August Project Day

When The Roommates moved in at the end of April, among other things we discussed setting aside one day a month to do projects around the house. Today was the first day that we have actually gotten together to do that; we liked it so much we have a rough idea of what we would like to do next month. Here's our list.

I took a bunch of before and after photos of the tasks that we did today. As we were getting ready to  trim the Mickey Mouse plant (Ochna serrulata) I realized there was no kokutan (Raphiolepis umbellata) along that side of the fence, so we only removed the other leggy shrubs that were growing between the Mickey Mouse plants. Donna, the neighbor next door, said the Mickey Mouse plants did not block her view when she backed out of her driveway so it didn't matter to her how much we cut out; we just trimmed back the long branches that were sticking out. The Roommates also removed the Mickey Mouse plant near the mail box so that the mail carrier can get in and out more easily. On our next yard work project day we will work on training the bay leaf tree & cleaning up dead parts of the guava tree.

Before.

After.

I also had The Roommates remove the 2 shrubs near the street sign post that were blocking the sight distance at the corner; then I painted the stumps with full strength Roundup. The bird of paradise (Strelitzia reginae) is back far enough from the corner that it is not in the departure sight triangle so it doesn't block the view of traffic when a car comes up to the stop. I am looking for plants to put near the departure sight triangle that will grow no higher than the concrete block portion of the fence or that are very slow growing & easy to control to keep them low.

Before.

After.

The Roommates had great fun picking the ripe pomelos (Citrus maxima); there are still a lot of green ones left on the tree. We will be giving a bunch of the ripe ones to the Lois across the street, they really like jabon.

Before.

After.

I swept up the plant debris near the orange tree; most of it was from the pink o'hai ali'i (Caesalpinia pulcherrima) but there were some mango leaves in there as well as a wild lilikoi vine that came through a crack in the concrete block wall. Later we piled the rest of the green waste that couldn't fit in the bin along the fence; we'll have to cut it up & fill the bin after they pick it up this coming Thursday.

Before.

After.

Excess plant matter.

I removed 2 of the 3 branches of the yellow o'hai ali'i so that all the energy will now go to the remaining trunk. It is now tall enough to start branching above the top rail of the fence, which is also out of the sight line for oncoming traffic. I still need to work on the red one, I'm not sure which of the 2 trunks I should keep to train for the tree form.

Before.

The Roommate Who Likes to Wash Dishes had bought 2 butter lettuce starts about a month ago but never got around to weeding out the planter box & transplanting them. He did that today as part of our project day.

Before.

When I made gazpacho the other day it called for fresh basil (Ocimum basilicum). I pulled off the leaves I needed and kept the stems and also the stems I did not use. I put them in a glass of water to keep them fresh for anyone else to use and 2 of the 3 sprouted roots. I planted them out today; hopefully they will survive so we can grow our own basil. In Hawai'i basil grows as a perennial plant not an annual like it is in areas that have frosts.

After.

After looking it over, I crossed the stump removal off the list. We'll do that on the next project day that involves yardwork.

I told The Roommates I would take everyone to lunch at Waiahole Poi Factory after we finished project day. We got all the tasks done by 10 a.m.; we had started at 7 so it would be cooler while we were working. It took about 50 minutes to get to Waiahole; but it was worth it! The Roommate Who Likes to Wash Dishes had the Laulau & Kalua Pig Combo with rice, The Potential Most Favorite Roommate had the Laulau & Squid Lu'au Combo with rice & a side of Ho'io Salad, and I had the Kalua Pig & Squid Lu'au Combo with Poi. For dessert we all had the Sweet Lady of Waiahole, which is warm kulolo with haupia ice cream. Everything was so ono! I'm pretty sure we'll be going back for more!

Combo 1 - Laulau & Kalua Pig.

Combo 2 - Laulau & Squid Lu'au with Ho'io Salad.

Combo 4 - Kalua Pig & Squid Lu'au.

Sweet Lady of Waiahole.

The Roommate Who Likes to Wash Dishes picked up some Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Mochi while we were at the Waiahole Poi Factory. It was actually quite good!



In the afternoon I went up to Maunalani to relieve Curtis. I walked around Maunalani Circle then down to the park and back. Although it doesn't look like they're done yet, the courts look really good already. I also checked out the play structure and it looked good as well.

Before, 05/29/18.

After.

There was a new Kolea at the park today! I know it is a different one since it is still in its breeding colors; the others that I have seen have been in the non-breeding colors.


Hurricane Lane has crossed over into the Central Pacific area; it is currently a Category 4 storm. Right now the predicted track is showing it passing well south of the Big Island some time on Wednesday or Thursday.


Happy Birthday to  Beth, Dustin, Ron, & Hazuki-san!