WHERE: Harold J. Lyon Arboretum, University of Hawaii, in Mänoa Valley.

Among the many spectacular plants currently in bloom at the Lyon Arboretum is the Zingiber spectabile, Zingiberaceae, or "beehive ginger."

Creamy, yellowy, pinky to dark red, the beehive ginger in the arboretum's Fern Valley blooms May through November. Native to Malaya, it can grow up to 8 feet tall, emitting a "strong gingery fragrance."

Hiking trails snake throughout the arboretum's 190 acres brimful of heliconias, bromeliads, gingers, spices, herbs and dozens of native and exotic tree species. More than 650 species of palm trees, one of the world's largest collections, thrive here in Mänoa Valley's ideal conditions.

Part of Lyon Arboretum's mission is conservation. A seed bank for storage and a plant micropropagation lab have been established to rescue endangered Hawaiian plants. Another mission is sharing knowledge; scholars from anthropology, biology, botany, culinary arts, engineering, geography, Hawaiian studies, horticulture and zoology come to this outdoor laboratory for research or teaching.

Interested in plants? Check out the Arboretum's community calendar of classes, talks and workshops. Or, simply spend an afternoon enjoying nature.

If you go: The gardens are open for self-guided tours 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Mondays-Fridays and 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturdays. The arboretum gate locks at 4 p.m. The arboretum is closed on Sundays and public holidays.

Guided tours: One-hour guided tours are Mondays through Fridays, at 10 a.m. $5. Call 988-0461 at least 24 hours ahead of time to reserve a space.

2009 Plant Sale: Lyon Arboretum's annual plant sale is 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Nov. 21 at the arboretum, 3860 Mänoa Road. Pick up colorful ti, gingers, heliconias, tillandsias, native Hawaiian plants, bromeliads and holiday wreaths. 988-0456, www.hawaii.edu/lyonarboretum.