Coastal sandalwood facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Coastal sandalwood |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Santalum
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| Species: |
ellipticum
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The Santalum ellipticum, also known as coastal sandalwood or ʻIliahialoʻe in Hawaiian, is a special flowering plant. It belongs to the Santalaceae family, which is related to mistletoe. This plant is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands, meaning it grows naturally only there.
The ʻIliahialoʻe can be a spreading shrub or a small tree. It usually grows about 1–5 m (3.3–16.4 ft) tall. Its branches can spread out 1–3 m (3.3–9.8 ft) wide. However, its size and shape can change a lot depending on where it grows. Like other plants in its group, S. ellipticum is a hemi-parasite. This means it gets some of its food and water by attaching to the roots of other plants.
Where ʻIliahialoʻe Lives
The ʻIliahialoʻe plant lives in different parts of the Hawaiian Islands. You can find it in dry forests, low shrublands, and on lava plains. It grows across the whole group of islands, even the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. However, it has disappeared from Laysan and Kahoʻolawe. Even though it was never officially recorded on Niʻihau, it probably grew there a long time ago.
This plant usually grows from sea level up to about 560 m (1,840 ft) high. But sometimes, you can find it as high as 950 m (3,120 ft). One special plant was even seen growing at 2,140 m (7,020 ft) on the island of Hawaiʻi.
How People Use ʻIliahialoʻe
People have used ʻIliahialoʻe for many different things throughout history.
Non-Medicinal Uses
The inner wood, called ʻlaʻau ʻala or heartwood, of ʻiliahialoʻe has special, sweet-smelling oils. Between 1791 and 1840, these trees were cut down and sent to China. In China, the hard, yellowish-brown wood was used to make carved items, chests, and incense. The trade of ʻiliahialoʻe was busiest from 1815 to 1826.
Native Hawaiians used the wood to build parts of their waʻa kaulua, which are double-hulled canoes. They also ground the ʻlaʻau ʻala into a powder. This powder was used as a perfume and added to kapa cloth, which is a type of fabric.
Medicinal Uses
Native Hawaiians also used ʻiliahialoʻe for health. They mixed the leaves and bark of the plant with ashes from naio (another plant) to treat kepia o ke poʻo (dandruff) and liha o ka lauoho (head lice).
Sometimes, shavings from ʻiliahialoʻe were mixed with other plants like ʻawa (Piper methysticum), nioi (Eugenia reinwardtiana), ʻahakea (Bobea spp.), and kauila (Alphitonia ponderosa). This mixture was used to help treat certain sicknesses.
