{"id":684,"date":"2026-05-28T20:38:12","date_gmt":"2026-05-28T20:38:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=684"},"modified":"2026-05-28T20:38:12","modified_gmt":"2026-05-28T20:38:12","slug":"kawamoto-orchid-nursery-a-hidden-gem-growing-in-palolo-valley","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=684","title":{"rendered":"Kawamoto Orchid Nursery: A hidden gem growing in Palolo Valley"},"content":{"rendered":"
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HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Tucked into P\u0101lolo Valley, down a narrow road off Waiomao Road, sits an orchid-growing operation with roots that go back generations.<\/p>\n

Read more County of Hawaii to hold earthquake recovery meeting<\/a><\/p>\n

Let\u2019s go holoholo to Kawamoto Orchid Nursery.<\/p>\n

\u201cStarted back with great grandpa, Patrick [Kawamoto],\u201d said Brandon Yasuda, the general manager at Kawamoto Orchid Nursery. \u201cIt started as a hobby when he was young.\u201d<\/p>\n

That hobby eventually grew into a business in 1947. Over time, the family expanded and relocated the nursery from M\u0101noa to P\u0101lolo\u2014moving operations to its current home about 50 years ago, in the 1970s.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

\u201cAnd eventually it got bigger and bigger and then he moved everything here,\u201d Yasuda said.<\/p>\n

The nursery remained a family-run operation through the decades. Yasuda said the business changed hands again in the mid-1980s.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd then around \u201985, my father-in-law and mother-in-law took it over,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd my brother-in-law was working here too.\u201d<\/p>\n

From one greenhouse to six<\/b><\/h4>\n

Kawamoto\u2019s first greenhouse was built in 1986. Today, there are six structures on the property\u2014spaces used for growing, showcasing, and shipping plants.<\/p>\n

The nursery\u2019s reputation also extended far beyond Hawai\u02bbi. Yasuda said Kawamoto orchids have been shown across the country.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe used to do shows all over\u2014Florida, New York\u2014and there\u2019s ribbons\u2026 all the awards,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

A longtime workplace\u2014and a point of pride<\/b><\/h4>\n

One of the nursery\u2019s longtime employees, Ruben Namnama, has been there since the 1980s.<\/p>\n

Read more Investigation launched following building AC units set a blaze in Mapunapuna<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cSo, until now\u2026 \u201986 to 2026, so been working long, long time,\u201d the worker said.<\/p>\n

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He said he learned the skills of orchid care on the job\u2014knowledge passed down from the Kawamoto family.<\/p>\n

\u201cI, I don\u2019t even know how to grow orchid before, but, second owner, Les Kawamoto, who teach me how to do the split, raise the plant, spray, everything,\u201d said Namnama. \u201cI do exactly that\u2019s like in the Philippines when you work farm.\u201d<\/p>\n

More than orchids<\/b><\/h4>\n

While orchids are central to the nursery, it\u2019s not the only thing growing there. Staff say visitors can also find a large selection of air plants, known as tillandsias.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt the bottom, we have a pretty big selection of air plants,\u201d Yasuda said. \u201cMaybe\u2026 over 50 types of air plants.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

For customers, the drawing is simple: variety and quality.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause I like it here,\u201d said customer, Mark Walker. \u201cIt\u2019s nice. They have lots of variety.\u201d<\/p>\n

Keeping a legacy alive<\/b><\/h4>\n

For the team at Kawamoto Orchid Nursery, it\u2019s more than just selling plants\u2014it\u2019s carrying on decades of work and family knowledge.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a sense of pride that we put into the plants and everything that we do here,\u201d Yasuda said.<\/p>\n

Kawamoto Orchid Nursery is open Monday through Saturday, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. It\u2019s located along Waiomao Road in P\u0101lolo Valley (look for the signs guiding you down the narrow road).<\/p>\n

Read more First Alert Forecast: Breezy winds persist today, lighter winds due over the weekend<\/a><\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Kawamoto Orchid Nursery is open\u00a0Monday through Saturday, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.\u00a0It\u2019s located along\u00a0Waiomao Road\u00a0in\u00a0P\u0101lolo Valley.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":683,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-684","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nKawamoto Orchid Nursery: A hidden gem growing in Palolo Valley - Hawaii Moving Insider<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=684\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Kawamoto Orchid Nursery: A hidden gem growing in Palolo Valley - 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