Did You Know.......
Pukiawe bears berries in colors from white to pink to red to burgundy; although, each plant will have just one of these colors. In olden days, the pukiawe bush was burned when an Ali'i walked by. The smoke released the kapu over him, allowing him to mingle and work with the commoners. When he finished and was to go back to his home to be with his fellow chiefs, he needed to walk through the smoke again allowing it to purify him so he could once again mingle with ali'i.
Both the lehua and the ohelo are sacred to Pele. The lehua is the favorite flower of Pele's sister Hi'iaka-i-ka-poli-o-pele, the youngest of the Hi'iaka sisters. 'Ohi'a lehua is the plant from which you pick the flower (lehua) or the young leaves (liko). There are many colors of lehua, ranging from yellow to pink to peach to red. The red ohi'a lehua and the palapalai were sacred to Laka, the hula goddess, and were placed on the altar of this deity. Liko lehua is the young leaf of th4e lehua just as liko 'ohelo is the young leaf of the 'ohelo.
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