Perrottetia sandwicensis

Description:

Olomea or Pua'a olomeaDipentodontaceae (Dipentodon family)Endemic to the Hawaiian Islands (Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Lnai, Maui, Hawaii Island)Puu Kaua, Waianae Mountains, OahuHawaiian Names:The name Olomea is also used for brown, with darker spots or stripes, of a dog or pig.Puaa olomea means a striped pig.Waimea is a Maui name for this plant. This name is also a Kauai name for a kind of mmaki, having leaves with red veins and stems resembling those of olomea. Waimea is a name used for towns on Kauai and Hawaii Island and for the Waimea Bay & Valley on the north shore of Oahu. The name literally means "Reddish Water," from the red soil erosion into the streams.Medicinally, the early Hawaiians used the flowers and leaves to treat ea (thrush) and paoao (childhood disease, with physical weakening).EtymologyThe generic name Perrottetia is named for Georges Guerrard Samuel Perrottet (1793-1870), Swiss-born French gardener, agronomical botanist, and government botanist.The specific epithet sandwicensis refers to the "Sandwich Islands," as the Hawaiian Islands were once called, and named by James Cook on one of his voyages in the 1770s. James Cook named the islands after John Montagu (The fourth Earl of Sandwich) for supporting Cook's voyages.NPH00001nativeplants.hawaii.edu/plant/view/Perrottetia_sandwicensis