Plants were a very important part of life to the Hawaiians in Kaelepulu Pond. The Hawaiians only took what they needed and nothing more. They used all of whatever they took. This way they wouldn't use up their resources or waste them. A good example is taro. The corm (root), the flower, and even the leaves did not go to waste.

taro patch

Plants were used in many ways by the Hawaiians. Besides being a food source, they were used as medicine to cure illnesses and aches or pains, for clothing, tools, or even as offerings to the gods, mainly "Kane" because he was the god of growing things.

Many of the plants, such as taro, required lots of fresh water which came from streams. Some plants like the uala, or sweet potato, didn't require as much water.