WAIMANALO, Hawaii — The Hawaii Department of Agriculture inspected Pua Lani Landscape Design twice after the Waimanalo landscaping business was embroiled in a Little Fire Ants controversy. During the inspections, LFA were not found in any plants at the company’s Waimanalo nursery, but the pests were found on the perimeter of the property.
At a Senate hearing on May 2, Hawaii senators called out Pua Lani Landscape Design for possibly contributing plants in February to Punahou Carnival’s plant sale that were infested with LFA. Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole said the company had been unresponsive and wanted the Hawaii Department of Agriculture to crack down, according to the Honolulu Civil Beat.
On May 7, Greg Culver, president of Pua Lani, released a statement saying his company was being used “as a scapegoat to distract from the State’s inability to manage Little Fire Ants on a statewide basis.” Culver also said the HDOA has no evidence connecting his landscaping company to the LFA at the Punahou Carnival.
LFA are tiny ants with extremely painful stings. Native to South America, LFA have become widespread throughout the state after first being discovered on Hawaii Island 25 years ago.
The HDOA’s first inspection of Pua Lani took place on May 10 “with the full cooperation of the nursery,” according to a news release. HDOA’s inspectors placed 630 bait vials about 10-feet apart across the company’s 4-acre nursery.
Little Fire Ants were not found in plants in the production area. However, LFA were found in some areas along the perimeter of the nursery and near a storage structure. The nursery then treated those areas with an approved pesticide.
A follow-up inspection was conducted on May 20. Inspectors focused on the perimeter this time, finding only one spot on the edge of the property near a stream that had LFA.
HDOA provided Spectrum News Hawaii with the following maps of the surveys:
Inspectors also surveyed the area across the stream, finding more LFA in that area. HDOA said it would follow up with the landowners on the opposite side of the stream and other surrounding properties.
HDOA will inspect Pua Lani’s nursery again in about a month.
"No LFA, at any time, were found in our plant material, propagation area, greenhouse or potting areas," Pua Lani said in an email to Spectrum News Hawaii.
"Our nursery is surrounded by fallow land and a state-owned stream," Pua Lani continued. "Most people realize that the fallow lands in agricultural areas do have LFA. We have a program in place to constantly treat our perimeter areas. We also have no plant materials located within 25-feet of our property's perimeters. When the HDOA personnel were last at the property, on Monday, May 20, 2024, they rechecked the perimeter areas and found no LFA. They also checked the stream areas because of the recent heavy rains and flooding last week and weekend. The HDOA did find LFA on the stream banks that had come down the stream from properties farther up toward the mountain."
After HDOA found LFA on the bank of the stream, Pua Lani said they treated the area to control the LFA from coming onto their nursery property.
Sen. Keohokalole released a statement Wednesday: “It is encouraging to hear that the HDOA and Pua Lani are finally working together. It should not have taken four months and a Senate investigation to get here.”
Michelle Broder Van Dyke covers the Hawaiian Islands for Spectrum News Hawaii. Email her at michelle.brodervandyke@charter.com.
Editor's note: This story was updated to include two maps of the survey areas at Pua Lani provided by the Hawaii Department of Agriculture. (May 27, 2024)