''Myrsine lessertiana'', the ''kōlea lau nui'', is a species of colicwood that is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

. It inhabits dry, coastal mesic, mixed mesic, and wet forests at elevations of on all main islands. ''M. lessertiana'' is a small to medium-sized

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...

, reaching a height of and a trunk diameter of .

Uses

Native Hawaiians Native Hawaiians (also known as Indigenous Hawaiians, Kānaka Maoli, Aboriginal Hawaiians, First Hawaiians, or simply Hawaiians) ( haw, kānaka, , , and ), are the indigenous ethnic group of Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands. Hawaii ...

used ''kōlea lau nui'' wood to make ''papa olonā'' ('' Touchardia latifolia'' scrapers), ''kua kuku'' (''

kapa Kapa is a fabric made by native Hawaiians from the bast fibres of certain species of trees and shrubs in the orders Rosales and Malvales. Description and uses It is similar to ''tapa'' found elsewhere in Polynesia (the Hawaiian phoneme corre ...

'' anvils), ''pou'' (house posts), ''kaola'' (beams) and ''pale'' (

gunwale The gunwale () is the top edge of the hull of a ship or boat. Originally the structure was the "gun wale" on a sailing warship, a horizontal reinforcing band added at and above the level of a gun deck to offset the stresses created by firing ...

s) and ''manu'' (ornamental end pieces) for ''waa'' (

outrigger canoe Outrigger boats are various watercraft featuring one or more lateral support floats known as outriggers, which are fastened to one or both sides of the main hull. They can range from small dugout canoes to large plank-built vessels. Outrigger ...

s). ''Kōlea lau nui'' bark was boiled in water to make ''hili kōlea'' (a red

dye A dye is a colored substance that chemically bonds to the substrate to which it is being applied. This distinguishes dyes from pigments which do not chemically bind to the material they color. Dye is generally applied in an aqueous solution an ...

), which was then used on ''kapa''. Its leaves have been used for visions and revelation, and when smoked produce a high euphoric effect and visuals similar to those of LSD.

References

lessertiana Plants described in 1841 Endemic flora of Hawaii Trees of Hawaii Flora without expected TNC conservation status {{tree-stub