Ulu Fruit

Heidi Fickinger

#647 of 696

Heidi Fickinger

Hilo, HI

$13.00

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Title

Ulu Fruit

Artist

Heidi Fickinger

Medium

Photograph - Photographic Print

Description

This is 'ulu fruit, also known as breadfruit. 'Ulu is one of the canoe plants brought to the Hawaiian Islands by the Polynesian voyagers that first came to the Islands. There are many varieties of 'ulu (Artocarpus altilis, Artocarpus incisus or Artocarpus communis). 'Ulu is a beautiful tree, growing to 40-60 feet, with wide, deep green leaves that appear to be widespread, open hands.
'Ulu is a member of the jackfruit and mulberry family and is believed to have originated in Java or Papua New Guinea. In those regions, the tree is seeded, but the majority of varieties in Polynesia are seedless. This is due to extensive hybridization in Polynesia. The history of the spread and cultivation of 'ulu directly traces the voyaging and migration of peoples all over Pacific.
In Hawai'i, 'ulu was very important to the survival of the original Hawaiians, which was why it was one of the few plants brought to the Islands. The trunk was used to make surf boards, drums, canoe parts, poi boards and wood for house and furniture construction. The inner bark lent itself as a second-grade tapa cloth. Leaf sheaths, like the finest of abrasives, polished utensils, bowls, or kukui nuts used for leis. The young buds were a medicine for mouth and throat. The white sticky sap became glue, caulking, chewing gum, or medicine. And of course, it was a very important source of food and nutrition. 'Ulu contains some of the highest levels of lutein of any plant. Lutein is an important nutrient for the eyes. Lutein is now marketed to help maintain eye health. I have elderly Hawaiian friends who have eaten 'ulu all their lives and to a one, they still have perfect vision.
The British, when they began to explore the Pacific saw the importance of 'ulu as a possible food source in the Caribbean. They tried multiple times tried to bring it back from the Pacific to cultivate on the Caribbean islands they had conquered as a food source for their slaves. It is said to have been the one of the reasons Captain Bligh was set adrift on the sea when his crew mutinied. Captain Bligh and the Bounty set sail for Tahiti and gathered over one thousand 'ulu shoots to be transported back to the Caribbean. But plants need water and it was not long before they had soaked up more than their fair share of the limited drinking water on board the boat. Bligh rationed the water away from his crew. When his men reached the end of their tolerance they put Bligh and his loyalists adrift. After which, the breadfruit starters were also flung into sea.
'Ulu is boiled, baked or fried into chips. It has a slightly sweet, nutty flavor.

Featured in the following FAA Group Galleries:
* The Mind's Eye
* The Space Between
* Hawaiian Greeting Card Photography
* Hawaiian Photography
* Hawaiiana
* The Global Art Reference
* USA Photographers
* What's New
* Beauty
* Strictly Neon
* Fine Art America Professionals
* Werid Natural Oddities