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Mountain High: The lush tropical landscape was placed along the perieter of the property, preserving its multimillion-dollar view.
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Everyone knows that the panoramic views from the slopes of Diamond Head come at high prices, some of the highest in the state. However, there are other costs and trade-offs, too.
The iconic landmark juts out from a prominent point along the eastern shore for all the world to see, but it is also a location that is buffeted by salty sea breezes and exposed to an unrelenting sun. Rain clouds float right over the crater and head toward the Koolau, leaving the area a virtual desert.
The views from Diamond Head are gorgeous. An up-close look at it is not so much so.
But instead of just a dry, barren hillside, the Diamond Head homeowners and their landscaper, Greg Lee of Landscapes by Tropical Images, saw opportunity. “With all of the dry brush along the slopes, we knew that if we put something nice and green down, it would really stand out,” says Lee of the home’s now lush backyard lawn. “Diamond Head is so prominent back here, there was no use creating something that would hide it or ignore it. Instead, we decided to do something that would stand as a contrast to it and complement it.”
If it is possible to overshadow the world-famous crater, Lee may have done so with his backyard oasis, which features a healthy, expansive lawn of el torro zoysia grass as well as a tropical landscape filled with xanadu philodendrun, ti plants, heliconia, red ginger, black kalo and even hapuu fern, normally a rainforest resident. The space, approximately 1,500 square feet, was once home to a much larger yard, but it didn’t look or feel that way. The backyard was crowded by overgrown trees and filled with debris.
Lee carved out an open space, heavily pruning the resident mango and plumeria trees as well as cutting away brush that obscured several of the property’s coconut palms. He then designed a landscape that placed leafy and lush tropical plants to the perimeter of the property. Lee put all the greenery behind a fluid landscaping border that takes the eye from the edges of the yard up toward the now-tidy coconut grove, mango tree and Diamond Head beyond.
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Welcome to Nuuanu: A mango tree and coconut palm provide ample shade for the home's tropical landscape featuring heliconia, red ginger and decorative kalo.
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“The homeowners wanted an area where their grandkids could play. The original yard was small, really small. When you push the plants to the outer edge of the property, you give the illusion of expansiveness,” says Lee. “And then we had the luxury of having those great old trees. They give great visual interest, so the eye has something to wander to. Then, of course, you have Diamond Head in the background, which offers so much contrast to all this green. It’s like having a Nuuanu landscape on the slopes of Diamond Head.”
Lee continued his Nuuanu transformation along the side of the home, off the home’s wide patio. Protected from the blazing sun are more tropicals, including red ginger, kupukupu ferns and more heliconias. As the landscape meanders to the sunny front of the house, with its large flagstone deck, lap pool and no shade, it is populated by plants that can withstand full sun exposure: bridal bouquet plumeria, dwarf Singapore plumeria, agapanthus, lariape and native the Hawaiian plant akia.
This landscape is even more understated than the one Lee created in the back. Again, the greenery is pushed to the sides, so it doesn’t obscure the space’s real star—the million-dollar view of Koko Head and the East Oahu shoreline.
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Desert Oasis: Once dry and barren, the home's backyard is now verdant and expansive.
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“The transition to full sun isn’t a real problem, just as long as you choose your plants wisely,” says Lee. “We needed something that would thrive in all this light and heat, but we also had to keep in mind that it might be heavily irrigated from time to time. Plumerias are really good at that. They’re very flexible.”
Lee even carried the tropical theme to the front of the house, which features a long, steep driveway and plenty of concrete. In planters along the side and in front of the house, he planted hula girl hibiscus, a stand of raphis palms and several allspice trees.
To the casual observer, Lee’s Nuuanu creation on the slopes of Diamond Head looks as natural and spectacular as, well, Nuuanu and Diamond Head. But the landscaper admits that it wasn’t as easy as it looks. It took a lot of hard work, planning and soil.
“When you’re working with terrain like this, it is so important to have the proper soil,” says Lee. “We trucked in about 60 cubic yards, about two semis full, of compost and mulch to fortify the soil here. It is so important for the long-term health of a landscape like this. You also end up using a lot less water as a result. You’d be surprised how little water it takes to make a landscape like this look good.”
