Native Plants of Hawai‘i - Planchonella sandwicensis & Planchonella spathulata

Planchonella sandwicensis & Planchonella spathulata

Sapotaceae or Sapodilla family

Synonyms for Planchonella sandwicensis: Planchonella ceresolii, Planchonella puulupensis, Planchonella rhynchosperma, Planchonella sandwicensis var. aurata, Planchonella sandwicensis f. densiflora, Planchonella sandwicensis f. puulupensis, Planchonella spathulata var. densiflora, Pouteria aurantia, Pouteria ceresolii, Pouteria rhynchosperma, Pouteria sandwicensis, Pouteria sandwicensis f. densiflora, Pouteria sandwicensis f. puulupensis, Sapota sandwicensis, Sideroxylon ceresolii, Sideroxylon rhynchospermum, Sideroxylon sandwicense, Sideroxylon sandwicense var. auratum, Sideroxylon spathulatum var. densiflorum

Synonyms for Planchonella spathulata: Myrsine molokaiensis, Planchonella auahiensis, Planchonella auahiensis var. aurantia, Planchonella aurantia, Planchonella sandwicensis var. molokaiense, Planchonella sandwicensis var. spathulata, Planchonella spathulata var. molokaiensis, Pouteria auahiensis, Pouteria sandwicensis var. spathulata, Pouteria spathulata, Sideroxylon auahiense, Sideroxylon auahiense var. aurantium, Sideroxylon spathulatum, Sideroxylon spathulatum var. molokaiense, Suttonia molokaiensis

ʻĀlaʻa

Āulu, ʻĒlaʻa, Kaulu

Natural Range & Environment

Planchonella sandwicensis is endemic to Kaua‘i, O‘ahu, Moloka‘i, Lāna‘i, and Maui. It is found in mesic forests from 500 to 1,400 m (1,640 to 4,593 ft) [Flora of the Hawaiian Islands].

Planchonella spathulata is endemic to all the main Hawaiian Islands except for Ni‘ihau and Kaho‘olawe. It is found in dry to mesic forests from 250 to 1,000 m (820 to 3,281 ft) [Flora of the Hawaiian Islands].

While it's not always the case, if you see an ʻālaʻa growing wild in a dry region, it is most likely Planchonella spathulata. In contrast, an ʻālaʻa growing in a wet area is nearly always Planchonella sandwicensis.

There are three primary ways of distinguishing Planchonella sandwicensis from Planchonella spathulata: (1) the pedicel (flower stalk) of P. sandwicensis (top photograph courtesy of Kenneth R. Wood (NTBG) CC BY-NC 4.0) is longer than the pedicel of P. spathulata (photograph courtesy of Joel Lau ©); (2) P. sandwicensis has purple fruits (photograph courtesy of Mashuri White CC BY-NC 4.0) while P. spathulata has yellow fruits (photograph courtesy of James Bailey CC BY-NC 4.0); (3) P. sandwicensis grows in mesic forests while P. spathulata is common in dry forests and rare in mesic forests. Both Hawaiian Planchonella species will produce fruits containing small inviable seeds; therefore, if you intend to propagate these trees, it's vital you collect large viable seeds like the ones pictured here (photograph courtesy of Ulf Swenson CC BY-NC 4.0). The leaf characteristics and stature of both species are variable, overlap, and are not good methods to determine which species you are looking at: here and in the header are just three examples: P. sandwicensis on O‘ahu in header (photograph courtesy Hubert Szczygieł CC BY-NC 4.0); Bob Hobdy with P. spathulata on Lāna‘i; P. spathulata on Hawai‘i Island (photograph courtesy of J.B. Friday ©). Old trees, particularly P. spathulata, have a thick scaly bark (photograph courtesy of Ulf Swenson CC BY-NC 4.0). It's not too hard to germinate ʻālaʻa seeds. The hard part is keeping them alive in the ground. Here are two rare cultivated examples: a Lāna‘i P. spathulata planted on Maui (photograph courtesy of Forest & Kim Starr CC BY 3.0 US); a **** planted in upland Maui (photograph courtesy of Forest & Kim Starr CC BY 2.0).

Description

Depending of the source and growing conditions of this variable plant, the canopy can be from 20 to 40 feet.

Long lived (Greater than 5 years)

Leaf color is variable from medium green to yellowish-brown to rust.

Flower Colors

Greenish-White

Blooming Period

Summer

The fruit is edible when it ripens. [2]

The fruit is edible when it ripens and drops to the leaf litter and sits for a couple of days. The flavor is like baked yams. [2]

Growth Requirements

General

Accent

Provides Shade

Screening

Apply 13-13-13 slow release fertilize every six months for seedlings and saplings.

Drench and foliar feeding* potted plants and out planted saplings in early morning with a water-soluble or an organic fertilizer (e.g. kelp or fish emulsion) at one-third to one-fourth the recommended strength monthly or every other month has proved beneficial. [David Eickhoff, Native Plants Hawaiʻi]

* Drench feeding is applying a liquid fertilizer directly to the potted plant or soil where plant is growing. Foliar feeding is a method to spray leaves with low doses of fertilizer.

Dry

Moist

Soil must be well drained

Full sun

Tolerances

Drought

Soils

Cinder

Organic

ʻĀlaʻa do not make good potted plants. The roots tend to coil and the plant will go into decline if not planted out. If it is necessay to keep them in a container for any length of time, use deep pots, such tree pots or cone pots, so that the tap root has room to go downwards. [David Eickhoff, Native Plants Hawaiʻi]

Pests and Diseases

Māmaki.

Uses

Ancient Hawaiian

ʻĀlaʻa wood was used for a number of purposes, such as to make gunwales for canoes, [1] house construction, ʻōʻō, and spears (ihe). [3,4] A digging stick (ʻōʻō) made of ʻālaʻa was also called ʻālaʻa.

The milky sap was used as a glue (kolū) for tool and weapon handles.

The sticky sap was used in pīlali, or birdlime, to snare small forest birds for feathers for cloaks, capes, helmets, lei, and kāhili. The flowers of ʻōhā wai (Clermontia spp.) were used to lure the victims in kia manu (bird-catching by gumming).

The seeds were used to make permanent leis. [1]

The leaves and bark were used for external medicine. [6] The leaves were for curing the illness referred to as pehu poʻipū. [7]

Modern

Special Features and Information

General

Depending on the literature source, the number of species (and genera) in the Sapodilla family (Sapotaceae) varies dramatically from a few hundred to over a thousand. Given this uncertainty, the following information is taken primarily from WikipediA. According to WikipediA, the Sapodilla family includes approximately 800 species of shrubs and trees within about 65 genera and has a pantropical distribution. Many species have a white blood-like sap and produce edible fruits or fruit products. Examples include: one of the original chewing gum chicle (Manilkara chicle); Star apple (Chrysophyllum cainito), a dessert fruit; several species of Pouteria; shea (Vitellaria paradoxa), used to make shea butter; and the incredible miracle fruit (Synsepalum dulcificum), which when eaten alters the tongue's taste receptors turning bitter or sour foods, such as lemons and limes, sweet!

Besides Planchonella sandwicensis and Planchonella spathulata, the only other native member of Sapotaceae in Hawai‘i is the indigenous keahi (Sideroxylon polynesicum) [Flora of the Hawaiian Islands].

The genus was recently changed to Planchonella. [8]

Hawaiian Name

In addition to being the name for the two endemic Hawaiian Planchonella species, ʻālaʻa is also the word used for: (1) an ʻōʻō (digging stick) made of ʻālaʻa or any wood; (2) to prod or dig with a stick, as in taro cultivation; (3) a small corm, as of kalo (taro) [Pukui & Elbert 1986].

The names āulu and kaulu are shared with two other native Hawaiian trees, the endemic Rockia sandwicensis (syn: Pisonia sandwicensis) and the endemic Sapindus oahuensis, also known as lonomea. Additionally, the name kaulu is shared with native Hawaiian trees in the genus Pteralyxia [Wagner et al. 1990].

ʻĒlaʻa is a variant spelling or a variety of ʻālaʻa [Pukui & Elbert 1986]..

Etymology

Planchonella was instated by Pierre [1890] to honor the French botanist Jules Émile Planchon (1823–1888) [Swenson et al. 2025].

The species name, sandwicensis, refers to the "Sandwich Islands," as the Hawaiian Islands were once called and named by James Cook on one of his voyages in the 1770s. James Cook named the islands to honor John Montagu (The fourth Earl of Sandwich) for supporting Cook's voyages [Gledhill 2008].

The species name, spathulata, is Latin, meaning "shaped like a spoon" [Gledhill 2008], likely referring to the shape of the plant's leaves.

Additional References

[1] "Plants in Hawaiian Culture" by Beatrice H. Krauss, pages 50, 140, 323.

[2] Sam ʻOhukaniʻōhiʻa Gon III, presentation "Scientific and Cultural Perspectives--Dry Forest Plants & Ecosystems," Nāhelehele Dryland Forest Symposium, Feb. 26, 2010.

[3] "Trees and Other Plants Used by Early Hawaiians" by C.S. Judd, page

[4] "Common Forest Trees of Hawaii (Native and Introduced)" by Elbert L. Little, Jr. and Roger G. Skolmen, pages 270, 274.

[5] [1] "Systematic Botany Monographs, Volume 32, Systematics of Clermontia (Campanulaceae-Lobelioideae)" by Thomas Lammers, pages 5, 6, 10-11, 24-30.

[6] "Hawaiian Ethnobotany Online" http://www2.bishopmuseum.org/ethnobotanydb/resultsdetailed.asp?search=alaa [accessed 11/4/10]

[7] "Auwahi: Ethnobotany of a Hawaiian Dryland Forest" by A.C. Medeiros, C.F. Davenport & C.G. Chimera, pages 21-22.

[8] "Molecular phylogeny of Planchonella (Sapotaceae) and eight new species from New Caledonia" by Swenson, Ulf; Munzinger, Jérôme; Bartish, Igor V., pages 329-331, 333, 354.

[9] Hawaiian Dictionaries online http://wehewehe.olelo.hawaii.edu [Accessed on 11/22/11]

BPK