Come celebrate the holiday season at our Christmas Potluck at Camp Pecusa on Sunday, December 19 from noon to sunset. Located in Olowalu, the Camp has plenty of space for kids, and a wonderful snorkeling beach with great kayaking near shore. We'll be grilling hot dogs and chicken. Also, we'll have our new NHPS teeshirts featuring makaloa and Hawaiian stilts by Anna Duvall, available at the party. Just the Christmas present you've been looking for. Call Linda Nelson at 661-4303 for details.

Remember, you can cut your own Christmas tree and help remove an alien species from Haleakala National Park by helping clear pines from Puu Niauniau on Saturday, December 18. Call Forest Starr at 572-2352 for more information.

Join NHPS on January 27, 2000 at 6 PM for a workshop on the Propagation & Sale of Threatened/Endangered Plants. It will be held in the Cooperative Extension Service's meeting room at Maui Community College. State Botanist, Vicki Caraway, will explain the new state regulations concerning endangered species and how they will affect both professional nurseries, landscapers, and homeowners. Our co-sponsors for this free workshop are the State Division of Forestry and Wildlife and Maui Community College . For more information call 876-1813.

7 PM, Friday, February 25, 2000, Tavares (Upcountry) Community Center, Pukalani

Our first public meeting of the millenium will feature the fabulous native plants and birds of MIDWAY ATOLL AND THE OTHER NORTHWESTERN HAWAIIAN ISLANDS, a slide presentation by Kim Martz and Forest Starr who recently returned from a three month stint as volunteers there. Before the show we'll have our annual meeting to elect the 2000 Board of Directors and ratify the amended bylaws. ( A copy of the amended bylaws is available at the Kahului Library for review)

2000 promises to be an exciting year for NHPS. We will expand our efforts at dry forest preservation with a new project at Puu o Kali below Kula. The Puu o Kali area is being heavily impacted by axis deer and the remnant dry forest found there is being literally eaten away. We will be part of a team headed by Art Medieros, USGS/Biological Resources Division(BRD) biologist, that will fence 200 acres of the best remaining forest there. We also work with Art on forest restoration in Auwahi. How exciting to be a part of figuring out how to bring a threatened forest back to life! Then there's Kealia Pond. NHPS will celebrate National Wildlife Refuge month next October with a volunteer day at the Pond.

Usually the newsletter includes a volunteer project schedule for members for the second Saturday of each month. We'll change that this year. The combination of continuing leeside drought and new projects makes scheduling for a whole year impossible. Instead, we'll put the information on our voicemail at 877-7717, It's especially important that you check the volunteer box when you renew your membership so that we can contact you. Thank you all for your support through the year and let's work together to make 2000 a great year for native plant preservation. Aloha, Linda Nelson

Miconia, a major threat to native wet ecosystems, will now have another team giving it pursuit, in addition to the Hana miconia crew funded by Maui County. The MISC crew recently accompanied me on a miconia scout/control trip through the rough terrain of Nahiku, proving their hardiness and keen eye to detect miconia in dense jungle.

Other pests this crew will attempt to contain, or even eradicate, include the noisy Caribbean frog, ivy gourd, and wild pampas grass. With a field crew of 5 full time staff, it’s expected that the MISC ‘Swat Team’ will accomplish a lot within their limited one year of funding. Only through lobbying and letters to the State legislatures (from citizens like YOU!) will any funding be renewed for the future. Dr. Lloyd Loope, Research Scientist for USGS-BRD at Haleakala National Park, sums up how many Mauians perceive the need for a group like MISC: " The majority of Maui residents understand the threat of alien species’ introduction not only to natural areas, but to agriculture, health, the visitor industry, and the quality of life for all of us." For more information on the Maui Invasive Species Committee, call 579-2115.

Congratulations to one of Maui's own. Long-time conservation activist Mary Evanson, has been recognized by the National Sierra Club with the Barbosa Grant for conservation advocacy. Mary has 'fought the good fight' on such issues as the Kahului Runway Extension moratorium and Keopuolani Park drainage problems. She created the non-profit Maui Nui Botanical Gardens and helped to found NHPS and the Friends of Haleakala National Park.

Started by NHPS founder Rene Sylva in 1983, Gressitt Sanctuary was our oldest project. Several hundred plants were put there, from koas to naupaka. Everything changed in February, 1998, when a wildfire burned 90% of the Sanctuary. Although most of our plantings were destroyed, the Board took a "wait-and-see" approach. We would wait until October 1999, when our lease came up for renewal, to make a decision whether or not to continue the project. Would the plantings resprout or recover? Would weeds take over bare areas? On a site visit in October, we found few natives recovering and aggressive weeds covering much of the Sanctuary. With regret, we decided that the Sanctuary's problems were overwhelming and to not continue working there. We will , however, periodically monitor our surviving plantings. Also, the Kapalua Nature Society, will make memorial plantings of native species throughout the site.

The Maui Botanical Gardens development project is a partnership between

Maui Nui Botanical Gardens, Inc. , the Tri-Isle Resource Conservation &

Development Council, Inc. and the County of Maui. The master plan for

the project was completed in January of this year. The garden has also

been identified as the Cultural Learning Center for Maui by the Bishop

Museums’, Native Hawaiian Culture & Arts Program. All the necessary

start-up funds have been encumbered and we are ready to begin. The

final hurdle will be approval of the lease by the County Council. If

all goes well, we could begin the project as soon as February of 2000.

If you are interested in testifying or writing in support of the project

please contact me for more information. Lisa Schattenburg-Raymond

876-1813

EXCLOSURES REPORT by Richard Nakagawa

AUWAHI: The construction of a new exclosure which will contain an impressive number of different species is a major project at Auwahi. When completed, it will safeguard a significant number of the very rare endangered Melicope adscendens plants. We wish to thank all those involved in the building of this very difficult fence. Also of importance is our continued support of the USGS/BRD project near our exclosures which will include weed control and out planting. As stated in previous newsletters, the the combined efforts of numerous people and organizations are critical to the survival of this unique native forest.

AWIKIWIKI and HIBISCUS BRACKENRIDGEI: Because of the dry year in leeward areas, work at our dryland exclosures was scaled back mostly to monitoring the sites. The major projects at the H. brackenridgei exclosure were controlling the very stubborn weed Panicum maximum (guinea grass), and building a foot path to insure safe footing and reduce rock slides.

Many mahalos to:

Eda Kinnear and her dedicated crew for the beautiful native plant garden in the Kahului Library courtyard. It's a serene, lovely place to sit with a good book.

Our public meeting speakers Paul Higashino, for his informative update on the Kaho'olawe restoration project, and to Dr. Sam Gon III for his inspirational overview of the native Hawaiian attitude towards the natural world

Maui Coffee Roasters and Cook Kwee's Maui Cookies for providing the dandy refreshments at our public meetings

Maui Land and Pineapple Company for use of their conference room for our Board meetings and for their support of conservation on Maui

Mahealani Kaiaokamelie and his hard-working crew for fencing our new Auwahi exclosure, protecting Melicope adscendens and other rare native species

MEMBERSHIP

It's time to show your support for protection of Maui's native plants by renewing your annual NHPS membership. Simply fill out the membership form in this newsletter and return it with your check. Be sure to check 'I would like to volunteer' if you want to be contacted about ongoing projects.