Lama

Lama is common at low and mid elevations in the mountains. One way to tell is that the leaves are dirty looking, but not always (especially young plants). Lama usually occurs in the dry native forest.

Background Information

There are 2 endemic species of Lama. It is part of the sundew family. Lama is very significant in Hawaiian culture. For ceremonies, Hawaiians made a fence created of lama wood which signified a sacred area dedicated to Laka ~ goddess of hula.

Lama

In the dry forest, Lama presents as a tree about 6-20 feet tall. The dark grayish/greenish pointed leaves are about 1-3 inches in length that alternate on opposite sides of the stem. Young leaves have pink in them. The fruit is sweet with tang twist. Its fruit color is orange and red when ripe, however I haven't seen a ripe Lama fruit before, which is poor observation on my part.

Lama

The scientific name for Lama is diospyros sandwicensis. This is the more common one. The other endemic species is more rare. I observed this tree on the Papali Ridge trail. If you see one on the trail, chances are you'll see more in the area.


Lama

Here is a small berry I seen within the Northern Waianae Range. It was yellow, I guess this is the fruit?

Lama

Since Lama is common in the Native Hawaiian forest, it would be a good idea to identify this plant on a regular basis. Here are two pictures which show its features. As fellow hiker Bernice tells me, the leaves can appear dirty. That could be a give away. However, not all lama leaves are dirty all the time. The leaves have this minor fold in them. There appears to be both a male and female plant of Lama. The female plant is more full and the male plant is skinny with skinny branches.

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