Puakauhi. Plate 6 from the book: Indigenous flowers of the Hawaiian Islands

Plate 6 of 44 from Isabella Sinclair's Indigenous flowers of the Hawaiian Islands (1885). The coloured illustration is accompanied by the following text describing the plant:

The Puakauhi.

Canavalia ensiformis, D.C.?

The puakauhi, or awitiwiti, as some of the old natives call it, is a beautiful creeping - or if it chance to find a support - climbing plant. It grows freely on the lowlands in favourable situtations, and may occasionally be found on the mountains, but when growing at a greater elevation than a thousand feet, the flowers are far inferior in colour and brilliancy to those found on the lowlands.

It generally blossoms in April and May. The flowers are of a rich dark purple - a colour rare in Hawaiian flowers. They grow in pendent clusters, but not more than three fully open flowers appear at the same time.

Formerly, when the puakauhi was much more plentiful than it is now, the natives prized it for making necklaces and wreaths - mixing it with the blossom of the wiliwili which is of a bright orange scarlet - thus forming a pleasing contrast, very gratifying to their passion for bright colours.