Economic Woods of Hawaii 711 



ai-ai Pseudoniorus Brunoniana Endl. Bureau. The tree is twenty- 

 five to thirty-five feet high, with a trunk of twelve to eighteen 

 inches, laticiferous, and with mulberry-like foliage. It is semi- 

 zerophytic in habitat, and occurs on all the large islands of the 

 group. The ai-ai is Australian in origin, and was there used ex- 

 tensively by the natives for their boomerangs, owing to the re- 

 markable toughness and hardness of the wood. 



The endemic ke-ahi, Chrysophylliim Polynesicum Hillebd., is 

 common in the zerophytic leeward districts. Considerable mixed 

 stands occur on East Maui, Molokai, and Lanai. The wood is very 

 hard and durable, but does not appear to have been used by the 

 natives. The tree is twenty-five to forty feet high; the young 

 leaves and inflorescence are covered with a golden-brown tomentmi. 



The Hawaiian ironwood, hao, (Rauwolfia sandwicensis A. DC), 

 is a fairly common laticiferous tree, occupying arid leeward low- 

 lands on aU the islands, at about two thousand feet elevation. It 

 is often a mere shrub, but under favorable conditions becomes a tree 

 of twenty feet, with a trunk of six to twelve inches. The wood is 

 dark yellow, fairly strong, close grained, and very durable. Its 

 native name, hao or iron, refers to the latter property. The hold 

 Ochrosia sandwicensis Gray, resembles the hao in color and other 

 properties. From the bark and roots the natives formerly ex- 

 tracted a bright yellow dye-stuff. 



A very beautiful native wood, extensively used for turned 

 wooden bowls, umeke, is the milo, Thespesia populnea L. Corr. 

 The rich golden-brown color and variegated grain of the milo 

 wood, and its beautiful polish, give it high value as a cabinet wood. 

 The tree was brought by the ancient Hawaiians from their South 

 Pacific home, and was abundantly planted around their beach 

 settlements. It grows to a height of twenty-five to forty feet, 

 with a trunk of eighteen to twenty-six inches. It seeds freely and 

 is now thoroughly established along the strand. The kou, Cordia 

 subcordata Lam., was another easily carved, beautifully grained 

 wood which the natives prized for bowls and other vessels. It 

 was brought from the South Seas, where it is plentiful. It was 

 formerly common along Hawaiian shores, but is now quite rare. 

 The beautiful orange flowers are arranged in showy panicles. 



The kolea (Suttonia lessertiana A. DC. Mez) yields a beautiful 

 cabinet wood. It is of mediimi hardness, easily worked, of a rich 

 pink color mottled with darker, with a showy grain, and taking a 



