Having a little forest of these going is one of my favorite corners of the property.
The Basics
Hapuʻu is a native Hawaiian tree fern, genus Cibotium, in the family Cibotiaceae.
Origin and Habitat
Endemic to Hawaii, growing naturally in wet, shaded native forest understory, often at higher elevations.
What It Looks Like
A tree fern with a thick, fibrous trunk topped by a crown of large, arching fronds. The fuzzy fiber at the base of the fronds was traditionally used for packing material and in lei making.
Uses and Flavor
Not a food plant here — grown for its role as a native forest structure and habitat rather than anything edible.
Growing It Here
We bought a bunch of these tree ferns here from our old place and from friends’ places, and this is genuinely one of my favorite plants to work with, a whole stand of them creates the right conditions for orchids, anthuriums, and a wide range of other plants underneath. We cleaned up what we call the hapuʻu forest next to the lanai, and I planted about ten orchids in there the same day, using a trick with pantyhose to secure them to the tree fern trunks while they establish, since they eventually latch on and hold themselves once settled. At this point that corner includes over 100 different species that I still need to properly catalog on the website. It’s not without cost, though, one of these fell during a storm and split the crotch of our Buddha’s hand citron in half, so as much as I love this corner, it’s not entirely without risk to what’s growing near it.
Pests and Diseases to Watch For
Nothing pest related, though as we learned the hard way, a mature hapuʻu can be a real hazard to whatever’s growing directly underneath it if it comes down.
Kenta’s Take
This corner of the property feels the most like real native forest out of anywhere here, orchids and all. Still one of my favorite spots to walk through, even after it took out part of a citrus tree.