This sprawling and clambering terrestrial or epiphytic cactus is a late bloomer.... literally. Known for its magnificent nocturnal flowers, Hylocereus undatus makes up for in blooms what it lacks in leaves. June through October is when it puts on its show, with the flowers beginning to open in the late afternoon, and wilting as day breaks. They truly are splendid - twenty-five or so centimeters of fragrant, creamy white petals with a yellow center. It has as many common names as it petals: panini o kapunahou, queen of the night, pitahaya, pitaya, dragon fruit, and strawberry pear for starters. It is widespread through Mexico, the West Indies, Central and South America, and is in cultivation worldwide. The story is that it was brought to Honolulu by Charles Brewer, the first mate on the Ivanhoe, who had picked it from Mexico en route to Hawaii. He gave a cutting of it to Sybil Bingham, who planted it around the Punahou campus in the 1830's. Today the hedge on the lava rock wall of the campus is over three hundred meters long, and brings many admirers when it blossoms. Hylocereus undatus produces a fruit that rivals its flower for beauty. It features red bracteoles tipped in green, and a white center studded with many small black seeds. The ones at Punahou are a bit smaller than those you'll find in the market, and some have a redder center. The flavor is mild and slightly sweet. |
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This morning brought me to the North Shore, and a fabulous walk to Ka'ena Point from the Mokule‘ia side. The westernmost tip of Oahu, Ka'ena Point has been known as the leaping off place for souls ready to be reunited with their loved ones. It's also a great place to get reunited with Hawaii's native plants, in one of the few protected coastal dune ecosystems we have. Today's post features a few of these plants that are living happily together in this sacred area, and as a side note, all of them are also growing on Kaho'olawe! 'Ohai, Sesbania tomentosa: Happy day to see this endangered, endemic plant thriving here. In this environment, its form is a sprawling shrub. One look at 'ohai and you can see it is in the pea family. The leaves are light grey-green that add such a beautiful color and texture contrast to the shinier and brighter green of the naupaka it was snuggled up against. The pop of red-orange of the flowers is icing on the cake. Pohuehue, Seaside Morning Glory, Ipomoea pes-caprae subsp. brasiliensis: The ultimate Hawaiian sunbather, this indigenous plant thrives in full sun on hot and sandy dunes. Its vining nature actually helps to control erosion, and its beautiful bell-shaped flower lasts but one day. The species name, pes-caprae, translates to goat foot, referencing the shape of the leaves. `Ilima papa, Sida falax: As with its fellow plants at Ka'ena Point, ilima papa is sun, drought, and wind tolerant. The light green leaves are thick and downy to preserve water, and they are as soft as can be! The beautiful yellow to orange flowers are delicate, and most striking when strung into a lei. In the 1920's, ilima was made the official flower of Oahu. Naupaka kahakai, Scaevola sericea: A real winner in the xeric plant category, this naupaka is hardy to the max, with thick and shiny leaves that help it to survive with little water. They have tiny whitish "half-flowers" that are followed by white, marble-like fruits. This indigenous species is the only one of the native naupakas to bear the white fruit; others have a purple fruit. Naio, Myoporum sandwicense: Along the beach, the endemic naio takes on a shrubby form, and is easily identified by its lance-like and fleshy leaves. The whitish to pinkish flowers are nestled close to the branches, bloom throughout the year, and may have a fragrance similar to that of sandalwood. In fact, this plant is also known as false sandalwood, as it was attempted to be passed off for the real thing when supplies of sandalwood dwindled. Cabbage on a stick, cabbage on a baseball bat: those are terms of endearment for the lovely and unusual endemic plants of the genus Brighamia. Though they may be found in tropical gardens and in nurseries, they are critically endangered in the wild here in Hawaii. There are two species: Brighamia insignis, called ‘ōlulu or ālula, with yellow flowers and coming from Kaua'i and Ni'ihau; and Brighamia rockii, pua ‘ala, with white flowers and hailing from Moloka'i. With the thick stem and sturdy leaves you'd be right in thinking they're succulents, and if you're growing them in your garden, they're not difficult as long as their feet aren't wet (and watch out for the slugs and snails, too!) They are usually three to ten foot high, rarely branching in cultivation, but can get as tall as sixteen feet. Found naturally on steep cliffs and rocky outcroppings, their design allowed them to hang on during the blustery trade winds, but even these guys couldn't withstand the intense winds of hurricanes 'Iwa and 'Iniki, when many of the plants in Kaua'i were lost. Other issues including feral goats and the suspected loss of its natural pollinator have been devastating for Brighamia insignis. The National Tropical Botanical Garden reports that there is only one plant believed to exist in the wild in Kaua'i, and none have been reported from Ni'ihau since 1947. Many plants are being cultivated at Limahuli and McBryde Gardens, and may be outplanted in the future. I appreciate how they have really stepped up to the plate for this great plant.
Today's post celebrates the wiliwili, Erythrina sandwicensis, or Hawaiian coral tree, an endemic tree so rich in history and with so many interesting twists (yes, wili means twist), I was inspired to share what I have learned about it. First, it's the only member of its genus to be native here. It is also one of the few native trees that is deciduous, losing its leaves when in bloom, often in the late spring and summer, though reports on this vary. Yet another unusual feature is it's spiky trunk, which become less pronounced as the tree matures. You'll find it on the leeward slopes, from sea level to about 2000 feet, as it prefers dry habitat. Leaflets are wider then they are long, and come in groups of three. The seed pods usually hold one to three stunning orange to red seeds (color variation is possible) which are used in lei making. Wiliwili means to twist and twist, referring to the way the pod winds opens to expose the seeds. Flowers are clustered, curved and come in a variety of colors including greenish-white, yellowish, salmon, and orange, and are pollinated by birds. The tree itself averages about thirty feet in height. Because the wood of the wiliwili has a low density, it was used to make everything from fishing net floats, to surfboards, to outrigger booms. And it's a tough old tree: drought tolerant, wind tolerant, and one of the few natives to survive on Kaho'olawe. Its nitrogen-fixing abilities also make it easier for other plants to get started on lava flows and eroded areas. Ah, but it has its challenges. Enter the beasts: the Erythrina gall wasps. They were first detected in July of 2005, and quickly spread throughout the islands, wrecking havoc on the wiliwili and other tropical coral bean trees. Curled up leaves and bulbous stems and petioles signaled the presence of the wasp, as the eggs of the wasp laid within the plant's tissues began to swell with their growing larvae. Some feared 100% mortality of the native wiliwili, as foliage loss and an inability to transpire meant the quick deterioration of the trees. Seeds were collected and banked, while specialists worked to control infestations. By 2008, the Hawaii Department of Agriculture employed the parasitic services of a second wasp brought all the way in from Africa, Eurytoma erythrinae. Let the battle begin. 5000 of these teeny tiny wasps (a few millimeters in length) were released, and quickly laid their eggs. Where? Right inside the gall created by the gall wasp. When their larvae hatched, they dined on the larvae of the gall wasp. I know... not a pretty visual, but war is hell. While the verdict is still out on the fate of these keystone trees of Hawaii's dryland forests, it seems that there is good progress being made. If there is a tree out there that can get up after a punch like that, it's the wiliwili.
Images from Hilton Pond Center. http://www.hiltonpond.org/ThisWeek060615.html "Sedges have edges; rushes are round; grasses are hollow right up from the ground." I learned a version of this little chant in a botany class, and have found it a useful tool when trying to identify graminoids. While there are always exceptions to the rule, you'll find that in most cases, a simple twirl of the specimen between your fingers will get you into the correct category.
They say all good things take time, and that is certainly the case for these slow-growing native treasures: the hapu'u, or Hawaiian tree ferns. The four Cibotium species endemic to Hawaii can grow anywhere from ten to thirty-five feet tall, and yet grow mere inches per year. A "tree fern" is the term given to a group of ferns whose fronds are lifted above the ground by means of a trunk-like mass of roots. They reproduce as do other ferns by spores, found on the underside of the frond, and so require semi-wet to wet habitats. The beautiful spirals, soon to unfurl into the large and lacy fronds, are a sight to behold. Hapu'u pulu (Cibotium glaucum) is the most common of the four, its softening effect and tolerance of lower elevations making it a favorite in landscape design. It can reach heights of twenty feet or so, and the individual fronds get as large as nine feet. A bluish-green to gray coloring on the undersides of the fronds is characteristic, and the reason behind the species name, glaucum. Unfurled fronds and stalks are covered in a soft golden yellow to brown hair, or "fur" called pulu (in Taiwan, they have a related species that they refer to as "golden dog hair"). In early times, the soft pulu was used both as a dressing for wounds, and for embalming. In the mid 1800's to 1880s, it was greatly over-harvested and exported as pillow and mattress stuffing. Later still, it was harvested again, this time for its core, which was used to produce cooking and laundry starch. Fortunately, many are now aware that the tree ferns are an integral part of our forests and important to our watersheds. If we try, we're gonna get by with a little help from our fronds.
The beautiful milo (Thespesia populnea) has a lot going for it, but let me start by highlighting its often overlooked flowers: they are like sunrise and sunset on a tree. They last only a day, beginning as a buttery yellow flower with a red center, then the flower turns reddish orange with the setting sun. The blossoms then fall to the ground, and brownish-grey seed capsules form. This daily transformation helps me overlook the fact that milos are constantly shedding their leaves and seed capsules; a bit messy, but well worth the bother. The emerald green leaves are shiny and shaped like a heart. Milos do well in a variety of soils, and are found from coast to elevations of about one thousand feet. They can take the tough stuff, like wind and salt spray as long as they get a good dose of sun; there are milos on Kaho'olawe making it work! Milos are in the mallow, or Malvaceae family, as are its cousins: hau, 'ilima, and ma'o. It is likely an indigenous plant, but was also brought by the early Polynesians in their canoes. It can grow to about thirty feet or more, and its wood was often used for making vessels, such as poi bowls, ʻumeke ʻai. It has a beautiful grain, did not flavor the food placed in the bowl, and was relatively insect-free, making it a good choice. It was also used for cordage and canoe hulls, and the fruit was used in making a yellow-green dye. A hearty tree with blossoms of sun and useful to boot! I have read that milo trees surrounded the home of King Kamehameha I in Waikiki, and that beautiful image seems just right.
If you're thinking that this fantastic palm would make great shelter from the rain, you'd be spot on. The Hawaiian name for this member of the Pritchardia genus is loulu, meaning "umbrella." There are twenty or so species of these fan palms that are endemic to the Hawaiian islands, and they vary widely in habitat and height. Each island has at least one species that is theirs alone. This one is loulu hiwa (Pritchardia martii) which is endemic to Oahu, preferring mesic to wet elevations of the Ko'olau Mountains. Though slow growing, it can reach heights of 30 feet or more at maturity. Like all palms, the inflorescence, or cluster of flowers off a main stalk, splits out of a protective covering at the base of a leaf. Bees love the white flowers, which when pollinated will develop into fruit called hāwane or wāhane. They darken when ripe (hiwa) and are said to be eaten by early Hawaiians. Unfortunately, rats and other animals enjoy the fruits as well, but if you are able to get them, they are easy to germinate. Grow this palm and you'll be a fan! |
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