All posts tagged: roselle

Holiday traditions: Winter in Hawaii

Most people don’t think of Hawaii as having seasons, but it does.  They are just more subtle than in the less equatorial regions.  In winter the air is cooler.  Rain washes in and out in a matter of minutes.  Certain trees bloom, and others don’t.  The christmas tree bushes are loaded with bright red berries, perfect for making wreaths. Every year in September or October my parents would plant roselle bushes.  Also called rosajamaica or jamaica, roselle is a relative of hibiscus, and what you are drinking when you have hibiscus tea.  You also see roselle tea in taqueries. By December the red stems of the roselle bushes would be laden with fat red rosettes, ready to be boiled and sweetened with honey to make the most delicious, bright pinky-red seasonal drink. Some years we would have so much roselle that we would string them into garlands to wrap around the tree. Storms are more frequent in December, meaning that the streams around my parents farm would swell with water, and come rushing down in …