| Often the first life
in fresh lava flows, ohia lehua is
Hawaii's most abundant native tree. The
flowers areusually red,
though orange, yellow and white flowers
occur more rarely. The flower, lehua,
is sacred to Pele, the Hawaiian Volcano
Goddess, and is the flower of the Island
of Hawai’i. Ohia usually refers
to the woody part of the tree. The strong,
hard ohia wood was used by ancient Hawaiians
to carve temple idols, canoes, poi (mashed
taro root) bowls and spears. Contemporary
uses of ohia wood include house posts,
furniture, floors and fuel. It is also
highly adaptable, and can survive in
a multitude of environments, including
elevations between 1,000 and 9,000 ft.
above sea level. These adaptable survivors
range from miniature trees in wet bogs
to giants exceeding 100 feet. This Ohia
grows at about the 5,000 foot level on
Hualalai, near Ka'upulehu Crater. |
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Hawaii
Flowers 
