Hāpu‘u

The hāpu’u are the tree ferns of the shady, cool rain forest. The tree can range from heights to about 7-35 feet. The fronds rise up high to about thirty feet or more and are 3-9 feet in diameter. The long green fronds of the tree grow to be about 12 feet long, the young unfurled fronds are densely covered with soft golden colored, wool-like fibers called pulu. The hāpu‘u is probably the most common endemic tree fern found in Hawai`i. It is found on most islands in semi-dry to wet, moist forests, it is most conspicuous on Hawai`i where it grows in close association with the ō‘hi’a lehua tree. During the ancient times, pulu was used for dressing wounds and for embalming the dead. But more recently, pulu is used for pillow and mattress stuffing. The edible starch in the core of the trunk and the young leaves were eaten during the time of famine.

The hāpu‘u: tree-fern silk is used for embalming the dead.

"How to Grow Native Hawaiian Garden." Hapuu. 29 Mar. 2006 <http://www.hawaii.gov/health/oeqc/garden/eioeghap.htm>.

"Cibotium Menziesii." Hawaiian Native Plant Propagation Database. 23 Feb. 2000. University of Hawaii at Manoa. 5 Feb. 2007 <http://www2.hawaii.edu/~eherring/hawnprop/cib-menz.htm>.

"HäPu‘U (Hawaiian Tree Fern)." Ornamentals and Flowers. Dec. 2003. Coorprative Extention Service. 8 Feb. 2007 <http://www2.ctahr.hawaii.edu/oc/freepubs/pdf/OF-16.pdf>.

Life in Early Hawai‘i The Ahupua‘a. 3rd ed. Honolulu: Kamehameha Schools Press, 1994.