Hawaiian Name(s): māmane, mamani

Scientific Name: Sophora chrysophylla

Vernacular Name: none

Family: Fabaceae

Status: endemic

Authority: (Salisb.) Seem.

Description: Shrubs or trees up to 15m tall.

Habitat Dry shrubland & forest to mesic or rarely wet forest, formerly in subalpine vegatation 450–3240 m on most main islands (Wagner et al. 1990:706).

Medicines:

Non Medicinal Uses: Wood for thatching poles up to a five cm diameter (Abbott 1992:68) and spears. Used wood for ‘o‘o, sled runners (Lamb 1981:50–51; Malo 1951:21). Good firewood (wahie) (Kamehameha Schools 1994:26)

Specific gravity of wood: unknown

Famous Locations:

Mele: 'Ke ko‘olau ‘o ka pua māmane, i ka la, E ake no a ma‘u i ka wai o ka naulu' line in "Maika‘i Ka‘uiki" (Pukui 1995:164)

`Ōlelo Noeau:

Dye Color and Parts:

Kino lau:

Location on Bishop Museum Kalihi Campus:

Propagation Information: Easy. Seeds are scarified & soaked; germinate in 1-2 weeks; young māmane, grow vigorously but should be protected from intense, direct sunlight, strong winds & heavy rains until they are 20 cm tall; thrives on lots of sunshine; hosts nitrogen-fixing bacteria (Culliney and Koebele 1999:107–109).
Hawaiian Native Plant Propagation Database.
Native Plants Hawaii.