For food security, health and beauty, ulu, or breadfruit, is a great tree to plant in your garden or on your farm. If we want to plan for a sustainable future, let’s plant breadfruit trees for ourselves, our ohana and our communities. When planted correctly and nurtured with water, good drainage and leafy tree mulch, ulu is one of the easiest food crops to grow, harvest and cook.
Just think about it — an ono, nutritious, starchy vegetable that grows on a tree.
When a natural or man-made disaster strikes Hawaii, will we have enough food? Shouldn’t we grow more of our own food? Studies show that we have about one week of food on stores shelves in Hawaii. That is not enough, and we need to plan and be more self-sufficient.
Ulu is so easy because you can pick it off the tree, and it’s such a beautiful, iconic tree. It’s much easier to grow than taro (kalo). And there are few pests and diseases that attack ulu — for now. We do need to maintain good quarantine practices and restore agriculture inspector positions and increase oversight on what comes into the state.
Ulu is rich in potassium and B vitamins. It has good fiber and a similar and complementary nutritional profile with kalo. Some other good survival or famine food trees to plant are coconut (niu) and avocado. As my tutu nui told me, "Plant these trees and you can live long and healthy and keep gardening and surfing like me."
The Breadfruit Institute at the National Tropical Botanical Garden on Kauai has provided young ulu trees to residents, schools and community groups to plant at home and in their communities. Ma’afala, a favorite variety in Samoa and Tonga, flourishes in Hawaii and grows compactly. As it is productive and nutritious, it is the main variety that has been shared so far by the institute. Nearly 4,800 trees have been given out on Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Lanai, Maui and Hawaii island.
On Sept. 15 there will be a celebration of ulu on Kauai. Breadfruit Festival Takes Root will take place at the National Tropical Botanical Garden’s Southshore Visitors Center in Poipu. Parking will be off the western bypass road near the roundabout, with a free shuttle to the event. Admission is free.
The day’s program, which also spotlights kalo, will feature experts from other islands; cooking, cultural and flour-making demonstrations; and presentations. Celebrity chef Sam Choy will share his expertise on cooking with ulu. The program includes breadfruit tree and cookbook sales, music and keiki activities. Dishes inspired by breadfruit and taro will be sold.
Three new varieties of breadfruit will be available for the first time in Hawaii.
This is exciting. Having more varieties spreads the fruiting season and will give us more health and nutrition. Experts will be on hand to share information.
The main expert is Diane Ragone, director of the Breadfruit Institute, who has studied ulu for years and collected rare varieties from all over Oceania. Arborist and ulu tree curator Ian Cole, who cares for the breadfruit collection at the National Tropical Botanical Garden’s Kahanu Garden in Hana, Maui, will be there, and so will I.
The event is presented by Ho‘oulu ka ‘Ulu — Revitalizing Breadfruit, a project of the institute and the Hawai‘i Homegrown Food Network. The project’s goal is to revitalize ulu as an attractive, delicious, nutritious, abundant, affordable and culturally appropriate food that addresses the state’s food security issues.
The festival was made possible through grants from the Hawaii Tourism Authority and the Office of Hawaiian Affairs.
For more information: ntbg.org/ulufestival.
Heidi Leianuenue Bornhorst is a sustainable landscape consultant specializing in native, xeric and edible gardens. Reach her at heidibornhorst@gmail.com.
