Koko Crater Botanical Garden

A 200 acre area was set aside for Koko Crater Botanical Garden in 1958. About 60
acres are covered with dryland plants. It is one of the Honolulu Botanical Gardens.

There is no entrance fee and there is a parking lot just outside the gate.

You can borrow a map of the 2 mile loop with a self-guided tour from a box to the left of this sign.
There are some labels, but not many, so we cannot identify many of the objects in these pictures.

The plumeria grove on the left at the beginning of the path.

We visited the garden in early January 2016 and the plumeria were just starting to bloom.

Many of the plumeria trees were covered with buds.

The sweet plumeria flowers attracted a grasshopper.

The humid air settles as dew.

There are many birds in the garden, like this white-rumped shama Copsychus malabaricus.

The loop consists of dirt paths, but because it is dry, it is not difficult to walk.

 There are many benches and resting places along the path.

There is only one restroom. It seems to tilt but perhaps not too much in an emergency.

Sign along the loop. The ground on either side of the path is sometimes steep and uneven.

There are many hibiscus.

Hibiscus

The flower of a Hau tree Hibiscus tilliaceus can be recognized as a hibiscus, but the
plants can grow in dense twisted tangles, up to 30 feet, and form a shady canopy.

The foliage of the Hau tree.

Aloe flowers

A Desert Rose that grows in Africa and the Arabian peninsula.

A common beach plant, the Naupaka Scaevola taccada has petals on half of the flower.
According to legend, Naupaka flowers growing in the mountains have petals on the other half.

No name.

The cactus garden with the round Golden Barrel Cactus, left front, and ponytail palms behind.

The ponytail palm seen from below.

The Golden barrel cactus, Echinocactus grusonii.

Flowering Agave.

A tall Pachycereus cactus with flowers.

The flowers attracted a lot of bees.

There were many other flowers that attracted bees.

Acacia, one of many types that are very common in Hawaii.

There is wild growth in the garden

You can see that the garden was established a long time ago as trees are well established.

There is a section of plants from Madgascar, like the Pachypodium spp. on the left.

Pachypodium spp.

Octopus cactus, probably Stenocereus alamosensis.

Another octopus cactus?

Alluadia spp from Madagascar. Lemurs climb and live among these plants.

A flowering aloe.

Transvaal Gardenia full of large, hard fruit.

A cycad .

Bergaalwyn, Aloe Marlothin.

Some trees had a very special bark.

The bark of a Wiliwili, Erythrina Sandwicencis.

The bark could be quite smooth, like on this Moringa stenopetala.

Bougainvillea near the entrance.

Koko Crater Botanical Garden.

Koko Crater Botanical Garden as seen looking toward Makapuu from the top of Koko Crater trail.