''Pipturus albidus'', known as ''māmaki'' (sometimes ''waimea'', for its resemblance to olomea) in Hawaiian and known as Waimea pipturus in English, is a species of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

in the nettle family,

Urticaceae The Urticaceae are a family, the nettle family, of flowering plants. The family name comes from the genus ''Urtica''. The Urticaceae include a number of well-known and useful plants, including nettles in the genus ''Urtica'', ramie (''Boehmeria ...

, that is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

. It inhabits coastal mesic, mixed mesic, and wet forests at elevations of . ''Māmaki'' is a small

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, e.g., including only woody plants with secondary growth, only ...

that reaches a height of and a trunk diameter of .

Uses

Medicinal

Native Hawaiians Native Hawaiians (also known as Indigenous Hawaiians, Kānaka Maoli, Aboriginal Hawaiians, or simply Hawaiians; , , , and ) are the Indigenous Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands. Hawaiʻi was settled at least 800 years ago by Polynesian ...

made a treatment for illnesses known as ''ea'' and ''pāaoao'' from the

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants (angiosperms) that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which angiosperms disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particular have long propaga ...

. They also combined fresh ''māmaki''

leaves A leaf (: leaves) is a principal appendage of the stem of a vascular plant, usually borne laterally above ground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, stem, ...

with hot stones and spring water to produce

herbal tea Herbal teas, technically known as herbal infusions, and less commonly called tisanes (UK and US , US also ), are beverages made from the infusion or decoction of herbs, spices, or other plant material in hot water. Often herb tea, or the plai ...

that was an effective treatment for general debility. Tea made from the leaves of this plant have antiviral properties, antibacterial properties, and antioxidants such as catechins, chlorogenic acid, and rutin It also contains anticancer and chemopreventive properties. Today, packages of dried ''māmaki'' leaves are commercially produced.

Non-medicinal

The

bast fibre Bast fibre (also called phloem fibre or skin fibre) is plant fibre collected from the phloem (the "inner bark", sometimes called "skin") or bast surrounding the stem of certain dicotyledonous plants. Some of the economically important bast fibre ...

s were used by Native Hawaiians to make '' kapa'' (bark cloth) and ''kaula'' (

rope A rope is a group of yarns, Plying, plies, fibres, or strands that are plying, twisted or braided together into a larger and stronger form. Ropes have high tensile strength and can be used for dragging and lifting. Rope is thicker and stronger ...

Ecology

''Pipturus albidus'' is known to attract the Kamehameha butterfly (''Vanessa tameamea'') and Koa butterfly (''

Udara blackburni ''Udara blackburni'', the Koa butterfly, is a butterfly in the family Lycaenidae that is endemic to Hawaii. It is also known as Blackburn's butterfly, Blackburn's bluet, Hawaiian blue or green Hawaiian blue. The wingspan is 22–29 mm. Th ...

'') as its nectar is sweet. The Kamehameha butterfly eggs thrived on this plant in regard to both size and performance.

References

External links

* * albidus Trees of Hawaii Endemic flora of Hawaii Hawaiian cuisine Herbal teas Flora without expected TNC conservation status {{rosid-tree-stub