Amy B. H. Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden
Encyclopedia
The Amy B. H. Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden is a botanical garden
near Captain Cook, Hawaii in the Kona District
on the Big Island of Hawaii
.
It is located at 19°29′29"N 155°54′43"W uphill (mauka) of the Hawaii Belt Road, known as Māmalahoa Highway or Hawaii Route 11, on the wesern slope of Mauna Loa
.
Amy Beatrice Holdsworth Greenwell was born in 1920. Her father was Arthur Leonard Greenwell (1871–1951) and mother was Beatrice Hunt Holdsworth (1891–1981). She was one of the 23 grandchildren of Henry Nicholas Greenwell
(1826–1891), who arrived in Hawaii in the 1850s and became a successful merchant and rancher in the area. Her maternal grandparents were merchant Edmund William Holdsworth and Edith Mary Winifred Purvis (1860–1950), who was a distant cousin of William Herbert Purvis
, a plant collector on the other side of the island.
Greenwell attended Stanford University
where she became a member of Gamma Phi Beta
and served as a nurse in World War II
. After the war she worked with Otto Degener
of the New York Botanical Garden
on a book series titled Flora Hawaiiensis on Hawiian plants. From 1953 to 1957 she served on a Historical Site Commission for the Territory.
She performed archaeology
studies of early habitation sites of Hawaii including Ka Lae
(South Point), and wrote other books on tropical plants.
Later in her lifetime she transformed her property by planting native and Polynesian-introduced
plants in the extant Hawaiian agricultural areas. She left the garden to the Bishop Museum on her death in 1974 to be opened to the public.
Today the garden contains over 200 species of endemic, indigenous, and Polynesian-introduced plants that grew in Kona before Captain James Cook
's arrival. On certain days it is possible to take a guided tour during which the use and significance of the more important plants are explained. The garden's landscape includes four ecological zones: coastal, dry forest
, agricultural, and upland forest. Its native insect
house features the Kamehameha butterfly (Vanessa tameamea).
The garden sponsors a farmers' market
known as the South Kona green Market on Sundays. It was originally held at the adjacent County of Hawaii park named for Arthur Leonard Greenwell, but is now held a few hundred feet to the southeast at the Kealakekua Ranch Center, named for the former Arthur Leonard Greenwell family ranch which extended up the mountain, overlooking Kealakekua Bay
.
Across the highway the Kona Coffee Living History Farm
run by the Kona Historical Society preserves a Kona coffee
farm that was another part of the Greenwell landholdings.
Botanical garden
A botanical garden The terms botanic and botanical, and garden or gardens are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word botanic is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens. is a well-tended area displaying a wide range of plants labelled with their botanical names...
near Captain Cook, Hawaii in the Kona District
Kona District, Hawaii
Kona is the name of a moku or district on the Big Island of Hawaii in the State of Hawaii. In the current system of administration of Hawaii County, the moku of Kona is divided into North Kona District and South Kona District . The term "Kona" is sometimes used to refer to its largest town,...
on the Big Island of Hawaii
Hawaii (island)
The Island of Hawaii, also called the Big Island or Hawaii Island , is a volcanic island in the North Pacific Ocean...
.
Description
The 15 acres (6.1 ha) garden is operated by the Bernice P. Bishop Museum. It is open daily except Christmas Day; in lieu of an admission fee there is a suggested donation, while a modest fee is charged for a guided visit.It is located at 19°29′29"N 155°54′43"W uphill (mauka) of the Hawaii Belt Road, known as Māmalahoa Highway or Hawaii Route 11, on the wesern slope of Mauna Loa
Mauna Loa
Mauna Loa is one of five volcanoes that form the Island of Hawaii in the U.S. state of Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean, and the largest on Earth in terms of volume and area covered. It is an active shield volcano, with a volume estimated at approximately , although its peak is about lower than that...
.
Amy Beatrice Holdsworth Greenwell was born in 1920. Her father was Arthur Leonard Greenwell (1871–1951) and mother was Beatrice Hunt Holdsworth (1891–1981). She was one of the 23 grandchildren of Henry Nicholas Greenwell
Henry Nicholas Greenwell
Henry Nicholas Greenwell was an English merchant credited with establishing Kona coffee as an internationally known brand.His family became major land-holders in the Kona District of the island of Hawaii....
(1826–1891), who arrived in Hawaii in the 1850s and became a successful merchant and rancher in the area. Her maternal grandparents were merchant Edmund William Holdsworth and Edith Mary Winifred Purvis (1860–1950), who was a distant cousin of William Herbert Purvis
William H. Purvis
William Herbert Purvis was a plant collector and investor in a sugar plantation on the island of Hawaii during the late nineteenth century....
, a plant collector on the other side of the island.
Greenwell attended Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
where she became a member of Gamma Phi Beta
Gamma Phi Beta
Gamma Phi Beta is an international sorority that was founded on November 11, 1874, at Syracuse University in Syracuse, New York. The term "sorority," meaning sisterhood, was coined for Gamma Phi Beta by Dr. Frank Smalley, a professor at Syracuse University.The four founders are Helen M. Dodge,...
and served as a nurse in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. After the war she worked with Otto Degener
Otto Degener
Otto Degener was a botanist and conservationist who specialized in identifying plants of the Hawaiian Islands.-Life:Otto Degener was born May 13, 1899 in East Orange, New Jersey. Degener graduated from the Massachusetts Agricultural College...
of the New York Botanical Garden
New York Botanical Garden
- See also :* Education in New York City* List of botanical gardens in the United States* List of museums and cultural institutions in New York City- External links :* official website** blog*...
on a book series titled Flora Hawaiiensis on Hawiian plants. From 1953 to 1957 she served on a Historical Site Commission for the Territory.
She performed archaeology
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
studies of early habitation sites of Hawaii including Ka Lae
Ka Lae
Ka Lae , also known as South Point, is the southernmost point of the Big Island of Hawaii and of the 50 United States. The Ka Lae area is registered as a National Historic Landmark District under the name South Point Complex...
(South Point), and wrote other books on tropical plants.
Later in her lifetime she transformed her property by planting native and Polynesian-introduced
Canoe plants
Canoe plants, or Polynesian introductions, are plants taken from ancient Polynesia and transplanted to other Pacific IslandsThe term is particularly used to refer to plants brought to Hawaii 1,700 years ago by Polynesian explorers....
plants in the extant Hawaiian agricultural areas. She left the garden to the Bishop Museum on her death in 1974 to be opened to the public.
Today the garden contains over 200 species of endemic, indigenous, and Polynesian-introduced plants that grew in Kona before Captain James Cook
James Cook
Captain James Cook, FRS, RN was a British explorer, navigator and cartographer who ultimately rose to the rank of captain in the Royal Navy...
's arrival. On certain days it is possible to take a guided tour during which the use and significance of the more important plants are explained. The garden's landscape includes four ecological zones: coastal, dry forest
Hawaiian tropical dry forests
The Hawaiian tropical dry forests are a tropical dry broadleaf forest ecoregion in the Hawaiian Islands. They cover an area of on the leeward side of the main islands and the summits of Niihau and Kahoolawe. These forests are either seasonal or sclerophyllous. Annual rainfall is less than and...
, agricultural, and upland forest. Its native insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
house features the Kamehameha butterfly (Vanessa tameamea).
The garden sponsors a farmers' market
Farmers' market
A farmers' market consists of individual vendors—mostly farmers—who set up booths, tables or stands, outdoors or indoors, to sell produce, meat products, fruits and sometimes prepared foods and beverages...
known as the South Kona green Market on Sundays. It was originally held at the adjacent County of Hawaii park named for Arthur Leonard Greenwell, but is now held a few hundred feet to the southeast at the Kealakekua Ranch Center, named for the former Arthur Leonard Greenwell family ranch which extended up the mountain, overlooking Kealakekua Bay
Kealakekua Bay
Kealakekua Bay is located on the Kona coast of the island of Hawaii about south of Kailua-Kona.Settled over a thousand years ago, the surrounding area contains many archeological and historical sites such as religious temples, and was listed in the National Register of Historic Places listings on...
.
Across the highway the Kona Coffee Living History Farm
Kona Coffee Living History Farm
Kona Coffee Living History Farm depicts the daily lives of early Japanese immigrants to Hawaii during the period of 1920-1945.It is located on the Daisaku Uchida Coffee Farm historic Kona coffee farm first established in 1900....
run by the Kona Historical Society preserves a Kona coffee
Kona coffee
Kona coffee is the market name for coffee cultivated on the slopes of Hualalai and Mauna Loa in the North and South Kona Districts of the Big Island of Hawaii. It is one of the most expensive coffees in the world. Only coffee from the Kona Districts can be described as "Kona"...
farm that was another part of the Greenwell landholdings.