{"id":1111,"date":"2026-04-07T09:16:37","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T00:16:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/secondnature-hawaii.com\/blog\/agroforestry-connecting-mountains-sea-and-peoples-livehood\/"},"modified":"2026-04-09T15:58:15","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T06:58:15","slug":"agroforestry-connecting-mountains-sea-and-peoples-livehood","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/secondnature-hawaii.com\/en\/blog\/agroforestry-connecting-mountains-sea-and-peoples-livehood\/","title":{"rendered":"Agroforestry connecting mountains, sea, and people’s livehood"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Just as we thought we were finally enjoying a warm, sunny weekend in the first week of April, a heavy rain advisory has been issued again for this weekend. This year\u2019s rainy season in Hawaii felt longer than usual, and temperatures seemed lower than normal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In March of this year, in particular, a back-to-back large Kona low-pressure systems brought more than two weeks of heavy rain and frequent flood warnings across the Hawaiian Islands.

While Hawaii typically receives heavy rainfall around February and March, marking the end of the rainy season, this year\u2019s downpours were record-breaking\u2014the heaviest in 20 years. According to reports, Hawaii\u2019s total rainfall in March exceeded 2 trillion gallons, which is equivalent to 3 million Olympic-sized swimming pools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The damage from the torrential rains was particularly severe in rural areas of Maui and Oahu\u2019s North Shore, and many farmers still have no clear path to recovery. We are at a loss for words to express our sympathies. After seeing the news reports of this damage, many friends contacted us to ask if Second Nature Farm was okay. Thank you very much for your concern. Although some vegetables and flowers were affected, we were so fortunate that the damage was minimal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Blooming
Flowers\u2019 general names clockwise from upper-left: Hibiscus variety, Spathoglottis, Gardenia variety, Meyers Lemon, Yesterday-Today-Tomorrow, Kula Gardenia, Lantana variety<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The day after the Kona low-pressure system passed, I felt so grateful on the farm. While the stream currents were stronger than usual and the soil was quite muddy, the taro fields, main plots, and chicken pens were unharmed, and spring flowers were filling the entire farm with their fragrant scent.
Looking up, I saw rainwater streaming down from the mountain peaks, creating nearly 20 white streaks resembling waterfalls on the mountainside. These \u201cwaterfalls\u201d only appear when there is exceptionally heavy rainfall. Gazing up at that rare, ethereal scenery, I put my hands together in gratitude, thinking that the Ko\u2019olau mountains and the forest had protected us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Rare
Rare waterfalls on the Ko\u2019olau mountains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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