Maui's Keanae Arboretum

On the wildly twisting but beautiful road to Hana, the Keanae Arboretum near mile marker 16 is a pleasant stop.  You get to stretch your feet and see some of the 150 or so tropical plants; the mosquitoes get to eat.  With good trails and swimming hole in the Piinaau Stream, this place is more recreational than instructional when compared to the best tropical gardens in Hawaii.  Here's a few pictures from the place:

Above left: A Torch Ginger from Mauritius.  Above right:  A Peruvian Heliconias.  Below, a Monstera from Central America.  This plant climbs up as high as 100' on a host tree.  Its fruit is that long pine cone that contains a banana-like pulp inside that needs to be eaten with a fork.  Only eat it when its ripe; unripened fruit from the Monstera will burn your mouth.

Left and above: an unidentified flower -- email me if you know what this is.

Below: Red gingers from Indonesia.

Left: Another identified flower (but probably a ginger).  Above the Queen Emma Spider Lily.

Below: Ti plants leading to a hiking trail through the rain forest.  The Arboretum sits on the east (windward and wet) shore of Maui.