Ha`uoi

Called Ha‘uoi and ōwī in Hawaiian, ōwī refers to "the cry of the bird." Commonly known as Blue vervain or Porterweed, there are actually 4 species in Hawai'i distinguished by the color of the flower and whether the stalks have fine hairs or not on then. The plant is native to the tropical Americas. Some other names are: Kandikandilaan (Philippines), Jia ma bian (China), Selasih dandi (Malaysia) and Verbena cimarrona (Spain).

The Ha‘uoi has very delicate dark blue or purple flowers along its tall, thin and hairless lime green flower tubular stalk. The flowers singly rise up along the stalk. The textured green leaves of the plant are oblong with serrated edges. The woody stems can reach up to 6' tall. Seeds readily form and disperse, quickly creating new plants.

Ha‘uoi is commonly found on the sides of roads and in disturbed areas at lower elevations.

Traditional Cultural and Medicinal Usages

• Leaves, stems, flowers poulticed for external application on cuts and bruises
• Flowers are edible; leaves can be made into tea