Kaʻū News Briefs Aug. 4, 2024

'IE'IE IS KAʻŪ NATIVE PLANT FOR AUGUST in the column Lāʻau Letters: Native Plants of Kaʻū by Jodie Rosam with art by Joan Yoshioka. Read about Kaʻū’s native plants and their moʻolelo (stories), uses, preferred habitats, and opportunities to adopt them for stewardship. This column seeks to encourage making new plant friends and to reunite with others.
    Description: Have you met ʻieʻie before? ʻIeʻie is a densely-branched, woody, climbing liana in the Pandanaceae family (a cousin to hala and also to kiekie, which is found in New Zealand). This lovely vine can be seen growing in extraordinary entangled mats on the forest floor, but is most commonly seen luxuriously scaling ʻōhiʻa (or another host tree) up into the canopy in a true Pandanaceae twisty style. The ringed stems end in spiral tufts of leaves that are long (15-30 inch) and thin (less than 1 inch) and are a shiny bright green, coming to a point on the ends. They have small spines along the edges and under the

midrib. The flowers form on inflorescences (clusters) at the end of the branches on cylindrical 3-4 spikes surrounded by bright orange or green with orange base bracts (modified leaves). The small fruits of ʻieʻie
contain many small seeds. ʻIeʻie bracts and fruits were a favorite meal of the extinct ʻōʻū, a honeycreeper that was a seed disperser for small seeded and fleshy fruits, and was also a favorite food of the ʻalalā, which is currently extinct in the wild.
    Uses: 'ieʻie is an indicator of forest health - where the ʻieʻie is plentiful, the forest thrives, thus the connection between ʻieʻie and Laka and its importance to hula. If you have never heard the story of Laukaʻieʻie, I encourage you to find it and read it, and form an even deeper bond and connection to ʻieʻie in the forests. Medicinally, ʻieʻie can be combined with other lāʻau lapaʻau species such as kukui, ʻōhiʻa ʻai, ʻuhaloa, kō kea, and ʻalaʻala wai nui pehu to treat childhood diseases like ʻea and paʻaoʻao. The aerial roots of ʻieʻie are used in weaving of kiʻi, baskets, hīnaʻi hoʻomoe iʻa (fish baskets) and hīnaʻi hoʻoluʻuluʻu (fish traps), and even to make handles for ʻuliʻuli (gourd rattles) and for mahiole iʻe (aliʻi helmets). The colorful orange brachts are used in lei. Ecologically, ʻieʻie is habitat for kāhuli, native land snails.
    Habitat:ʻIeʻie can be found in wet to mesic forests on all of the main Hawaiian Islands except Niʻihau and Kahoʻolawe, at elevations between 300-1500 meters. In Kaʻū, you can gaze at ʻieʻie in wet and mesic forests of Manukā and Kahuku, and from Kiolakaʻa to Keauhou Ahupuaʻa. Growing and Purchasing: Even though ʻieʻie is a common component of the forest, it is not really seen in cultivation, but it should be! ʻIeʻie is a hardy plant and requires enough water, a substantial host, and a healthy plant community (and love, of course). I hope that we, as a collective, can push for native species to be selected for home and commercial landscaping rather than using non-native and potentially invasive plant species. While this is slowly happening (check out the West Hawaiʻi Civic Center as a great example - they have planted many natives including wiliwili, alaheʻe, ʻaʻaliʻi, and pōhinahina, among others), the County, State Parks, and big businesses can do better. We can all encourage the Plant Pono and Go Native mottos in our communities!
    About the artist: Joan Yoshioka says she is a conservationist at heart and has dedicated her life to preserving the native plants and animals of Hawaiʻi through her work with federal, state, and private organizations over the past 30+ years. She describes herself as an outdoor-lovin’ optimist, biologist/botanist, and habitual creator of art-stuff. She says the key to our most fundamental and truest part of ourselves is found in nature and she constantly draws on it for inspiration.
    About the author: Jodie Rosam says she has a deep love for native plants and a passion for exploration, with early two decades of experience in working in the restoration of Hawaiʻi’s forests. As a mother and an educator, she says the next generation has the power to lead the world to a sustainable future, and is committed to teaching her children (and others) from a place-based perspective. 

COVER THAT LOAD is the message from Hawai'i Police Department. HPD reminds the public that loads must be covered while transporting cargo on any highway and that penalties could be severe. "Most of the litter on or near roadways is not intentionally thrown but, rather, blown out of open-bed pickup trucks, causing a road hazard or a traffic accident. Anytime you travel with a loaded truck bed, trailer, or roof rack, make sure to secure your load properly." Regulations require:

    1. Tying down the load with rope or straps.
    2. Tying large objects directly to the vehicle or trailer.
    3. Covering the entire load with a sturdy tarp (tied down) or cargo netting.
    After tying down a load, double-check to ensure nothing can slide, fall, or shift out of the vehicle. Check vehicle manual to prevent overloading vehicle.