Hawa or Royal cheesewoodPittosporaceae (Pittosporum family)Endemic to the Hawaiian Islands (Kauai only)IUCN: EndangeredOahu (Cultivated)Male flowers. Very fragrant at night and in the early morning.The wood was used in making gunwales for canoes by early Hawaiians. Medicinally, the outer layer of the fruit valves of hawa (Pittosporum spp.) were used. They were pounded and used externally on sores.EtymologyThe generic name Pittosporum is derived from the Greek pittos, pitch, and sporos, seed, in reference to the film of viscid resin covering the black seeds.The specific epithet, napaliensis, is named for the Npali Coast, Kauai.
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