Lei of na`u were prized possessions and preferred for their fragrance. In the legend of Ka`ala and Ka`aiali`i, the women of Lana`i presented floral tributes to Kamehameha and others when they came to Kealia for sport. The floral tributes consisted of lei of na`u, plaited with pili grass and wound with maile.1
It is difficult to imagine a lei as beautiful as the one described above. One would also be hard pressed to gather enough na`u blossoms today to make these lei. The na`u referred to in the Ka`ala and Ka`aiali`i legend is Gardenia brighamii, an extremely rare plant that would be extinct were it not for the efforts of concerned individuals and land managers.
At one time, except for the summit, Lana`ihale, nearly the entire island of Lana`i was covered by native dry forest. But decades of grazing and browsing by cattle, sheep, and goats, and extensive deforestation for pineapple cultivation have taken their toll. Most of the native dry forest is now restricted to the Kanepu`u area on the northwest side and an area to the northeast of the summit. What a magnificent forest it must have been with the beautiful native vine, Bonamia menziesii, crawling over the na`u and other celebrated plants such as the `iliahi, lama, olopua, `ohe makai, `ahakea, `ala`a, `akoko, and `aiea,
The Hawaiian islands have three native species of Gardenia, all endemic: G. brighamii, G. mannii, and G. remyi. These native gardenias are referred to as na`u or nanu. The nŠ`Ÿ is a small tree that grows up to 20 feet with trunks up to 12 inches in diameter. Superficially, the nŠ`Ÿ resembles the tiare, or Tahitian gardenia. Each has single, white, fragrant flowers that last a day or so. The fleshy fruits are round, approximately an inch in diameter, and contain many small seeds.
An `olelo no`eau compares the fragrance of the gardenia to one bearing good news: Ke kololio ka hau o uka, ko mai ka nae `a`ala o ke kiele. (When the dew-laden breeze of the uplands creeps swiftly down, it brings with it the fragrance of the gardenia — said of one who comes with happy tidings.) The gardenia referred to in this proverb is the introduced gardenia, which is referred to as kiele.
In traditional times, wood from the na`u and other native trees was fashioned into anvils called kua kuku. During the second kapa-beating stage, the bast fibers were separated and softened on the kua kuku. The na`u fruit was used to make a yellow dye for kapa.2 Naturalist Joseph Rock reported that the glutinous leaf buds of G. remyi were traditionally used as a cement.3
Although G. brighamii may have once occurred on all the main Hawaiian islands, fewer than 20 trees in six populations on O`ahu, Moloka`i, and Lana`i are all that remain in the wild. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s recovery plan for G. brighamii tells the sad but all-too-common story of a native species sliding toward extinction.
On O`ahu, a population of G. brighamii was discovered in Nanakuli in 1987 where two trees survive on property managed by the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands. An additional tree on O`ahu occurs at Pu`u Ku`ua on Campbell Estate land. All three trees are fenced to prevent damage by grazing and browsing mammals and inadvertent destruction by humans. However, there is not enough room within the exclosures to support viable populations.4
Gardenia brighamii was very common in the dry forest of West Moloka`i at Mahana and Maunaloa. The development of pineapple fields eliminated much of the dry forest in this area. In 1963, seven trees remained on Moloka`i, four in 1972, two in 1982, and one today on Moloka`i Ranch land. According to the recovery plan, the tree is fenced, but the area is too small to support a viable population.5
On Lana`i, seven to eight individuals of G. brighamii occurred in the wild in the Kanepu`u dry forest area in 1993 when the recovery plan was written. Four trees at Puhielelu Ridge and two to three at Wahane Gulch on the northeast side also occurred at the time. In 1918, Lana`i Ranch manager, George Munro, fenced the dry forest at Kanepu`u to protect it from cattle. In more recent times, the community-based Hui Malama Pono O Lana`i has cared for the Kanepu`u forest and now works with the landowner, Castle & Cooke, and The Nature Conservancy of Hawai`i to protect approximately 590 acres of remnant dry forest in the Kanepu`u Preserve.
In 1909, Rock reported around a dozen individuals of G. brighamii in North Kona, including the Pu`u Wa`awa`a and Huehue areas. Apparently, a road-repair crew destroyed all but one of those trees in 1930. The last tree in North Kona survived until at least 1955, when it was collected by Rock. More recently, the tree has not been located, and the species is considered extinct on Hawai`i island, as well as on Maui. Although G. brighamii has never been collected from Kaua`i, Kaho`olawe, or Ni`ihau, it is presumed to have occurred on these islands at one time.
G. brighamii was listed as an endangered species in 1985. Threats to G. brighamii are habitat loss due to forest clearing; fires; grazing, browsing, and trampling by cattle, pigs, goats, and mouflon; and weeds. Rats feed on the fruit of the na`u, which may be the reason the species is not reproducing within the fenced areas. Weeds in the understory may also be preventing seedlings from becoming established. Human trampling, the introduced black-twig borer, and, possibly, introduced game birds on Lana`i also threaten this endangered plant. Na`u are now cultivated in certified gardens and nurseries. The public can purchase plants from certified growers. It is relatively easy to cultivate and is popular among home gardeners and landscape professionals.
A close relative, G. mannii, is also listed as an endangered species. Approximately 70-100 individuals in 27 populations currently exist in mesic and occasionally wet forest on O`ahu. A third species of na`u, G. remyi, is not yet endangered. It is found in mesic to occasionally wet forest on Kaua`i, Moloka`i, and Maui, and in the Hilo and Puna districts of Hawai`i.
- 1. Ka Lei The Leis of Hawaii, by Marie A. McDonald (1978).
2. `…lelo No`eau: Hawaiian Proverbs & Poetical Sayings, by Mary Kawena Pukui (1983).
3. Plants in the Hawaiian Culture, by Beatrice H. Krauss (1993).
4. The Indigenous Trees of the Hawaiian Islands, by J. F. Rock (1913; 1974)
5. Recovery Plan for the Hawaiian Gardenia, Gardenia brighamii, by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (1993)
— Marjorie Ziegler
Volume 13, Number 4 October 2002
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