`Ohe

`Ohe is also known as the Hawaiian bamboo. There are two species of `Ohe, the Schizostachyum glaucifolium and the larger Bambusa vulgaris. The plant is native to Southeast Asia. According to Hawaiian legend, `Ohe is said to be the kino lau (body form) of Kane, the creator god. In Samoa, the plant is called 'Ofe.

`Ohe is a perennial evergreen. The root structure is known for clumping in such a way that the rhizomes grow upward to develop new culms. Depending on the species, `Ohe can grow more than 50 feet tall. The wood is glossy green in color. The internodes along the culm (stalk) can run about 14 inches apart and 4 inches in diameter. The clustered branches have a few larger dominant ones. The lanceolate leaf blades run from 6 to 15 inches in length, ending in an acute tip. New shoots appear from spring through summer. `Ohe flowers only once in a half century or longer.

`Ohe grows in mesic forests and shaded areas near streams.

Traditional Cultural and Medicinal Usages

People of ancient Hawai`i used `Ohe

• to kindle fires, blowing air through hollow tubes onto the embers
• to irrigate taro fields
• in the tapa cloth-making process
• for musical instruments
• for building and making agricultural tools and utensils
• as food - the young shoots were eaten