| Pleomele | |
|---|---|
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| Pleomele auwahiensis | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Monocots |
| Order: | Asparagales |
| Family: | Ruscaceae (Dracaenaceae) |
| Genus: | Pleomele Salisb. |
| Species | |
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Pleomele is a genus of flowering plants in the Lily of the Valley family, Ruscaceae. It is sometimes placed in Dracaena.[1] The Hawaiian name for plants in this genus is hala pepe, which translates to crushed or dwarfed Pandanus tectorius.[2]
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Species
- Pleomele aurea H.Mann - Golden Hala Pepe (Kauaʻi)[3]
- Pleomele auwahiensis H.St.John - Maui Hala Pepe (Maui, Molokaʻi)[3]
- Pleomele fernaldii H.St.John - Lānaʻi Hala Pepe (Lānaʻi)[3]
- Pleomele forbesii O.Deg. - Waiʻanae Range Hala Pepe (Oʻahu)[3]
- Pleomele halaapepe H.St.John - Royal Hala Pepe (Oʻahu)[3]
- Pleomele hawaiiensis O.Deg. & I.Deg - Hawaiʻi Hala Pepe (Island of Hawaiʻi)[3][4]
Uses
Medicinal
Native Hawaiians combined the bark and leaves of hala pepe with the root bark of ʻuhaloa (Waltheria indica) and popolo (Solanum americanum), and a section of kō kea (Saccharum officinarum) to treat high fever and chills. Hala pepe bark, roots, and leaves were combined with ʻōhiʻa ʻai (Syzygium malaccense) bark, ʻuhaloa and popolo taproot bark, ʻalaʻala wai nui pehu (Peperomia spp.) stems, noni (Morinda citrifolia) fruit, kō kea, niu (coconuts, Cocos nucifera), and pia (Tacca leontopetaloides) to treat lung disorders.[3]
Non-medicinal
The soft wood of the trunk was carved by Native Hawaiians into kiʻi. Hala pepe represented the goddess Kapo on the kuahu (altar) within a hālau hula (building which hula was taught or performed). It along with ʻieʻie (Freycinetia arborea), maile (Alyxia oliviformis), ʻōhiʻa lehua (Metrosideros polymorpha) and palapalai (Microlepia strigosa) were the five essential plants at the hula altar.[2]
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References
- ^ "Pleomele Salisb.". Germplasm Resources Information Network. United States Department of Agriculture. 2006-03-30. http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/genus.pl?15998. Retrieved 2009-03-23.
- ^ a b Medeiros, A. C.; C.F. Davenport; C.G. Chimera (1998) (PDF). Auwahi: Ethnobotany of a Hawaiian Dryland Forest. Cooperative National Park Resources Studies Unit, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. p. 19. http://www.hear.org/naturalareas/auwahi/ethnobotany_of_auwahi.pdf.
- ^ a b c d e f g "hala pepe, ieie, kuhaʻo, ku la". Hawaiian Ethnobotany Online Database. Bernice P. Bishop Museum. http://www2.bishopmuseum.org/ethnobotanydb/resultsdetailed.asp?search=hala_pepe. Retrieved 2009-11-20.
- ^ "Pleomele Salisb. hala pepe". PLANTS Database. United States Department of Agriculture. http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=PLEOM. Retrieved 2009-11-20.
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