Maui Ocean Center offers new Hawaiian Culture and Plant Tour

Maui Ocean Center is offering a new Hawaiian Culture and Plant Tour. The tour will focus on native plants (species that are found naturally in Hawai‘i) and endemic plants (those that are found only in Hawai‘i and nowhere else on Earth).

Guests will also learn about “canoe plants,” or plants brought via canoe to the Hawaiian islands by Polynesian voyagers. 

The tour is a multi-sensory experience. Guests can smell the fragrance of the pōhinahina leaf; learn and recite ʻōlelo noʻeau (Hawaiian proverbs); use a pōhaku kuʻi ʻai (poi pounding stone) to mash kalo (taro); and taste an assortment of crops originally brought to Hawai‘i by Polynesian settlers. 

“From mauka to makai (mountains to ocean), everything is connected in Hawaiian culture,” said Jessica Colla, Maui Ocean Center’s director of education. “This holistic view applies to Maui’s many different watersheds. As water flows downstream, plants filter toxins from the environment, ultimately cleaning the water before it’s deposited into the ocean.”

That interconnectedness is highlighted in the Kumulipo, or Hawaiian creation chant, with the concept of duality- that many land plants have a marine counterpart in the ocean.

“These species are the guardians of one another,” said Sara Peyton, one of the naturalists conducting the tours. “If one is degrading in its environment, the other is likely struggling as well.”

Examples of this duality include:

• Hāpuʻu is found on land in the form of a Hawaiian tree fern and in the ocean as the giant grouper. The Hawaiian name shared by these two species translates to “plentiful.” 
• The leaves and fruit of the Alaheʻe plant can be used to make a black dye. It’s connected to the heʻe (octopus) and they can act as substitutes for one another in ceremonies.
• ʻĀweoweo has soft leaves that are used for shorebird nests. When crushed, the leaves release a fishy smell. That’s why it shares a name with the Hawaiian bigeye fish (which happens to be featured on Maui Ocean Center’s 25th anniversary membership T-shirt).

The tour ends with a sampling of canoe plants, including kalo and ʻuala (sweet potato), provided by the aquarium’s Seascape restaurant.

“Expect to use all of your senses during this informative and interactive tour that showcases the beauty of Hawaiian culture,” said Maui Ocean Center General Manager Tapani Vuori. 

Maui Ocean Center developed the tour with the support of the Maui Nui Botanical Gardens, a native Hawaiian ethnobotany garden in Kahului. A portion of ticket sales will support Maui Nui Botanical Gardens’ coastal native plant restoration efforts.

Space is limited on the 90-minute tours, which are currently offered on Tuesdays and Thursdays. For reservations, visit: mauioceancenter.com/experiences/hawaiian-culture-and-plant-tour.