98 



THE AMERICAN BOTANIST 



of the year everything is water-soaked. The vegetation is en- 

 gaged in a Hfe-or-death struggle for head-room and sunshine; 

 there is none of the sunny serenity of an eastern woodland. In 

 the clearings the lianas and under-brush snarl into inextricable 

 tangles. Frequently the trail must be carved out with machetes. 

 The forest seems barren of blossom. 



After a few trips, however, one's eyes become accustomed 

 to the diversified greenery and the humid shade. A mental 

 re-alignment takes place, almost unawares, which puts this 

 somber background into the subjective background. Here and 

 there the brilliant blooms appear. Rarely profuse in any one 

 place, usually sequestered by the enmassing foliage, neverthe- 

 less, the presence of these tropic flowers* gradually grows upon 

 the consciousness, and one becomes aware of their charm and 

 beauty. They become familiar, anticipated, and the long 

 flowerless stretches are forgotten in the joy of seeing again a 

 glowing mass of color against the luxuriant verdure of the 

 woodlands that are forever green. 



This paper is a rapid enumeration of the beautiful wild 

 flowers that adorn the beaches, lowlands, valleys, and moun- 

 tains of the Hawaiian Islands. It is based upon eight years of 

 residence and field work in that beautiful island world of the 

 mid-Pacific. Only those fairly abundant forms with showy or 

 striking floral effects are included. Many of the rarer and 

 smaller flowers possess beauty excelling that of the conspicuous 

 ones, but of a finer and more subtle quality. 



The most conspicuous and abundant flower in the Hawaiin 

 forests is the lelnia (Metrosidcros polyinorphai) . This tree is 

 the commonest of the native species, and grows at all eleva- 

 tions, from arid fava coasts, far up onto the rainy valley slopes 

 and mountain ridges. As its specific name indicates, it varies 

 greatly in stature and habit, from a stately tree of 125 feet, to a 

 prostrate shrub scarcely lifting its head above the swamp 

 grasses. The flower is an impressionistic cluster of deep scarlet, 



