Identity Crisis

Lately, most of my time has been spent on display labels for plants on the grounds.  One of the most annoying parts of making plant labels is plant names.  More times than not, it just can't be as simple as identifying a car make/model/year or an individual's first and last name...no, it just wouldn't be nearly as much fun.  Regarding common names, there are no solid rules for a "correct" or "incorrect" name and it is usually the most widely-used common name that becomes the "accepted" name for a given region or language.  Common names can be assigned to any plant by anyone at any time, even if it is a misleading name (i.e. a plant known by many as the cardboard palm is not actually a palm; it is a cycad).  This system can result in an overwhelming plethora of common names in different languages, which need to be considered on a case-by-case basis for each plant.  Scientific names can be just as confusing, although the ideal of one Latin name for one plant across all languages is a goal constantly being worked towards (although sometimes the contrary seems true).  Unfortunately, scientists who work with plant names and classification (plant taxonomists) often have differing opinions about these names.  There are different ways scientists interpret the definition of a "species," so even though there might be only one species name given to a given group of plants throughout the world by one scientist, another scientist may consider there to be ten different species in this group based on differences in stature.   The recent advent of DNA sequencing as a tool for determining evolutionary relationship has also led to another re-naming frenzy, even though results of these analyses should be considered with caution for a number of reasons.  Not to mention there is an attractiveness to having one's initials as author of a plant name and publishing incentive in the scientific community to reclassify/rename a plant.  Also, when communication was not as instant in the past as it is today, two or more individuals in different geographic locations may have assigned different names to the same plant at around the same time, so scientists today must research past records to determine which individual published the name first with solid evidence (a plant specimen) of which plant the name refers to.  These are only a few examples of why I usually plan on doing this sort of work on a Friday because I know from prior experience that my brain will need at least a two-day vacation afterwards of near-zero intellectual activity to recover and rewire.


Rick Hederstrom
Associate Director

Around the Grounds

It was a beautiful day to be outside and I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to show a few of our guests around the Gardens.  Both couples (one from New York, the other from Maine) took the initiative to ask for a tour; it's great to see such interest!  All involved were very enthusiastic throughout the time we spent together, and I enjoyed very much sharing with them all about our collections here at Kona Kai, including the ways in which each plant is unique and connected in some way to mankind.  I was happy to hear each guest mention how they were impressed by the way the landscape has been so beautifully designed and well-maintained, commenting on how once they arrive in the parking lot, they feel transported to a lush oasis of sorts.  Quite accurate in my opinion, and a wonderful affirmation for all the hard work the owners and staff have put into these grounds to make them what they are today.  The guests were very enthusiastic to learn more about the plants and with only a month under my belt here, I'm just as excited to continue to learn more about them myself!  Hopefully we will be able to attract many more garden/plant enthusiasts to Kona Kai; it is great fun sharing and discussing all that I am learning about these fascinating plants with our guests.


FYI - The Botanic Gardens at Kona Kai will officially open at the end of March.  Tours for the public will be by appointment only and there will be a nominal charge.  Tour times and dates are yet to be determined.  The best place to get the most current info about the gardens is at our website at kkresort.com.


Rick Hederstrom
Associate Director

Tropical Fruit!

When I first arrived at Kona Kai, I was thrilled to discover they have their own tropical fruit garden.  Not only that, but when fruit on the trees is ripe, they will pick it, prepare it, and make it available to guests both at the front desk and in the refrigerator at the pool; how awesome is that?!  It really serves to enhance the exotic atmosphere of the place and it is great fun to experience tasting fruits besides well-known choices such as banana, orange, and apple.  I know I was surprised to learn about the large variety of fruits in the world, many of which taste fantastic, and yet I rarely see them in stores.  In addition, there is nothing quite like being able to taste fruit right off of the tree (much commercial fruit is picked unripe before shipment - think bananas, tomatoes, etc. - and cannot compare to fruit that finishes ripening on the plant, in my opinion).  Yesterday, I had the opportunity to prepare and arrange my first fruit selection for the guests:

In the bottom-left of the picture, we have a star fruit (Averrhoea carambola) surrounded by Jamaican cherries (Muntingia calabura).  Pumello (Citrus maxima - in both bowls) and jaboticaba (Myrciaria cauliflora - the dark purple spheres between the pumello wedges) are arranged on the wooden tray, and two Hibiscus flowers add a stellar splash of color to the presentation.  It always fascinates me to think about the many plants producing parts that are extremely tasty and nourishing to humans, and I often contemplate why this is.  Plants as food for humans is a big part of ethnobotany and it is always humbling to know that we would have nothing to eat if plants did not exist.

Rick Hederstrom
Associate Director

Rise and Shine

Before posting another more “botanical” entry, I felt compelled to share an experience I had this morning.  I personally think that transferring contents from one container to another should, in general, be a rather simple, relatively quiet process if done correctly (unless glass is involved).  I learned this morning that the transfer of garbage from dumpster to truck is not always one of those processes.  Granted, this may be well known by many people, but it is new to me because I have never lived this close to a dumpster before.  Not that I am living in a lean-to against a dumpster, but my just-moved-into apartment is above the parking garage where it is located.  At about 6:00am, I heard a very loud beeping noise (truck backing into position) followed by a startlingly loud hydraulic hum (the truck's "arms" lowering).  The garbage truck’s arms fumble clumsily for their point of attachment, as I am thinking one of my neighbors on the second floor is forcefully introducing a collection of old appliances to the ground level parking surface.  Still in a dream-like state, I hear another loud hydraulic hum (undoubtedly the raising of the dumpster); sounding much like one of the cars downstairs is turning into a Transformer.  In a few seconds, it seems as though the Transformer is smashing all the other cars in the parking garage to smithereens, but as I further gain consciousness, I realize this may actually be the garbage truck operator smashing the dumpster against the truck to ensure that every last napkin falls out, which although noisy, is certainly admirably thorough.  Another hum precedes the grand finale as it sounds like the dumpster falls off the dump truck’s hooks at about ten feet above the concrete…

I can confidently say I’ve never experienced a more effective early-morning alarm.

Rick Hederstrom

Associate Director

The Everglades and Marie Selby Botanical Gardens

Ok, so more catching-up to do.  Early this past week I drove up to Sarasota with Ethan to visit the Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, which specializes in epiphytes, such as orchids, bromeliads, and air plants (tillandsias).  Driving through the Everglades and Big Cypress National Preserve on the way there was certainly a neat experience.  The land is very flat but there is so much life and beauty in the landscape if one takes the time to look (often from a new perspective); unfortunately, much of this goes unseen to cars speeding by.  Upon arrival at Selby, Tom Buchter, who worked for six years as the Director of Horticulture at the Holden Arboretum and is currently the CEO of Selby Gardens, greeted us.  He gave us a great introduction to the Gardens and saw that we were well taken care of during our stay by arranging time for us with a number of different staff.  We learned all about orchids from Angel Lara, the greenhouse manager; Laurie Birch showed us how plant records are kept and how plants are inventoried; and Bruce Holst, the Director of Research and Collections, gave us a tour of the herbarium (a collection of pressed identified plants) and spirit collection.  The spirit collection is quite interesting because it consists of hundreds of glass bottles containing mostly orchid flowers that are preserved in a mix of alcohol, water, and glycerin.  This is useful because making classic pressed herbarium specimens squashes all parts of a specimen from 3D to 2D.  The staff were all extremely knowledgeable and kind; they have a beautiful place in Selby Gardens, and if you are in the area and have some time, I would highly recommend stopping by.  The trip provided me with a lot of ideas for the Gardens here at Kona Kai, including the development of labels and signs for our collections, care for our orchids, resources for plant information, and the possibility of developing a small herbarium.

Rick Hederstrom

Associate Director

Ethan's Visit and Key West Conch Fritters

Apologies for the delay, this week has been very busy, so I’ve got a lot of catching up to do.  Ethan Johnson, Manager of Plant Records at the Holden Arboretum in Kirtland, OH, stopped by for a visit this past Sunday.  I showed him around the grounds at Kona Kai, with which he was quite impressed, and then we drove down the Keys in the late afternoon so he could see as much of the Keys as possible before leaving.  Nearly 100 miles later, we found ourselves at the southernmost point of the continental U.S., which is in Key West.  It is pretty strange driving many miles through tiny islands with only sporadic evidence of civilization, and then coming abruptly upon the bustling city-like atmosphere of Key West.  We were able to find a parking spot pretty easily and strolled through parts of the historic Old Town on our way to the Southernmost Point monument.  After the requisite picture by the monument, we made our way to Duval Street and found a great outdoors restaurant, nearly covered in $1 bills, where we watched the final half of the Super Bowl.  I had my first taste of conch fritters there, and boy were they delicious.  The weather was fantastic and Key West is a great place to take the time to walk through.  Window-shopping on Duval is a lot of fun and the people who live in this place are as eccentric as the shops you’ll find there.  History is interspersed with modern culture and the feel of the place at night is very much college-town.  Overall, a great day in the Keys! 

Off to the Florida DMV to get a new license and plates!  I’ll fill you in on my trip up to Sarasota’s Marie Selby Botanical Gardens in my next entry.

Rick Hederstrom

Associate Director

A Wonderful Week

From Monday to Thursday of this past week, we were fortunate enough to have Mike O'Neal, the Director of BG-Base, Inc., here at Kona Kai.  He helped us tailor the BG-Base database (which will hold all the records relating to the plants in our collections) to our Gardens and also went over everything we wanted to know about the program and how we can use it both today and looking towards the future.  I learned a great deal and it was fantastic to finally be able to meet and hang out with Mike, who is a great guy, extremely knowledgeable, a lot of fun to be around, and an excellent table tennis player.

In other news, Joe, Ronnie, Veronika, Tracey, and I went up to The Kampong yesterday for an ethnobotanical symposium focusing on Rumphius' Ambonese Herbal (17th century) and its recently-completed translation by the late Dr. Monty Beekman.  Rumphius' Herbal is an incredible 6-volume work, a good part of which he had to re-do because of a fire that occurred while he was doing his research on Ambon Island.  Now, I think it's the end of the world if I lose work that has taken me even only a day to do; I cannot imagine losing years and years of work in a single day, then having the perseverance to re-do it all.  Did I mention he was blind when he lost his work to the fire?  Wow, talk about dedication.  Even despite his blindness, he completed his Herbal in the end, and we have it with us today as an incredible ethnobotanical resource.

To relate my experience at the conference to a current event, I felt much like a big-time NFL fan would feel if he/she was given the opportunity to be down on the sidelines during the Super Bowl.  I was able to shake hands and talk with individuals in the fields of Ethnobotany, Horticulture, Botany, and Anthropology whose work, knowledge, and accomplishments I greatly respect and admire, such as Peter Raven, Paul Cox, Patrick Griffith, Paul Groff, David Jones, Brad Bennett, and Michael Dove...and these were only the people I was able to meet.  There were many other reputable individuals there whom I would have loved to have interacted with, but unfortunately, there just wasn't enough time.  Oh well, we might just have to look into organizing a few ethnobotanical "Super Bowls" at Kona Kai so I can do just that.

Rick Hederstrom
Associate Director

Iguanas in the Gardens

Having worked at the Holden Arboretum in Kirtland, OH, I am very familiar with the cute but extremely destructive and over-populated white-tailed deer that call the arboretum their home.  The plant collections serve as a veritable feast of tasty greens and perfect antler-scratchers for these creatures, and the grounds crew has to be sure to fence off any plant material that they want to survive and maintain full foliage.  Apparently, iguanas are the white-tailed deer of the Keys.  When I first heard that iguanas are a problem because they eat the leaves and flowers of many of the plants, an image of a little chameleon or GEICO gecko slowly and harmlessly nibbling a few bites off of a leaf came to mind...boy was I mistaken.  I didn't really think much of it until I saw our groundskeeper, Veronika, running through the grounds with a giant net fit to capture a small human.  I asked what she was doing and she yelled back, "iguana!"  I had no idea how mammoth these creatures can become over the course of many years; they can grow to over five feet long and can use their tails as an effective weapon!  These giant reptiles are an incredibly invasive and destructive (especially to botanical collections) non-native pest species here in the Keys, and they sure are quick, too.  This one evaded capture and relocation for the time being, but we'll be watching for another opportunity to go toe-to-toe with this formidable foe.

Rick Hederstrom
Associate Director