LIHUE — Moringa is just one of the more than 25 different tree species that will be available at the 10th Annual Arbor Day Tree Giveaway set for Saturday at Kukui Grove Center. The event, hosted by the Kauai Landscape
LIHUE — Moringa is just one of the more than 25 different tree species that will be available at the 10th Annual Arbor Day Tree Giveaway set for Saturday at Kukui Grove Center.
The event, hosted by the Kauai Landscape Industry Council, is a chance for every household that attends to take home up to three trees, free of charge.
“We’ve worked pretty hard to get more diversity in the plants than we’ve had before,” said Amanda Skelton, with KLIC. “They’re mostly smaller trees; most homeowners can’t put a 60-foot tree in their yard.”
The trees will be available in Kmart’s back parking lot. Gates open at 9 a.m. An estimated 1,200 plants will be given away until noon, or until they’re all gone.
“We have a handful of fruit trees, and they’re always popular,” Skelton said. “We also have some native plants, and a few that are fairly rare.”
Learning about trees is the theme of the Arbor Day event, and in order to take home those three plants, attendees obtain stamps from educational booths.
“Basically, once the gates open, people walk through the educational booths, and after that there’s the keiki area, and then the master gardener area, and then, after that, there’s the plants,” Skelton said.
Usually attendees begin lining up about 20 minutes before the gates open, and the tree species are doled out on a first come, first served basis.
“So, they get one free tree for showing up, and then they stop at the booths and people stamp their cards. Once they get nine stamps, they can go pick up their trees,” Skelton said.