The Ohia Lehua is a species of flowering evergreen tree. It produces a brilliant display of flowers ranging from fiery red to yellow. Ohia Lehua trees are usually the very first plants to grow on new lava flows. It is a common misconception that the word Ohia is used to refer to the tree and the word Lehua refers only to its flowers. This misconception is derived from Hawaiian Mythology; Ohia and Lehua were two young lovers. The volcano goddess Pele fell in love with the handsome Ohia and approached him, but he turned down her advances. In a fit of jealousy, Pele transformed Ohia into a tree. Lehua was devastated by this transformation and out of pity the other gods turned her into a flower and placed her upon the Ohia tree. Other versions say that Pele felt remorseful but was unable to reverse the change, so she turned Lehua into a flower herself. It is said that when Lehua is plucked from an Ohia tree, the sky will fill with rain representing the separated lovers’ tears. Judging by our rain gauge, plucking Lehua from Ohia is occurring a lot! Unfortunately this Ohia had to be taken down for the safety of our outdoor kitchen and shower area, but we were kind enough to leave Lehua attached. Hope you enjoy this brief video, aloha!
Too close for comfort to our White Pineapple Bed.
One hour of hand clearing and only saw dust remains.
