Akaku: Maui Community Television launched a holiday fundraiser with The Permaculture Group (TPG), called “Support Local Voices, Buy Local Trees,” to encourage Maui residents to buy a living, native Hawaiian tree and decorate it for the holidays.

Proceeds from the sale of the live ha‘o trees, available for $50 each, will support Akaku’s community programs and raise awareness for TPG’s sustainable retail initiative, called “Planting Christmas.” After the holidays, the trees can be planted into soil to help support the numbers of native trees growing on the island. Each tree sold will come with care instructions and additional information.

The live ha‘o trees—the only Plumeria tree that is native to the Hawaiian Islands—are currently three years old and stand approximately four feet high. Once planted, they will take up to eight years to reach their full size, which can be around 20 feet tall and 15 feet wide.

“Because they thrive in drier, sunnier parts of the island, ideal locations for planting ha‘o are Upcountry, Kahului, Wailuku, Kihei and Lahaina,” said local land steward Joseph Imhoff of The Permaculture Group.

To order your tree this holiday season, call 871-5554, or visit Akaku: Maui Community Television at 333 Dairy Road, Kahului.