DISTINGUISHING CHARACTERISTICS
- upright woody shrub, with tallest stems more than six feet
- leaves opposite each other on the stem; often three leaves attached in a whorl at same point on the stem
- veins on leaves deeply recessed on upper surface and projecting downward on lower surface
- margin of leaves with forward pointing teeth
- leaves look similar to its cousin, the ornamental hydrangea (flowers very different)
- kanawao is a endemic native Hawaiian plant
TRADITIONAL HAWAIIAN USES
- none described in the standard references
HAWAIIAN RAIN FOREST ECOLOGY
- common, sometimes dense shrub in undisturbed rain forest and the most abundant native shrub in Niaulani Rain Forest
- although the female plants produce fruits, kanawao mostly spreads by sprouts emerging from underground roots
- kanawao is disturbed by feral pigs who uproot and damage the roots that produce new upright stems
- fencing in the 20th century at Niaulani helped protect this species at Niaulani which is uncommon in surrounding areas
- kanawao grows taller than kahili ginger and so survived four decades of ginger dominance in the understory
- in Niaulani, without pigs or ginger, the 15 or so scattered, surviving kanawao colonies are now expanding by root sprouts, with noticeable numbers of young, short, upright stems
SAY IT IN HAWAIIAN!!
Hawaiian Rain Forest 