Green Hands of Aloha

My favorite gardening store in Hawaii. The staff is knowledgable and always helpful and I can afford their prices. Years ago when we decided to tear our our lawn and change it into a huge organic garden we came here for advise and supplies. Now we have every type of organic vegetable you can purchase in whole Foods in our own yard and the trees are full of fruit. I am so grateful for all of the advise and help.

There are two types of hydroponic retail stores in Hawaii– those that focus on produce and those that provide for hemp farmers. This one is clearly the later (marijuana hydroponic farmers).
Prices are actually wishy washy and changes often. Compared to the other two on Oahu I know about (Ohana Greenhouse right down the road and Hydroponics Hawaii in Kahala)… it really makes no difference in the end. They are more limited in supply. Not so customer service friendly. In fact when we got there during business hours, the door was locked and the sign said «closed.» And as we were pulling out, the guy opens the door, so we go in and he smells like pot. Great business!
I’d say of the 3 I know of, id only chose this location if I absolutely had no choice. Even hemp farmers can get better supplies, deals and at affordable options from and the other two.

The location is quite out of the way but the spot they are located on is actually cool and unforgettable (for me anyway).
The staff is actually really helpful even though the things I’ve asked for is out of their knowledge range or from what they usually stock but when asking for some of the specific things I need from the items I’m looking for, they do offer lots of alternative. I take those suggestions and researched them and found out that a lot of their suggestions were good alternative. I happily went back and forth over and over again to get what I need.
Different selection of soils and non-​soil substrates as well as different types of amendments and from what I’ve seen so far, in large quantities and cheap too! I was expecting to pay over a $ 100 for what I need but since it was cheap, I went ahead and got more than I need!
Honestly, whenever I look at their products, I don’t really have a clue how they work, even if I read the labels but it helps to take note of what you see and do research if they can’t answer all your questions. It seems like it contain a little bit of this, or little more of that, etc etc.
It’s nice to know there’s places I can go that is locally started and owned doesn’t involve large corporations or mainland franchises.
Will shop again!

Unfortunately, unlike the other reviewers, I did not have a good experience with this shop. I’m just beginning an organic garden (read: total novice) so I decided to start with checking the pH and nutrient balance of the soil of my yard. After going to Home Depot and finding out they were totally out of test kits, a quick search on my phone brought up Green Hands of Aloha as being a nearby. Called to ask if they had pH and nutrient tester kits, was told they had both, so did a quick bike ride over to their colorful shop.
When I got to the shop, a young man asked if I needed help finding anything, which I needed as I wasn’t entirely sure what the packaging for the tester kits would look like. When I told him what I was looking for, he told me that he was new and would ask the manager upstairs. He disappeared and soon an older gentleman came down and asked if he could help. I don’t know if it was my fault for not knowing more, but he seemed impatient, and when I asked him several questions as to how to use the pH test kit, the type he was selling me required collecting soil water runoff, instead of using the soil straight, like in the two books I’ve been reading about gardening, he rolled his eyes and gave me a terse response. They also only had PPM pens, which I had never heard of prior to seeing at their shop, when I asked how it worked, he said it tested parts per million, which seems rather obvious given the name, but didn’t explain, despite my asking two different ways, if the pen was suitable for my needs — to test the soil in my garden or was this strictly used for hydroponics. I ended up buying the pH test kit for 9.95, which at the time seemed a bit high for the small bottle of solution and little vial.
As I still needed a nutrient test kit, I headed to a few garden supply stores this morning, and ended up purchasing a nutrient test kit, which also included a pH test. The kit came out to $ 18.00 at Ohana Greenhouse and Garden Supply. I decided to return the unused pH kit. When I went back today, there was a new person working behind the counter. I explained to him I had found a kit that also tested pH, so I had no need for the kit. He was understanding that I wanted to return the pH kit which made the transaction easy and pleasant. When I showed him the receipt, he asked if I had bought anything else, since according to him, I had been overcharged. It was a little disconcerting to hear this. Maybe he just mixed up the price of two items?
I’m not sure if I just got the wrong group of sales people yesterday. I really don’t want to be overhasty in my review, especially given how positive other people’s reviews are. I will go back to their store at a later date and see if my experience is different and update here on Unilocal.At this point, I can not recommend this business if you are 1) a novice to gardening and 2) do not know how much the product you would like to purchase typically retails for.

I was so excited to find a real gardening shop open on Sunday. Not the we’ve-got-miracle-grow-soil-home-improvement-conglomerates, but a real store with real people who actually grow things using their products. I’ve reviewed the other two hydroponics stores on Oahu so if there are any other retailers of this type, let me know – I seem to be on a roll. But, as I said, these guys are open on Sunday and that is what brought me to them today.
They didn’t, actually, have the one product I was looking for (hit up Ohana Garden for that – but not on a Sunday, but only three blocks away – plus they’ve got soil discount Thursdays which I can never seem to get to), but talked with me about why they don’t carry it and what they prefer. Prices were similar so I decided to set up my own experiment. This is very exciting for me since all of my Hawaii experiments to date are either cuisine or cosmetics. This will be my first ag design.
Moreover, the store guy suggested a new-​to-​me bio-​bacteria-​esque product to help with an issue I had mentioned in passing that some of my plants were having. I wasn’t sure so he said, take this one for free; I guarantee you’ll be back to purchase it in the future. It felt mildly like a drug transaction (first taste free, then you’ll be addicted) which I found to be hilarious given that all of these shops are clearly 420 focused, but it was a deal I couldn’t refuse. Plus it turned my two-​sample means comparison design into a 2×2 factorial experiment. Gosh, that’s almost like real research!
I can’t wait to have my own space and farm and hydro growth set-​up. In the meantime, while I’ve just got a condo and cheap containers, thanks for all the suggestions and for expanding my retail power. You said you sell online, but since you’re open 7 days a week, I’ll just come in to the store if you don’t mind. Loyalty dilution and product competition. Whoo hoo! I love that you all love what you do.

This is my number one store for my hydroponic needs. The staff is always helpful and offers help if they can. With their help I was able to become much better at hydroponic growing.
If you need to know where to get your hydro supplies stop in and say hi. They offer classes and have give aways which shows you they are a cut above the rest. It’s not just about money these guys offer the best customer service possible.
If they had a frequent buyers club or rewards club that’s the only thing I personally feel they do not have… At least not yet. Kudos to the GHA crew.