Early photographs of Hawai'i often betray an odd little secret: There weren't many trees in the Islands.

Hillsides were denuded, urban areas were barren and once-forested upland areas in many cases were dominated by a few old trees and very few new ones.

Reasons for this were several, including the extensive cutting of wood for fuel, and free-roaming cattle that munched seedlings to the ground before they could grow into saplings.

The impacts that were recognized early on include erosion and damage to the watershed. Bare hillsides dumped muddy water into streambeds and onto reefs. The mountains were no longer producing stream flows as consistent as they once had been.

Sugar planters, for whom water was critical, launched one of the early reforestation programs.

Another of these early programs was Arbor Day, observed for the first time in the territory of Hawai'i 100 years ago on Nov. 3, 1905, with the strong support of Gov. George Carter.

The government nursery distributed tree seedlings to schools on six islands. Kids learned tree songs and trees were planted in many areas, particularly on school campuses. Although some Polynesian-introduced trees were planted, the emphasis was on strong species from outside the Islands.

The state Division of Forestry and Wildlife's Kaulunani Urban and Community Forestry Program dug up data on some of the school's activities in planning the Arbor Day centennial celebration in Hawai'i.

At what is now McKinley High School, Carter participated in the planting of a breadfruit tree. At Kipahulu School on Maui, students put in nine coconut trees. Other schools, including the Kamehameha girls school, favored ornamental trees such the poinciana and golden shower varieties.

Oahu College, now Punahou School, planted several sections of land with different kinds of trees, all of them imported species. They included regular orange poinciana, yellow poinciana, eucalyptus robusta, Monterey cypress, grevillea and java plum.

In the second year of the school tree-planting program, Hawai'i's deposed queen, Lili'uokalani, went to Maui to oversee the planting of trees on the public school campus at Lahainaluna.

When the students had completed their plantings, the queen planted the last tree herself: a royal palm.

If you have a question or concern about the Hawaiian environment, drop a note to Jan TenBruggencate at P.O. Box 524, Lihu'e, HI 96766 or jant@honoluluadvertiser.com. Or call him at (808) 245-3074.