1925 Manoa Residence – “A Dream Come True”
Posted on Jun. 30, 2025 / Sustainability, Edible Landscapes / Subscribe 0
By: Dana Anne Yee
Figure 1. 1925 Manoa Residence "A Dream Come True".
Functional, attractive, and charming-these adjectives best describe this once simple landscape, now transformed into a sustainable, edible, healing garden of wonder.
QUALITY OF DESIGN:
Papayas, lemons, radishes, pomegranates, and tomatoes are some of the many fruits and vegetables that clients enjoy from these gardens. Now, they have so many fruits and vegetables to share! Remember when our Hawaiian backyard gardens were filled with fruit trees, and neighbors would get together to share the bounty of their abundant harvest? We must have had it right way back in the “good ‘ol days”. These simple traditional planting practices of planting edible plants currently, in landscape architectural terms, could be called “designing with sustainability”. The landscape of this historical 1925 Manoa home did just that. It brought back the feeling of an old Hawaiian landscape filled with fruit trees and edible plants. The owners could grow their bounty of plants in their gardens. Helping the owners have a sustainable garden with native Hawaiian plants and culturally significant plants, which also provided privacy, was some of the early concepts for the landscape design of this residence that the clients call home.
Figure 2. The landscape complements this historical 1925 Manoa home, and it has brought back the feeling of an old Hawaiian garden.
ENVIRONMENTAL SENSITIVITY AND SUSTAINABLE GARDENS:
Part of the meaning of sustainability is to provide sustenance and nourishment through the growing of edible plants. These functional gardens not only help to mitigate the heat island effect, but they also help to improve air quality by sequestering carbon. They provide ecological benefits that improve the well-being of the environment, which contributes to a healthy Manoa community.
THE CHALLENGE:
The challenge was to provide a sustainable garden through the planting of edible, native Hawaiian, and culturally significant plants, while also providing privacy from the adjacent neighbors.
Flowering Plumeria trees were located to create privacy from the street, while maintaining the beautiful view of the Ko`olau Mountain Range and complementing the mature Plumeria Trees of the neighbors. Native Hawaiian `Ōhia Lehua provided color and habitats for our native insects, and Lime, Lemon, Calamondin, Papaya, and Pomegranate Trees were some of the fruit trees planted. Planting vegetables and herbs brought a harvest of radishes, tomatoes, mint, basil, and lemon grass. Gardenias, Camellias, and Gingers are blooming profusely for flower arrangements.
Figure 3. Pomegranate, Meyer Lemon, Lime, Calamondin, Papaya, and Trees were some of the many fruit trees planted. On the right, lemongrass is used for cooking.
Figure 4. Yoga grass area off the lanai. Early planting of MacArthur Palms, Tahitian Gardenia, Monstera, and Dwarf Laua`e Fern has created a strong privacy screen.
NATIVE HAWAIIAN PLANTS:
Many native Hawaiian plants are planted throughout the gardens from Hapu`u, ‘Akia, `A`ali`i, Carex, `Ōhia in orange and red, Kupukupu Ferns, and Mamaki. Planting native Hawaiian plants created habitats for our native species and helped reduce water use.
FOOD GLORIOUS FOOD:
An upper terrace was transformed into a vegetable and herb garden with medicinal plants. A meandering path of black cinder separated spaces and shaped the garden plots for individual organic vegetables and herb harvesting. The planting was designed with a black cinder meandering walkway and semi-circle planting beds so that each plant is accessible. The location of the herb and vegetable garden was designed to be within view of the kitchen to inspire the owner’s cooking. With the rising cost of food, the clients are happy with their edible gardens.
Figure 5. An upper terrace was transformed into a vegetable and herb garden. The location of the herb and vegetable garden was perfect, with a view from the kitchen to inspire the owner’s cooking. Giant radishes were harvested.
DESIGN VALUE WITH COMMUNITY TOGETHERNESS:
It has not gone unnoticed that this quaint, charming house has helped to improve and revitalize the neighborhood. The new invigorating action of planting has brought a clamoring of the neighbors to see what was going on, which has led to other houses nearby to spruce up their gardens in this Manoa neighborhood. It was appreciated that the historical quality of this 1925 house was honored and maintained throughout this renovation.
TEAMWORK:
Teamwork was key to the success of this project. Wonderful clients allowed the landscape architect the freedom to design, from the caring landscape contractors, Craig M. Nakanishi, Eric Parker, and Takano Nakamura Landscaping, Inc., to the skilled arborists Steve Nimz, and the hardworking landscape maintenance crew from Takano Nakamura Landscaping led by Kevin Fujikawa, and additional maintenance by Benjamin Agonoy too. The project was revisited after one year to maintain, prune, and add plants to reinvigorate this beautiful growing environment. It is truly a garden that has enhanced the neighborhood.
Figure 6. Teamwork was key to the success of this project.
It might be a small property, but this quaint landscape feels like an oasis reminiscent of a small botanical garden.
The owner exclaimed, “You made my dreams come true”. Smiling Happy Clients! Who could ask for anything more! These gardens will bring years of enjoyment of constant growth and change, beauty and wonder, and an abundance of food!
©2025 Dana Anne Yee, all rights reserved.
Dana Anne Yee, FASLA, LEED AP, ISA Certified Arborist, RA, MOCA, City Planner, UH Master Gardener Emeritus, Mayor’s Arborist Advisory Committee, TRAQ from the firm of Dana Anne Yee, Landscape Architect, LLC. www.danaanneyee.com. Dana has been a presence in the Landscape Architectural profession and has a long-standing pattern of service to her profession and the community, served as President and currently Trustee of ASLA Hawai‘i. Dana was honored as a Fellow with the American Society of Landscape Architects in 2012. Dana has served as President and is currently an Advisor for the Friends of Honolulu Botanical Gardens, Vice-President for Scenic, Hawai‘i, Inc., Commissioner for the Mayor’s Office of the Culture and the Arts, and she currently serves as Vice Chair on the Mayor’s Arborist Advisory Committee. The Dana Anne Yee Foundation, www.day1foundation.org, is a 501(C)(3) non-profit corporation. The board of directors and members will continue in their commitment to serve and protect Hawai'i’s delicate ecosystem and natural environment in their pursuit to help to preserve Hawai‘i’s beauty and to keep our Hawai‘i green.
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