Rare cliff dweller thrives
in xeriscape garden

HUI KU MAOLI OLA Alula is available in two-gallon pots to gardeners at the Home Depot for about $25.

Description: The alula, often referred to as 'olulu, is a magnificent, almost prehistoric-looking plant. It has a fat, succulent stalk (single, sometimes branched) that emerges from the ground with a rosette of large, round light-green leaves on top. Yellow flowers protrude from the leaf axes on long stemlike tubes. When in bloom the flowers can completely encircle the plant's top, like a crown. The flowers are gently fragrant and are about 2 inches wide. People often call this plant "cabbage on a baseball bat" because of its appearance.

Distribution: This federally listed endangered plant is endemic to the islands of Kauai and Niihau, where it grows on sea cliffs, although it has not been seen on Niihau recently. Some reports place it on the Waianae mountains on Oahu. A similar species (B. rockii) found on the sea cliffs of Molokai closely resembles this plant but has larger white flowers with smaller, rounder leaves.

Landscape use and care: This plant is excellent for those interested in xeriscape gardens. It thrives in full sun and does OK in partial shade. The alula does not like to have continuously wet roots, so you should allow the soil to dry between waterings. If the soil is always wet at your home, the alula does fine in a pot.

Watch out for red and black flat mites on the underside of leaves. They will cause the leaves to become spotty and ugly. Slugs can also nibble their way through plant stems overnight, so watch out for them, too.

Also: One of the reasons this plant is endangered is because it is presumed that its natural, native pollinator has gone extinct, meaning there is nothing out in the wild to help it reproduce. You might have seen an episode of "National Geographic" in which two men who risked their lives rappelling down enormous sea cliffs to hand-pollinate the flowers of this beautiful plant, slowing -- or perhaps even preventing -- its demise.