Pipturus albidus
Pipturus albidus, known as māmaki in Hawaiian and known as Waimea pipturus in English, is a species of flowering plant in the nettle family, Urticaceae, that is endemic to Hawaii. It inhabits coastal mesic, mixed mesic, and wet forests at elevations of. Māmaki is a small tree that reaches a height of and a trunk diameter of.Uses
Medicinal
made a treatment for illnesses known as ea and pāaoao from the fruit. They also combined fresh māmaki leaves with hot stones and spring water to produce herbal tea that was an effective treatment for general debility. Today, packages of dried māmaki leaves are commercially produced.Non-medicinal
The bast fibres were used by Native Hawaiians to make kapa and kaula.Ecology
P. albidus is the preferred host plant for the caterpillars of the Kamehameha butterfly. Māmaki sometimes host the caterpillars of the green Hawaiian blue.
