Our History
Anuhea Flowers was established in early 1994 when Bill and Judy Mertens leased 12.5 acres in beautiful upcountry Maui, Hawaii from a family they’d met through working in the Pineapple business together. They had a large acreage and were anxious to diversify from just cattle grazing and give Bill a chance to grow the flowers in a new environment and to ensure a future agricultural environment for their land. Bill chose Kings, Pin 24’s, Safari Sunset, Pink Ice, and May Days as his initial crops, and it was quickly evident they would flourish. In the ensuing years, he diversified into about 25 other varieties of protea and became a major supplier of protea from Hawaii. The first major harvest took place in 1996 with 195,000 stems harvested that year. By 1999, they were one of the larger producers of Hawaiian protea.
In those years, Anuhea Flowers supplied major wholesalers on Maui, harvesting thousands of flowers on Sunday, bringing them into the packing shed, grading, counting them into groups, and loading up trucks to deliver them to various locations in upcountry Maui on Sunday evening.
In addition to the wholesale business, Bill’s wife, Judy developed the retail portion of the business. She designed and developed a line of long stem gift boxes, arrangements, and wreaths to be shipped all over the United States that have gained a following with their popularity.
Bill and Judy retired in September 2018 and left their legacy to Emily and Tasha to carry on along with their loyal crew. They were trained and worked under Bill and Judy and are proud to carry on their work and the same Aloha Spirit with every flower that leaves the farm.
The Farm Today
Today, the farm is operated by Em and Tash and their small crew of three people. They love what they do and love being able to share that with you. They take pride in being able to carry on the legacy that Bill and Judy have left. Em and Tash incorporate all the experience and training given to them by the previous owners and have infused it into a new energy and continued love for the Aina. Anuhea Flowers is in a state of regrowth as they replant and cultivate the land to be the large protea farm Anuhea Flowers once was. Honoring the floral arranging and wreath making techniques of Judy and adding in their own flair, continuing to offer the staples along with new and exciting seasonal options and designs. Working together with their dedicated crew, our goal is to bring you the highest quality selections as we harvest and arrange your orders with Aloha.
Learn more about our story and the farm today (here).
We are passionate about what we do. We love bringing you the freshest and most beautiful protea and floral arrangements that Maui has to offer.
Maui is such a unique and special place and offers an abundance of beautiful flowers, like the protea. We love that we can bring you the most special and beautiful protea the island has to offer.
Meet Your Growers
Anuhea Flowers is made up of the two owners along with three employees to harvest, grade, and prepare our protea for delivery to our customers. They assist in assuring you the finest and best grown protea possible. Our staff has been with Anuhea Flowers for many years, and we are thankful for their loyalty and dedication to doing their best to ensure that only the finest quality flowers leave our farm for both retail and wholesale sales.
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