Kualoa Ranch!!

this week at kualoa ranch was a lot of fun but it also presented us with many challenges that we overcame. I had a lot of fun working in the lo`i getting muddy and clearing the streams. on the first day we had some people weeding out the lo`i, some clearing around newly placed native plants and I helped Makana (our sight manager) clear grass, shrubs and trees that were around the electric fence. the perimeter of the lo`i had an electric fence to keep out pigs and other animals. fortunately it was turned off while we were working so we didn't have to worry about getting shocked. the next day we all went up to a fenced in area in the back of the valley where there is an area that its reserved for the growing of rare plants. we had to remove a bunch of invasive plants such as clydemia that were competing with the native plants. one of the challenges that we came across was that we were working with a lot of small plants so we had to watch our steps so that we don't crush any native plants. we got around this by taking our time and working slower than normal but we still got done early and did more work than expected. this day was special because it was the first day that we did planting. we also did planting the next day when we went back to the lo`i. one of the main things that we planted was `ai`ai. this plant is a ground cover and likes very wet places. it grows and takes root fast and is perfect to hold the soil together. it grows so fast that it can grow across a river in a few weeks. on our last day, we worked at the kualoa fishpond. our work was to clean out gorilla ogo and other invasive limu from the north side of the pond. the work was hard but somehow enjoyable. I had a lot of fun during and after work. after lunch we spent a few hours on secret island. we did things like swim, paddle board, kayak, play ping pong and much more. it was so much fun and I didn't want to leave.

-Noah /cupcake