La'au Hawai'i Traditional Hawaiian Uses Of Plants- chant from page 23
The Staple Crops, Kalo and 'Uala
O Ku-ike-olo-walu,
May the taro top in our planting hole grow large.
May they grow large that I the planter may live,
The dwellers in the house may live,
That the dependants may live,
That the family may live,
That the visiting stranger may live,
That I (the name of the planter) may live.
'Amama. It is free of tabu.
-from June Gutmanis, Na Pule Kahiko
Photos from a few of our edible gardens featuring some of the canoe plants brought by ancient Hawaiians that migrated here in canoes
Piko Ulaula Hawaiian variety; Ulaula means reddish referring to the pink corms, which make a pink poi.
Apuwai Hawaiian variety; it derives its name from the fact that its leaves are shaped like a cup (apu) and hold water (wai) in the form of dew and rain. Grown mainly for its leaves that are highly prized for luau.
Uahi a pele- Smoke of Pele Hawaiian variety; beautiful leaves have mottled green and purple colors with some cast, smoky tones.
Piko kea Hawaiian variety; Piko means, more or less, belly button, referring to the 'piko' in the center of the leave. Has a blue-ish gray-green color. The leaves are also more triangular in their shape.
Elepaio Hawaiian variety; variegated leaves, according to some stories it grew wild near the forest where the bird, Elepaio made its home, but others maintain that this taro was formerly planted at dawn when the Elepaio was singing. Makes a good poi of light gray color.
Ulaula Poni Hawaiian variety; poni meaning purple referring to the petiole or stem coloring. Occasionally used for table taro. In early times was used for a purple pigment that was extracted from the petioles and used for dying tapa, Pandanus or Hala leaves, etc.
'Uala Hawaiian variety of sweet potatoe makes a great groundcover and provides an abundance of delicious tubers. Harvested Hawaiian Ipu or gourds are curing in the gardens.
Mai'a Hawaiian variety variegated banana. The fruits are variegated too.
'Awa or kawa Hawaiian variety. The prepared juice from the roots is used as a relaxant and other medicinal purposes.
