4 November 2023

Six members and friends of II Chapter 56 were treated to a guided tour of the Africa section of the 200 acre crater where plants grow on 60 acres of the inner slopes.  Koko Crater, one of the last active volcanoes on Oahu, was formed 100,000 yeas ago.  The terrain is ash and tuff solidified into layers of cinder that eventually became sedimentary rock.  The climate within the crater is hot and dry, which is ideal for dry land plants, but the group was blessed with cool trade winds.  There are ten plants indigenous to Africa in this section of the garden, several of which are becoming extinct in Africa due to lack of rain.  Many of these plants provide medicine, food and fiber to the people and animals of Africa.