The largest populations of koa are found on the islands of Hawai’i, Maui, and O’ahu.
This photo is of one of my favorite trees in the world, the koa tree. It is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands, and it can be found on Kaua’i where this photo was taken. The largest populations of this tree are found on the islands of Hawai’i, Maui, and O’ahu. Hawaiian Legacy Reforestation Initiative, a nonprofit based in Hawai’i that Wild Boyz Photography has featured in the past, plants koa trees on the island of Hawai’i. I took this photo when Jill and I were hiking the Ho’opi’i Falls trail on the east side of Kaua’i. We had hiked to the first waterfall along the trail, and we were heading to the second falls. I couldn’t help but to stop and look up at the tower trees above me that were covered in vines. Many of the vines, including some of the ones that are pictured here, were flowering with beautiful purple and red blossoms.
The scientific name for the koa tree is Acacia koa. Koa means brave, bold, fearless, and warrior in the Hawaiian language. This tree can grow to be quite tall. At its largest it will grow to a height of nearly 100 feet with a canopy of 125 feet. The circumference on these large trees can be up to 20 feet! It is also a fast-growing tree, as it can reach 30 feet in five years. The ideal soil condition for the koa tree is actual volcanic ash.
The leaves of the koa are quite interesting. They begin as bipinnately compound leaves with 12 to 24 leaflets that grow along the secondary vein, or rachis, of the leaf blade. To imagine this better, think of how a fern grows with branches, aka rachis, with multiple leaflets. As the koa grows, the original leaves are replaced with vertically oriented, thick, sickle-shaped, leathery leaves called phyllodes. These leaves end up being three to ten inches long and will be the true leaves for the adult tree.
The koa tree will flower seasonally or year-round. The flowers are pale yellow and less than a half an inch in diameter. The fruit that is produced from the leaves are pods. Twelve seeds can be found inside of each three- to six-inch-long pod. The pods will turn brown to black when they are ready for propogation.
Did you know?
The sap of the koa tree is the preferred food source of the green Hawaiian blue butterfly!
As the koa grows, the original leaves are replaced with vertically oriented, thick, sickle-shaped, leathery leaves called phyllodes.
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