hawaii, in Colorado, you were lucky to get May to September without the snow spoiling all of your hard work. Some good soil, water, and sunshine all year round is a great recipe for successful gardening. It isn’t that difficult to have a “green thumb” in Hawaii, unless of course, you prefer surfing.

My Garden

My pineapple from the top shooting down

My garden has an avocado tree, a grapefruit tree, a mandarin orange tree, a lime tree, several and I mean several banana trees, a coconut tree, sugar cane, 12 pineapples, and two raised beds. We’ve added a papaya and lemon tree along with kale, lettuces, herbs, celery, cucumbers, zucchini, broccoli, strawberries and carrots in the raised beds. This list covers the edible plants. I won’t bore you with the other exotic flowers and palms we have because everyone in Hawaii tends to just want to eat. Good fresh fruits and veggies are just what the doctor ordered. I love to garden.

All different types of gardens

The Community Garden Plots

The community garden is located at the Waikoloa Stables on Waikoloa Road. While donating some items to the Dusty Donkey Emporium, I thought I needed to see how the community garden was progressing. To my surprise, I was delighted to see all kinds of gardens in all different shapes and sizes with decorations, signs and ceramic figurines. And of course, a variety of incredible plants in various stages dotting the landscape. There under a huge shade tree were tables and chairs for gardeners to socialize and share their stories, (talk-story) about gardening tips or just a neighborly smile. Owls were perched on fence posts, water hoses connected to irrigation and the whiff of fresh manure from the horses taking nearby were a few highlights. Wow, what a special place.

A place to connect

Gardening as a Community

Waikoloa has many condominiums with little or no outdoor space to garden. This is a perfect opportunity for those who don’t have space to garden can come and grow whatever. Gardening, in my opinion, keeps people young. It gives our elderly (kupuna) and our children (keiki) a purpose, an opportunity to educate and share with one another: time, knowledge and bounty. At the community garden, each garden is unique just like the residents of Waikoloa. I’m very proud to volunteer with the Waikoloa Outdoor Circle and belong to such a great community. For more information about the garden or real estate in Waikoloa, please don’t hesitate to contact me. If I don’t answer my phone, I’m probably out gardening. Aloha!