Flowering Ti Plant #1
by Craig Wood
Title
Flowering Ti Plant #1
Artist
Craig Wood
Medium
Photograph - Photo
Description
The ti's versatile leaves have many uses, including: as wrappings for offerings; for roof thatching; as fly whisks or fans; wrappings for cool food storage, preservation and protection; for wrapping of food to be cooked, especially for laulau; as plates or cups; as fishing lures on hukilau nets; as wearing apparel, such as rain capes, sandals and as hula skirts called pa`u; and, more recently, as feed for cattle and horses. Ti leaves are also decorative; they are braided, twisted or woven into lei for numerous special and celebratory occasions; used as a covering for lu`au tables; and, they provide Hawai`i's tropical flower industry with a wonderful variety of foliage for impressive floral arrangements.
Ti (pronounced tee) has tall, sparingly branched wood stalks 3 to 12 feet high. The tightly spiraled leaf cluster is in a tuft at the top of the ringed stalk. The plant's green leaves are pointed, oval and blade- shaped, about 4 inches wide and vary from 1 to 2 feet long. As new leaves form at the center, the outside older leaves turn yellow and fall, leaving a circular ring on the plant's stalk. The thick, shiny and flexible leaves do not wilt quickly, making them useful for many purposes, some as already mentioned. Varieties of the ti plant have colored foliage and variously shaped leaves, called lauki, la`i, laki or lau`i. Besides the original and sacred green ki, the plant ranges in leaf color from pale white and yellow with green tones, to reds, covering a broad spectrum from pale to pink to a maroon, that appears almost black.
The plant's flower stalk emerges in winter. With the coming of spring, a many-branched drooping cluster of flowers comes into bloom. Its hundreds of tiny half-inch lilac-whitish purple flowers resemble miniature lilies. White or red berries follow the flowering stage. All rights apply. FAA watermarks will not appear on any photographs purchased.
Uploaded
December 26th, 2017
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