Canoe plants
Encyclopedia
Canoe plants, or Polynesian introductions, are plant
s taken from ancient Polynesia
and transplanted to other Pacific Islands
The term is particularly used to refer to plants brought to Hawaii
1,700 years ago by Polynesian explorers.
The following species are generally considered to be canoe plants in Hawaii:
Seed and pollen samples taken from Kauai
's Makauwahi Cave
indicate that Pandanus tectorius
and Cordia subcordata actually predate human arrival, while fossilized coconut pollen has been discovered in a salt lake on Laysan
. However, similar or additional varieties could also have been transported by Polynesians.
Plant
Plants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. Precise definitions of the kingdom vary, but as the term is used here, plants include familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The group is also called green plants or...
s taken from ancient Polynesia
Polynesia
Polynesia is a subregion of Oceania, made up of over 1,000 islands scattered over the central and southern Pacific Ocean. The indigenous people who inhabit the islands of Polynesia are termed Polynesians and they share many similar traits including language, culture and beliefs...
and transplanted to other Pacific Islands
Pacific Islands
The Pacific Islands comprise 20,000 to 30,000 islands in the Pacific Ocean. The islands are also sometimes collectively called Oceania, although Oceania is sometimes defined as also including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago....
The term is particularly used to refer to plants brought to Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
1,700 years ago by Polynesian explorers.
The following species are generally considered to be canoe plants in Hawaii:
- Aleurites moluccanaCandlenutAleurites moluccana, the Candlenut, is a flowering tree in the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, also known as Candleberry, Indian walnut, Kemiri, Varnish tree, Nuez de la India, Buah keras or Kukui nut tree....
(kukui or candlenut) - Alocasia macrorrhiza (`ape, giant taro or elephant ear)
- Artocarpus altilisBreadfruitBreadfruit is a species of flowering tree in the mulberry family, Moraceae, growing throughout Southeast Asia and most Pacific Ocean islands...
(`ulu or breadfruit) - Bambusa vulgarisBambusa vulgarisBambusa vulgaris, also known as Bambu Ampel , Buloh Aur, Buloh Pau, Buloh Minyak, Aur Beting , Mai-Luang, Phai-Luang , Daisan-Chiku , Murangi , Gemeiner Bambus , Bambou de Chine , Bambu Vulgar , Mwanzi , Common Bamboo, Golden Bamboo or Buddha’s Belly Bamboo...
(`ohe or giant bamboo) - Broussonetia papyriferaPaper MulberryThe Paper Mulberry is a tree in the family Moraceae, native to eastern Asia. Other names include Dak, Halibun, Kalivon, Kozo, and Tapacloth tree.It is a deciduous tree growing to tall...
(wauke or paper mulberry) - Calophyllum inophyllumCalophyllum inophyllumCalophyllum inophyllum is a large evergreen. It is native from East Africa, southern coastal India to Malesia and Australia.-Distribution and description:...
(ballnut or kamani) - Cocos nuciferaCoconutThe coconut palm, Cocos nucifera, is a member of the family Arecaceae . It is the only accepted species in the genus Cocos. The term coconut can refer to the entire coconut palm, the seed, or the fruit, which is not a botanical nut. The spelling cocoanut is an old-fashioned form of the word...
(niu or coconut) - Colocasia esculentaColocasia esculentaColocasia esculenta is a tropical plant grown primarily for its edible corms, the root vegetables whose many names include Taro and Eddoe. It is believed to be one of the earliest cultivated plants.-Description:Rhizomes of different shapes and sizes...
(taro or kalo) - Cordia subcordata (tou or kou)
- Cordyline fruticosa (ti or kī)
- Curcuma domestica (`olena or turmeric)
- Dioscorea alata (ufi or uhi)
- Hibiscus tiliaceus (hau)
- Ipomoea batatasSweet potatoThe sweet potato is a dicotyledonous plant that belongs to the family Convolvulaceae. Its large, starchy, sweet-tasting, tuberous roots are an important root vegetable. The young leaves and shoots are sometimes eaten as greens. Of the approximately 50 genera and more than 1,000 species of...
(`uala or sweet potato) - Lageneria sicerariaCalabashLagenaria siceraria , bottle gourd, opo squash or long melon is a vine grown for its fruit, which can either be harvested young and used as a vegetable, or harvested mature, dried, and used as a bottle, utensil, or pipe. For this reason, the calabash is widely known as the bottle gourd...
(calabash) - Morinda citrifoliaNoniMorinda citrifolia, commonly known as great morinda, Indian mulberry, nunaakai , dog dumpling , mengkudu , Kumudu , pace , beach mulberry, cheese fruit or noni is a tree in the coffee family, Rubiaceae...
(noni) - MusaBananaBanana is the common name for herbaceous plants of the genus Musa and for the fruit they produce. Bananas come in a variety of sizes and colors when ripe, including yellow, purple, and red....
spp. (mai`a or banana) - Pandanus tectoriusPandanus tectoriusPandanus tectorius is a species of Pandanus that is native to Malesia, eastern Australia, and the Pacific Islands. Common names include Thatch Screwpine, Hala , Bacua , and Vacquois ....
(hala) - Piper methysticumKavaKava or kava-kava is a crop of the western Pacific....
(kava) - Saccharum officinarumSugarcaneSugarcane refers to any of six to 37 species of tall perennial grasses of the genus Saccharum . Native to the warm temperate to tropical regions of South Asia, they have stout, jointed, fibrous stalks that are rich in sugar, and measure two to six metres tall...
(ko or sugarcane) - Schizostachyum glaucifoliumSchizostachyum glaucifoliumSchizostachyum glaucifolium, common name Polynesian ohe, is a species of bamboo.-Distribution:This species is native to the South-Central Pacific, from French Polynesia to the Marquesas Islands and Society Islands in Tahiti, as well as the Southwestern Pacific in American Samoa and Fiji.It is...
(bamboo) - Syzygium malaccense (ōhia ai or Malacca Apple)
- Tacca leontopetaloidesTacca leontopetaloidesTacca leontopetaloides is a species of flowering plant in the yam family Dioscoreaceae, that is native to tropical Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia, northern Australia, New Guinea, Samoa, Micronesia, and Fiji. It was intentionally brought to tropical Pacific Islands with early human migrations...
(Polynesian arrowroot) - Thespesia populnea (milo)
- Zingiber zerumbetZingiber zerumbetZingiber zerumbet Sm., also known as the Shampoo Ginger, is a vigorous ginger with leafy stems growing to about 1.2 m tall. It is found in many tropical countries. The rhizomes of Z...
(awapuhi)
Seed and pollen samples taken from Kauai
Kauai
Kauai or Kauai, known as Tauai in the ancient Kaua'i dialect, is geologically the oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands. With an area of , it is the fourth largest of the main islands in the Hawaiian archipelago, and the 21st largest island in the United States. Known also as the "Garden Isle",...
's Makauwahi Cave
Makauwahi Cave
The Makauwahi Cave is the largest limestone cave found in Hawaii. It lies on the south coast of the island of Kauai, in the Māhāulepū Valley close to Māhāulepū Beach, and is important for its paleoecological and archaeological values...
indicate that Pandanus tectorius
Pandanus tectorius
Pandanus tectorius is a species of Pandanus that is native to Malesia, eastern Australia, and the Pacific Islands. Common names include Thatch Screwpine, Hala , Bacua , and Vacquois ....
and Cordia subcordata actually predate human arrival, while fossilized coconut pollen has been discovered in a salt lake on Laysan
Laysan
Laysan , located northwest of Honolulu at N25° 42' 14" W171° 44' 04", is one of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. It comprises one land mass of , about 1 by 1.5 miles in size . It is an atoll of sorts, although the land completely surrounds a shallow central lake some above sea level that has...
. However, similar or additional varieties could also have been transported by Polynesians.
External links
- Polynesian Voyaging Society - Plants Introduced to Hawai'i by the Ancestors of the Hawaiian PeopleOi Magazine]] |volume=10 |issue=5 |month=November |year=2006}}