"Hawaiian" chili pepper.Chili peppers are consumed fresh or in a variety of processed products in many cuisines worldwide. They are used as condiments or spices to add flavor or pungency to dishes. Use in processed products has increased dramatically in recent years. In the U.S., salsa sales now surpass ketchup sales, reflecting on the popularity of Mexican dishes. Chili peppers are used medicinally in Latin America and Africa. In many countries, chilies are part of the daily diet. Some cultivars are also used as ornamentals.

In many regions where chili peppers are widely consumed, they represent one of the few, if not the only, vegetable added to the diet to provide flavor, spice, and variety to grain- or root-crop-based diets. Their consumption represents a major source of vitamins and minerals in certain regions. Processed chili peppers are found in a variety of products including main dishes, meats, salad dressings, dairy products, beverages, candies, baked products, snack foods, salsas, hot sauces, and even in ice cream. Extracts are also used in pharmaceuticals, as medicinals, and in cosmetic products.

Pulelehua (Kamehameha butterfly). The author spotted this butterfly in her garden near some mamaki bushes, which started off her interest in this topic.

There’s a beautiful trio playing in the woods. It's a native trio that has been here a long time. The players are the māmaki shrub (Pipturus albidus), the koa tree (Acacia koa), and the Kamehameha butterfly (Vanessa tameamea), or pulelehua. If you have the right conditions, you can invite them to your garden, especially to encourage the pulelehua, whose numbers are diminishing, to thrive on the islands again.

"Celebrating ‘Ulu" Fine Art Contest Results

On Thursday, August 11, 2011 the Donkey Mill Art Center in Holualoa hosted an artist reception and educational program that featured ten finalists in the Ho‘oulu ka ‘Ulu – Revitalizing Breadfruit in Hawai‘i Art Contest. The well-attended reception began with a potluck dinner with numerous breadfruit dishes and other locally grown foods, highlighting the culinary arts of chef Olelo pa‘a Ogawa of Glow Hawaii. Artists and 'ulu enthusiasts had a chance to mingle in an open atmosphere of food, culture, and agricuture. After the meal, Andrea Dean and Craig Elevitch presented the Ho‘oulu ka ‘Ulu project and showed video clips of Hawaiian cultural experts relating the culture and history of breadfruit in Hawai‘i. Then well-known Holualoa artist Hiroki Morinoue shared his thoughts about each of the ten contest entries from a teacher's perspective. Finally, Gerald Lucent of Donkey Mill Art Center announced the winner of the contest, "The Gift of Kū" by Caren Loebel-Fried.

Bamboo can provide food, fodder, medicine, and a multitude of building and craft materials.

Bamboo has a range of benefits that make it excellent for developing small-scale productive enterprises. It is widely used throughout the Pacific for temporary building structures, rafts, harvesting poles, fishing rods, food and water containers, food tongs, and handicrafts. Bamboo species are most often harvested from the wild, such as secondary forests in Melanesia. In Hawai‘i, wild bamboo stands are commonly harvested for fishing poles, edible shoots, and some construction applications, as well as for some craft work and kadomatsu. It is little used for food except to small extent by Southeast Asian immigrants.