Native Plants and Native People

Kava, kalo, ti, sugar cane, and kukui nuts - some of the most iconic Hawaiian plants, or are they? These plants, plus several more make up what are called “canoe plants.” Canoe plants were plants brought over by the original Polynesian settlers, and were essential for survival and daily life of these first Hawaiians. But while we call these people and their descendants Native Hawaiians, do we call the plants they brought over native, as well?

The answer, is, well… complicated.

Culturally, most people do indeed consider these plants native. They are the basis of Hawaiian culture, and many are still used to this day for food or celebration. What would Hawaii be without poi, kulolo, or lau lau - all made from kalo (taro). How would celebration leis differ without the addition of ti leaves or kukui nuts? They are as much a part of the people as the people are of themselves. How could they not be native if the people are? They even have Hawaiian names and origin stories.

But they didn’t originate from Hawaii, and most did not get here naturally. Doesn’t this mean they are nonnative, introduced plants? Ecologically speaking, yes, they are technically introduced species. So, does this mean they should be restricted or overlooked when planting native plants for ecosystem health or landscaping? Not necessarily. Not all nonnative plants are considered invasive, or are a major concern for land managers or ecologists. It might help to define some of these terms. Nonnative plants (also called “introduced”) are those which arrived to an area through unnatural means, usually with the help of humans. Of these plants, many won’t survive, and of those that do, only a small proportion will become invasive. Invasive plants are those that grow uncontrollably and outcompete native plants for limited resources.

Man climbing a palm tree, a traditional way to harvest coconuts. Photo by Michal Pechardo (@michalp24)

It’s important to note that Hawaii was originally settled sometime between the 4th and 7th centuries CE. This means that canoe plants have existed in Hawaii for at least 1400 years. That is a not insignificant amount of time, and certainly enough for plants in other regions to move and evolve and become native through natural means. With this in mind, can we consider canoe plants as ‘essentially native,’ despite their otherwise unfortunate arrival?

There’s actually another term used to describe introduced species which have integrated into native ecology, often by a degree of time. This term is “naturalized". Just like when a person gains citizenship in a country they weren’t born in, plants can become naturalized, as well. This term is also used to describe plants which have integrated into local ecosystems without any major disturbances. So, are canoe plants naturalized, then? Yes… and no. They should be considered naturalized plants, but they are rarely described as such, and that’s what makes this all so confusing.

It all comes back around to Native people and their plants. These plants are so integrated into the culture and history of the Hawaiian Islands that it is often hard for people to separate them. Occasionally, another term will be used: “Polynesian-introduced", to separate these special canoe crops from other naturalized plants. This is because “naturalized” may still have some negative connotations - often, it’s seen that naturalized plants are just one step better than invasive plants.

To add to the confusion surrounding canoe plants, the first Hawaiian settlers also brought along animals to eat. Pigs, dogs, and chickens were all introduced to the islands alongside these plants. Interestingly, none of these animals are considered native. In fact, all three animals have feral populations across the islands and are considered nuisance animals or invasive species. (To learn more about the feral animal populations on Oahu, stayed tuned for a future blog post!)

While the debate continues about whether these canoe species can be considered native or not, what are your thoughts?

Activity Guide:

Native Plants and Native People Activity Guide (Google Doc)

Further Reading:

Bishop Museum Learning Center Plants of Hawai’i: https://www.bishopmuseum.org/online-learning-center/plants-of-hawaii/
Plant Pono Canoe Plants: https://plantpono.org/canoe-plants/

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