The inner bark of 'ulu makes a coarse kapa. Leaf-sheaths around male flowers were used as fine sandpaper in finishing wooden objects. Breadfruit is a source of brown dye, and the wood was used by Hawaiians for surfboards and temple drums.
Breadfruit sap, which was collected from a series of cut grooves in the bark, was used as caulking for ships, as glue, and in treatment of skin diseases.
Breadfruit trees were being carried by Captain Bligh's ship from Polynesia to the Caribbean as food for slaves when the infamous "Mutiny on the Bounty" occurred. The mutiny was partly about the water saved for the plants and lacking for the crew.
'Ulu has both male and female structures. The yellow structure on the left has only male flowers, which produce pollen, which contains the male sex cells. Densely packed female flowers cover the yellow structure on the right, which will eventually grow into a large fruit, about the size of a child's play ball. |  Photos by Priscilla Millen |
