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Other Resources

There are many useful print and digital resources of significance to the flora of Hawaiʻi. One goal of Plants of Hawaiʻi is to aggregate those resources into the site when possible. Until that happens, or when that is not possible, we will list those resources here to aid those looking for a comprehensive resource on the flora of Hawaiʻi.

For native and naturalized flowering plants, the most significant resource is the printed Manual of the Flowering Plants of Hawaiʻi which was published in 1990 and reprinted in 1999. A companion website to the Manual is maintained by the Smithsonian Museum.

Many additions and updates to the flora of Hawaiʻi are recorded in the publications of the Hawaiʻi Biological Survey.

Information about native plant conservation can be found at

Important resources for information about invasive plant species include:

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For cultivated plants, several great resources are available including

  • A Tropical Garden Flora: Plants Cultivated In The Hawaiian Islands And Other Tropical Places, published in 2005 by George W. Staples’, Derral R. Herbst
  • A companion online Annotated Checklist of Cultivated Plants of Hawai‘i by Clyde Imada, George W. Staples, and Derral R. Herbst will soon be integrated into Plants of Hawaiʻi.

A comprehensive guide to Hawaii’s Ferns is Hawai‘i’s ferns and fern allies by Daniel D. Palmer, published in 2008

And for Mosses, Liverworts. and Hornworts, see the following:

  • A revised checklist of Hawaiian mosses published in 2004 by G. W. Staples, C. T. Imada, W. J. Hoe, and C. W. Smith
  • Checklist of Hawaiian Anthocerotes and Hepatics published in 2006 by G. W. Staples & C. T. Imada

Important works on Hawaiʻi’s marine algae (Seaweeds, Limu) were written by Dr. Isabella Aiona Abbott including:

  • Marine Green and Brown Algae of the Hawaiian Islands published in 2004
  • Marine Red Algae of the Hawaiian Islands

Several important publications on traditional knowledge and usage of plants in Hawaiʻi are available from the Bishop Museum Press including:

  • Lāʻau Hawai‘i: Traditional Hawaiian Uses of Plants by Dr. Isabella Aiona Abbott
  • Native Planters in Old Hawaiʻi available in print or ebook
  • Buke ʻOihana Lapaʻau me nā ʻApu lāʻau Hawaiʻi (Book of Medical Practices and Hawaiian Prescriptions), first printed in 1895 and reprinted in 2003,

Bishop Museum’s Hawaiian Ethnobotany Online Database, compiled by ethnobotanist, Dr. Heidi Lennstrom is online and will soon be integrated into Plants of Hawaiʻi.

Other great resources include: