Kane's Legacy Tree Services, LLC.

      In this article I would love to introduce some awesome tips for helping steward healthy reef by starting in our own back yards.  Set your watering times for longer durations and less days per week to encourage roots to grow deeper and be more drought tolerant. (Note: you will have to adjust accordingly with season change.)  Check your irrigation system to be sure you have adequate coverage with no leaks or excessive overspray, especially if you are ocean front, near storm drains or concrete that runs to a storm drain.  Set your watering times somewhere between dusk and dawn rather than during the day to avoid wasting water to evaporation.  A rain sensor is a device that shuts off your irrigation clock if there is adequate rain fall and is relatively inexpensive to have installed. I highly recommend a rain sensor for properties up North or higher up the mountain while it may not be necessary for properties in Lahaina.  Utilize mulch or wood c...

     Trunk injections are a safe and effective way to treat your trees for pests, diseases and nutrient deficiencies which can be detrimental to your trees overall health and appearance. Trunk injections are superior to the traditional foliar sprays or soil drenches because there is 0% environmental impact and 100% delivery of treatments. Foliar sprays are limited by the ability to reach the canopy, are affected by wind and drift, and are not always able to come in contact with all leaf surfaces. The biggest con for soil drenches is the lack of guarantee that the root system is the intended recipient for treatment. Both foliar and drenching methods can have unintended adverse environmental impacts. Trunk injections are different because the material is delivered directly into the vascular system which then naturally distributes throughout the entire tree. The application process is simple: a small hole is drilled in the tree, a custom plug is set to seal in the chemicals ...

    In our last article, ‘Coo-Coo for Coconuts’, we briefly touched on the differences between monocotyledon (Monocot) and dicotyledon (Dicot) flowering plants. Lets dive into this topic a bit further.      An ancient GREEK philosopher known as the ‘Father of Botany’ (Theophrastus) may have been credited with being the first to recognize differences between the two groups, it wasn’t until the 1600s when the naturalist John Ray truly separated Monocot and Dicot plants.      There are a few contrarieties between monocots and dicots, the easiest way to tell if a tree or plant is one or the other is assessing the flowers, bark and leaves. But the main difference between them starts at the very beginning when the seed germinates and sends out a sprout. If the sprout has a single seed leaf, it’s a monocotyledon (mono- meaning ‘one’) but if the sprout has two seed leaves, it is a dicotyledon (di- meaning ‘two’). This small variance at the very start...

     The coconut palm (cocos nucifera), is a far more valuable plant then one may think as they watch them sway in the trade winds. Niu (in Hawaiian) was brought to the islands during the first migrations. The Hawaiian people were able to make use of the trunk, husks and shells, leaves, and fronds by creating sennit (the indestructible, coarse rope from the fibers of the coconut husk) food containers, hula drums, fans, children's toys, rods, tools, and so much more. Not to mention the amazing coconut fruit (botanically known as drupe), which contains high protein and nutritious electrolyte water.       Today, these palms are more than just a symbol of the tropics. Coconuts and coco products have become so popular that an estimated 61 million tons of coconuts are produced and distributed throughout the world, each year! Coconuts are being used in the production of just about everything; in the construction industry, beauty products, as a fuel, in/as foo...

     Here in Hawaii we have an abundance of beautiful trees, with that comes a variety of tree pests. These pests steal life, nutrients, vigor and appearance often threatening structural integrity and forcing you to remove your once beloved tree. Some of the most notorious suspects found on Maui are: Stem Gall Wasp Kou Leaf Worm Spiraling White Fly Monkeypod Borer Beetle Lobate Lac Scale Eucalyptus Snout Weevil Eucalyptus Tortoise Beetle Blue Coconut Leaf Beetle Pacific Cockroach Beetle      Fortunately, there are treatment options if infestations are caught early enough which can save your tree(s) from needing removal.      Each pest has it’s own unique way of destroying the life of your tree(s), here are four examples from the above list. The stem gall wasp, found on Banyan trees, lays its eggs in the stems and small branches (not to be confused with the leaf gall wasp , which will not kill your tree, but is simply unattractive) leaving hol...

     The term “topping” means making cuts to tree branches that remove unacceptable amounts of foliage or making cuts in a place along the limb that is not suitable. In the arboriculture field it is a serious violation, yet somehow this bad practice still occurs islandwide!      Topping not only removes leaves that trees need for photosynthesis   (essentially taking away the hand that feeds) causing major stress, but also creates multiple wounds which become entry points for pathogens and pests.        Once topped, the ensuing burst of sucker growth is not structurally sound and susceptible to failure, meaning the branches are only attached on the outer layers of the tree and haven’t grown with the parent branch.   I recently went and looked at a pair of avocado trees (who doesn’t love avo?) that had been topped multiple times at different levels in order to keep ocean views. I had to explain to the owner that the old cuts had ...

     The majestic shade canopies of Monkey pod trees, beautiful flowers of ornamental trees, delicious fruits of mangos and coconuts; I could go on and on with appreciation for the vast variety of trees on the island. All trees must be cared for to ensure the legacy of growth and beauty remains for our future generations.      A certified arborist is an informed, equipped, and capable tree professional, exactly the kind of person you want to care for all your trees. Healthy, properly cared for trees add aesthetic, environmental, and economical value to a property, while on the other hand, poorly treated trees can be unsightly, shorten a trees lifespan, and be down right dangerous. To truly leave Maui in a better state than we found it not only requires tree care providers to adhere to international professional standards, but also our community to be informed as to the proper principles of tree care. The tree care field on Maui is progressing in the right d...