Natural History

Crape Ginger
(Costus speciosus)

The spiral gingers include a number of ginger-like herbaceous plants that rise up three feet or more from the ground and resemble spiraling bamboo. Probably the most ancient of all gingers, the gingers in the Costus family are all characterized by twisted tissues, spirally arranged bracts on their flowerheads, curling leafbuds and swirls of leaves up their bamboo-like stalks.

One of the most popular of these in Hawaii is the Crape Ginger, which is also called Malay Ginger or Cane reed. It has dark green, spear-shaped leaves and large, delicately frilled, bell-shaped white flowers with a yellow throat that emerge from the brilliant four-inch red cones growing from the terminals of the stems..

The plants grow about six to 10 feet in height. Several very sturdy leaf stalks sprout from the underground rhizomes. The leaves, each about eight inches long, are grouped together at the top of the stalks in a distinctive spiral arrangement.

The flowers appear mostly from late spring to early fall and are produced within the crown of leaves. Small green bracts form a tight base for the flowers, which are about two inches in diameter. It's interesting to note that the large fluted skirt of the flower is not a petal but a modified stamen, part of the male reproductive system. The three true petals of the flower are obscured by this stamen. (There's also a regular, centrally located stamen as well.)

The flowers are followed by round red seed capsules, about 2/3 inch in diameter, with black seeds and white flesh. The old flower stalks die back after the blooming period. They like lush, protected, jungle-like environments. (There's a whole bunch of them at the Keanae Arboretum and along the roadsides as well.) Established plantings often outgrow their garden areas and they are very fast growers. They have become naturalized in some areas.

Crape ginger is not grown commercially in Hawaii. Its flower is too delicate for use in flower arrangements and lei.

In its native Malay peninsula of Southeast Asia, this plant has been used for centuries as a remedy for numerous ailments including colds, fevers, pneumonia and rheumatism. The sap of the young leaves and stems have been used to treat diarrhea and ear and eye infection. A decoction made from the dried root is used to bathe skin infections and the juice from the fresh rhizome has been used as a purgative in Malaysia.

Recently, potent steroids were discovered in the rhizomes of the crepe ginger. These chemicals are used for birth control pills in India. Other studies have found that the extract of the rhizome can be used to lower blood sugar levels, treat inflammation of the liver, as an antioxidant and to fight stress. Significant quantities of diosgenin, used to produce artificial hormones like progesterone were also found. Since the extract apparently increases uterine contractions, it is a useful birthing aid, but it is not normally recommended for use by pregnant women.

In Malaysia, the Philippines and India, the young shoots are cooked with coconut milk and eaten as a vegetable. The rhizomes are edible and nutritious, but they are not as palatable as some other kinds of ginger roots. They're usually eaten only during famines.

The Malays, who call it setawar, believe it has supernatural powers as a potent antidote to evil spirits. It is also reputed to be an aphrodisiac. (No studies have been done to verify the last two.)

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Arts & Culture

The Church A Storm Helped Build

From the top of the Wailua overlook at the 21-mile marker on the road to Hana, you can see the taro patches of the Wailua peninsula and the landmark of the little village - the Our Lady of Fatima Shrine. Built in 1860 along the Hana Coast at Wailua, this little church was originally known as St. Gabriel's. It was one of the first stops on Maui for circuit-riding Catholic priests. Before it opened, Mass was said in a small shack for the few Catholic families in the area. It is best known as the "Coral Miracle Church." (The Wailua Homestead Road, at the 18-mile marker, leads down into Wailua village.)

When construction of the church began, the small congregation had great difficulty building the church with the materials available. They had to haul huge blocks of coral from the deep waters just off the coast of the peninsula. It was a major expenditure of effort and they became discouraged. Successful completion of the church was in doubt and there was a lot of praying going on.

Then, a huge storm battered northeast Maui and the next day, the villagers at Wailua found that a huge pile of coral rock - more than enough to finish the church - had been washed ashore. When the parishioners finally finished the church, the leftover rocks were washed out to sea by another storm (a big help in the clean-up)!

When the congregation got too big for the little church they built a larger one nearby in 1937. For a time the old St. Gabriel's served as a warehouse. Then in 1951 it was rededicated as a shrine to "Our Lady of Fatima."

The old church's blue and white interior has a single row of six wooden benches, each no more than ten feet long. A simple altar holds a basket in which people place prayers written on scraps of paper.

There are shrines and churches dedicated to Our Lady of Fatima all over the world. Their mission is to spread devotion to Mary, the mother of Jesus, and her message of peace and the effectiveness and power of devotional prayer.

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Braddah-Nics Lexicon

STANDARD: I'm working at home.
BRADDAH-NICS: I stay working my house.

* * * * * * * *

STANDARD: Are we playing?
BRADDAH-NICS: Us goin' play or what?

* * * * * * * *

STANDARD: It's true! Really!
BRADDAH-NICS: Hones' kine....

  

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Local Grinds

Kau Yuke

Ingredients:

• 2 medium pork trays
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 2 bottles of Kau Yuk sauce
• ½ cup of green onion
• 1 tbsp butter
   

Procedure:

• Chop pork into bite sized chunks
• Add pork to a pot full of boiling water on high heat
• Clean and mince garlic while allowing pork to continuously cook until tender
• Rinse and drain well
• Return to stove on medium-high heat, add butter and garlic
• Stir to fry pork
• Add sauce and stir to coat, cover and let simmer on low heat for 20-30 minutes-stirring occasionally
• Garnish plate with chopped green onion

Fried Rice

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of cooked rice
• 1 clove of garlic – minced
• 1 cup of diced onion
• ½ cup of Aloha shoyu
• 2 cups of frozen mixed vegetables
• 1 egg
• 1 tbsp butter
• Salt and pepper to preference

Procedure:

• Heat up a large frying pan or wok on medium-high heat.
• Add in butter and garlic.
• Add in onion and stir well.
• Add rice along with shoyu. While this is cooking, fry one scrambled egg with salt and pepper, when it's done chop into tiny pieces and add to pan. Stir well.
• Add veggies in, stir until it is well distributed then cover and set heat to low.
  
   

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Remember When . . .

Iao Needle - circa 1890’s

One of Brother Bertram’s favorite subjects for his late 19th century photographs was the Iao Valley. He was a Catholic Marianist brother who came to Hawaii as a teacher but also became a talented pioneer photographer on Maui.

Although the photograph is entitled “The Needle”, it does not really show the needle as did another of his photographs, which was the subject of a previous “Remember When” article. By comparing the two photographs, it appears that Brother Bertram was standing further up the stream and closer to the needle. The base of the needle can be seen in the top right quarter of the photograph. Although the photograph does not really show the needle, it is an excellent depiction of how wild the upper Iao Valley really was in the 1890’s.

Photo from the archives of the Maui Historical Society/Bailey House Museum
Historical text by Fred Woodruff, Bailey House Volunteer

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