Aalii

Hawaiian Name: Aalii
Pronunciation: Click Here
Scientific Name: Dodonaea viscosa
Hawaiian Plant Status: Indigenous

Information

"Unlike most trees in Hawaii, aalii has a deep tap-root, which allows it to tap into deeper water supplies and stand up to high wind levels." (Amy p.46)

"He aalii ku makani mai au; Aohe makani nana e kulai. I am a wind-resisting aalii; no gale can push me over." (Pukui #507)

The plant is used to make beautiful lei.

Resources

(Amy) Amy Greenwell Garden Ethnobotanical Guide to Native Hawaiian Plants & Polynesian-Introduced Plants by Noa Kekuewa Lincoln

(Pukui) Olelo Noeau Hawaiian Proverbs & Poetical Sayings by Mary Kawena Pukui