Hawaii Magazine
See Some of the Rarest Plumeria in the World on this North Shore Farm Tour
Little Plumeria Farms on Oʻahu’s North Shore is every plumeria lover’s dream.
By Kevin Allen
May 8, 2023
A Little plumeria creation. Photo: Courtesy of Little Plumeria Farm
Jim Little has been in the Hawaiʻi plumeria business for 50 years. Growing and cross-pollinating plumeria—known in Hawaiian as melia—since 1973, as Jim Little Nursery & Farms, Little has produced some of the most vibrant, fragrant and unique plumerias in the world. From ruffled flowers to plumeria in stunning shades of red and yellow, these are not your average lei flower but works of art. And now, after five decades of growing his crop, visitors and locals can visit Little Plumeria Farms during weekly farm tours led by his son, Clark Little—you may have heard of him—and Clark’s son, Dane Little.
So how did three generations of Littles end up deciding to share the farm with others? It all started with Dane, who after returning home from college wanted to give something new a shot and began helping his grandfather sell plumeria seeds on eBay. And he learned how to farm and cross-pollinate from his grandfather. Seeing that his son was interested in the business, Clark Little—yes, the famous shorebreak and ocean photographer—also got on board, and before long the three Littles got to work getting the farm ready for tours with the idea of spreading aloha and the beauty of the land with others.
Preparing the farm, however, was no easy feat and involved some hard labor. The Littles had their hands full on a two-year project that included the removal of invasive trees and species that had taken root on the farm, as well as putting in a driveway and automated irrigation systems. Fortunately, the hard work paid off. They started up their tours on May 1, 2023—Lei Day—and going by the smiles on their faces, tourgoers couldn’t have been more pleased.
Public farm tours are an hour long and give guests a chance to stroll around the plumeria farm with Dane or Clark as they talk about some of the rare and one-of-a-kind hybrid plumerias on the property. The scent of plumeria fills the air around the farm and visitors will likely smell the place before they even get there. And once they do, their visual senses are treated to panoramic views of Oʻahu’s North Shore, from Mokuleʻia all the way down to Haleʻiwa. The Littles also teach tourgoers about the various stages of plant growth in their nursery, where they crossbreed plumeria and produce seedlings. They won’t know what the actual flowers from any crossbreeding will look like for two to five years after planting.
The view of the North Shore from Little Plumeria Farm.
