ʻĀweoweo
Chenopodium oahuense
Aweoweo are typically low shrubs to small trees 2-8ft. tall with light blue/green leaves that are in the shape of a goose’s foot (they belong to the goose foot plant family Chenopodiacae). Sometimes the leaves call be very tiny, about ¼”-1/2″ across or they can be up to 2 inches depending on the growing conditions. Usually less water and more sun will result in smaller, thicker leaves whereas regular watering will make the plant have larger more thin leaves like in the picture. The flowers are very small and are in clusters above the plant. The older stems are usually streaked with red, similar to the fish, but also, when the leaves and flowers are crushed it smells just like the ‘aweoweo fish too! fo’ real! I not joking! But, you have to crush it first. You don’t have to worry about the plant smelling up your yard.
He wahi lāʻau pūnohunohu ka ʻāweoweo (ʻelua a ʻewalu kapuaʻi). He mau lau liʻiliʻi ʻāhinahina/ʻōmaʻomaʻo. Kohu like nā lau me nā wāwae nēnē (Pili ʻohana ia lāʻau me ka ʻohana lāʻau ʻo Chenopodiaceae.) Liʻiliʻi nō nā lau, 0.25–0.5 ʻīniha a i ʻelua ʻīniha. I ka pā nui ʻana i ka lā me ka wai liʻiliʻi, liʻiliʻi maila nā lau. I ka wai nui, nui aʻe nā lau. Māhunehune nō nā pua. ʻAweʻaweʻa nā hā kahiko i ka ʻulaʻula, e like me ka iʻa nona ka inoa o nei lāʻau. I ka hoʻopē ʻana i nā lau, nā hā a me nā pua, honi ʻia ke ʻala o ka iʻa, he ʻāweoweo nō paha ia. Akā mai hopohopo i ke kanu ʻia ʻana i ka pā hale, aia a pē, a laila honi ʻia.
‘Aweoweo, the plant not the fish, is found in drier, harsh habitats like near the ocean, in the lowland dry forest or all the way up in the sub-alpine shrub land of the large volcanoes like Mauna Kea. Although its species name is oahuense, this endemic plant is found on all of the main ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi Islands except Kaho’olawe (it was probably found there before) but also on most of the Northwestern ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi islands as well.
Ulu ka ʻāweoweo i nā ʻāina maloʻo ma kai a hiki i ke kuahea o Mauna Kea. I loko nō o kona inoa ʻo oahuense, ulu nō naʻe i ka pae ʻāina holoʻokoʻa, koe ʻo Kahoʻolawe (akā ulu ma laila ma mua) a ulu hoʻi ka ʻāweoweo i nā mokupuni pālahalaha i ke Komohana.
This plant is bullet proof! It likes full sun, and little to no watering once established. There are also hardly any bugs that attack this plant either. Sometimes you may notice some scale or aphids but this can be easily removed by hand or by spraying off with water.
Wahī ʻia nā muʻo i ka lāʻī a ʻai ʻia i ka wā wī. Kālai ʻia ka lāʻau i mākau lawaiʻa, no laila hiki ke lawaiʻa i ka ʻāweoweo i ka mākau ʻāweoweo.
The young leaves and stems are wrapped in ti leaves and steamed to be eaten in times of famine. The harder wood at the base of the plant can also be shaped in to fish hooks so you can catch ‘aweoweo with ‘aweoweo.
Ikaika loa kēia lāʻau. ʻAʻole i pilikia iki i ka wela o ka lā, a ʻaʻole nō pono ka wai he nui. ʻAʻole nō hoʻi nui nā mū e pilikia ai ka ʻāweoweo. I kekahi manawa he mau ʻeleao a mū unahi, akā e kī i ka wai a pau.
With all the news about people fishing for ‘Aweoweo (Priacanthus spp.) at He’eia pier and all over the islands a few years ago, I thought it would be interesting to share with people information of this ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi plant with the same name. If you’re wondering why a fish and a plant would have the same ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi name then you must go all the way back to the beginning: The Kumulipo. In this ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi creation chant many things are created in a dualistic manner meaning that when one thing is created in the ocean, there is often a counter part created on land or in the air or both!