The National Tropical Botanical Gardens History

As the first and only tropical botanical garden to be chartered by the United States Congress, the National Tropical Botanical Garden (NTBG) positioned itself in 1964 as a not-for-profit institution dedicated to tropical plant research, conservation and education. Originally called the Pacific Tropical Botanical Garden until the acquisition of The Kampong in Florida, a 1988 Congressional legislation amendment resulted in a name change to the National Tropical Botanical Garden.

With a charter and mission in hand, the founding Trustees and other supporters of NTBG began looking for a location for its first garden. A number of sites in the Hawaiian Islands were discussed, before the 171-acre Lawa‘i Garden, which eventually became the larger McBryde Garden, was selected in 1970.

Understanding that in order to become a leader in the preservation of rare and endangered species, the Trustees determined that a network of gardens was required and should encompass different ecosystems and environmental conditions in order to grow and preserve a broader range of tropical plants.

As a result, by 1972, the development of a garden site outside the town of Hana on the Hawaiian island of Maui began. Drawn to the large native Pandanus forest fringing the property and the major archaeological and cultural feature of Pi‘ilanihale, designated a National Historic Landmark, the gift and purchase of the two parcels was completed in 1974. The annual rainfall in the area, as well as deep rich soils, made the new garden an ideal place to plant species from the humid tropics. In honor of the donor family, whose roots dated back to the days of Hawaiian chiefs, the garden was named Kahanu Garden.

Limahuli Garden was under the attentive care of Juliet Rice Wichman and her family for many years before gifting it to NTBG in 1976. Complementing the drier Lawa‘i Garden, Limahuli held extensive archaeological sites of ancient taro terraces built by some of the earliest Polynesian settlers on the island. The name “Limahuli” means “turning hands,” honoring the original inhabitants’ agricultural efforts. In 1994, the nearly 1,000-acre Limahuli Preserve was also gifted to the institution.

The Kampong, located in Florida, began in the early 1900s not as a botanical garden, but as a personal collection of ornamental, edible and ethnobotanical (the use of plants in various cultures) plants by renowned explorer/horticulturist Dr. David Fairchild. Dr. Catherine Sweeney, the subsequent owner of The Kampong, continued to develop the collection in the same spirit expanding and diversifying the Garden’s collections, and eventually gifting the Garden to NTBG in 1984, the same year it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Once a retreat of Hawaii’s Queen Emma, Allerton Garden was developed by Robert Allerton and his adopted son, John Gregg, on land purchased in Lawa‘i Valley in the late 1930s. The two created an exquisite garden of landscape beauty and design, which later was placed in a trust to perpetuate the garden legacy. NTBG officially assumed management of the Allerton Garden for the Allerton Gardens Trust in the early 1990s.

While creating its network of gardens, NTBG also leased land on which it built four buildings to provide space for the Garden’s first director and small staff, the organization’s library, a temporary visitors center and museum. Intern housing was later added to accommodate students enrolled in the Garden’s educational courses.

By 1992, construction of a new education center had just begun and the organization was looking forward to establishing its first permanent visitors center and gaining momentum in the local, national and international horticulture/botany community. In addition to being a leader in the preservation of rare and endangered species, NTBG was building an array of internships, undergraduate and graduate programs and courses, as well as establishing the world’s largest breadfruit collection at Kahanu Garden and gaining numerous accolades for published NTBG scientists and researchers. Lawa‘i Garden, Allerton Garden, and Kahanu Garden all established visitor programs, with member visits to Limahuli Garden. In the meantime, The Kampong continued to be a living classroom for university courses in tropical horticulture.

Unfortunate destruction came that year when Hurricane Andrew hit The Kampong; a few weeks later Hurricane Iniki struck NTBG headquarters and its three gardens on Kaua‘i. Intern housing and the visitors center were destroyed. Other activities ceased while the Garden concentrated on saving the plants and recovering from the damage. Staff from all departments concentrated their efforts on restoring the gardens.

With the incredible efforts of NTBG’s Trustees, staff and volunteers, the gardens were restored and the first education center at headquarters was built-the third building of the headquarters campus. The transformation of a 10-acre lot on the south shore of Kaua‘i into a visitors center included the award-winning restoration of a sugar plantation supervisor’s house and the development of thematic gardens.

In 2000, Lawa‘i Garden became the McBryde Garden, a milestone for NTBG. This dedication, resulting from a gift of endowment, honors the descendants of the family who once grew sugar cane in the Valley. In addition, research and education programs were expanded and NTBG’s Breadfruit Institute was established.

As a repository of Hawaii’s cultural and botanical heritage and of its people, NTBG has strengthened its commitment to native plant conservation and habitat restoration. While NTBG has long been conducting ethnobotanical research, new emphasis has been placed on perpetuating traditional knowledge. Most of the gardens have increased their original acreage and built additional facilities, including the more than 16,000-sq. ft. Conservation and Horticulture Center in the Lawa‘i Valley, as well as a dormitory and classroom laboratory at The Kampong. Other facilities are currently under construction or in the design/funding stages, including the Botanical Research Center, which will fulfill the Garden’s long-held vision.

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