Photo courtesy Starwood Hotels & Resorts

Tajiri trees at Royal Hawaiian Hotel

Rock around a beautiful tree from Christmas Hawaii

With ornaments adorning and strings of lights aglow, Christmas trees are the proverbial holiday centerpiece for most family rooms. Whether the family gathering around the tree is a festive gang of four or an extended clan of guests at a fine Honolulu hotel, Richard Tajiri of “Richard Tajiri’s Christmas Hawaii” plays Father Christmas, providing custom holiday arbor for Hawaii’s homes and businesses.

“If you pick your own tree, you get better quality,” Tajiri says.

Tajiri ventured into the Christmas tree industry in 1976 while in Honolulu. A former tour bus driver, Tajiri and friends decided on the endeavor as a side business during the “slow months of November and December.”

“It was kind of a fluke,” he says of the start of Christmas Hawaii. “Then I went up to Oregon and learned tips from old timers (in the Christmas tree industry).”

Now a seasoned Christmas tree pro himself, Tajiri is savvy in the science of tree selection from the ground up. He’s passionate to the point of understanding the life span of a Christmas tree - “it takes a 7-foot tree 10 years to grow, and a 16-foot tree 25 years to grow,” he says - and can pinpoint exact areas in Oregon to find a specifically requested tree type. He begins hunting for trees in August, and saves harvesting them until Nov. 12, which allows for longer tree life.

It’s no wonder that elite hotels in Waikiki, including the Royal Hawaiian Hotel and Hyatt Regency, have entrusted their holiday tree needs to Tajiri’s expertise.

“Some of our customers have been buying trees from us for 20 years,” he says. “People like our quality.”

Tajiri’s trees can be custom-ordered and shipped from Oregon to Hawaii, with 10-foot trees costing $350, and 16-foot trees running $2,000 - both rates include freight charges. Or, Tajiri’s hand-picked tree selections can be purchased at the Christmas Hawaii lot, set up from November through December at Ala Moana Center.

Tajiri offers the following tips on selecting and caring for the perfect tree:

* If longevity of a tree is priority, Nordman trees and Noble firs are best. Nobles are also the “true decorating tree,” Tajiri says, “because its branches are good for hanging ornaments.”

* Fans of aromatic trees should select the Grand Fir, which Tajiri calls “the grand incense of Christmas for its pleasing scent.” Douglas Fir trees also offer that sweet holiday perfume and an added touch of nostalgia, as it was the first tree ever brought to Hawaii, according to Tajiri.

* For optimal tree maintenance, cut the bottom of the tree and place the tree in warm water within 24 hours to prevent its main source of absorption from sealing up. Trees not cut in that time frame can still be maintained by cutting notches on the side of the stump for water absorption.

* Invest in Vita, a preservative that adds life to trees.

* With adequate water and avoidance of harsh sunlight, trees can last until the New Year.

For more information on Richard Tajiri’s Christmas Hawaii, visit their website at www.christmastreesinhawaii.com