Lysimachia hillebrandii

Description:

Hawaiian names: Kolekole lehua, Kolokolo kuahiwi, Kolokolo lehua, PuahekiliCommon names: Hillebrand's loosestrife, Hillebrand's lysimachiaPrimulaceae (Primrose family)Endemic to the Hawaiian Islands (Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Lnai, Maui)Kauai (Cultivated)Another view of a flowerwww.flickr.com/photos/dweickhoff/5491296808/in/photolist-...EtymologyThe generic name Lysimachia is derived from the Greek lysis, release from, and mache, strife. Tradition relates that when Lysimachus, King of Thrace in Asia Minor (306-281 BCE), was chased by a bull he waved a plant of this genus to pacify the animal, thus releasing himself from strife. The common name for plants in this genus is loosestrife.The specific epithet hillebrandii was named for William Hillebrand (1821-1886), a young Prussian physician and plant collector. He planted many of the plants he collected at Queen's Hospital and on his own property in Nuuanu. After moving back to Germany the property was sold to his neighbors Thomas & Mary Foster. Today, it is known as the Foster Botanical Gardens. There are several Pritchardia hillebrandii growing in the gardens, once Hillebrand's property.