Example: Tricks the rat, sees seeds from bottom, but when climbs herb, can’t see it--so name refers to tricking the rat. If a person drinks too much kava over many years, boil 5-6 whole plant for 15 minutes in water (1.5 L) and put in pot, drink 3 cups, 1x / day for 3 days to detoxify the effects of kava. A person who has drunk too much kava over a long time feels it in the body--weak, hard to wake early, appetite is low, body feels heavy.
Scientific name: Phyllanthus imbricatus, Speaker: Johnson Noar
Example: When this plant grows to 2m, peel bark and put it in salt water to rett the stem. To do this, tie the stems in budles and cover the bundle with a stone in the sea. After one week, rett the stem by pulling out the strong fibers and discarding the rest. Dry the fibers, then make a grass skirt from this. The leaves can be crushed and used as a styptic for wounds to stop bleeding.
Example: To get strength back in your body, take a double handful of leaves in 1/2 of 1.5 l bottle, drink all at once. Children take the seeds of this plant and put them together in a ball to play with.
Scientific name: Hanslia ormocarpoides, Speaker: Johnson Noar
Example: Young plants for roof rafters, larger plants used for house posts. Women who get pregnant with someone else besides husband use this to abort. Boil a double handful of scraped stem in water and drink 1 cup four times daily to abort. Fruits are edible. Cut it open and eat what’s inside. see more on Youtube
Scientific name: Finschia chloroxantha, Speaker: Johnson Noar
Example: To treat indigestion, take 5 roots from 5 different plants, clean, grate into 600mL bottle of water. Drink one bottle twice daily. In Tanna, people use this plant to make rain, thunder, or to stop the rain. To make rain, take a big pile of this plant’s leaves, tie them in a bundle with a rope, and put into the sea. When the leaves start rotting, usually after one week, the rain will come.
Scientific name: Zingiber zerumbet, Speaker: Johnson Noar
Example: People use this to treat boils on the skin. Squeeze the "juice" of the leaf on the boil, and it will soften it so that the liquid inside the boil comes out. If you chew an amount of leaves first, then they will cover and stick to the boil so it will heal faster.
Scientific name: Ageratum conyzoides, Speaker: Jean Pascal Wahe
Example: Fuel: Dry portions of this plant are used as firewood. Hunting: Flying foxes and pidgeons are known to eat the fruit of this plant. As a result, hunters will cluster about these trees to hunt these animals.
Scientific name: Ficus adenosperma, Speaker: Jean Pascal Wahe
Example: The leaves, fruits and stems of this plant are used as pig food. The leaves are used to wrap lap lap in. Leaves are also used to cover a roof of a house--the top part or ridge.
Example: Young leaves are edible fresh or can be boiled for 5 min in pot. Can roll young leaves around coconut pieces and eat it with salt. Green fruits edible. Red fruits boiled, salted and eaten.
Example: When thatching a house, put the coconut leaves on the crossbars, and then push the stem of this plant into the coconut leaves and bend them over to hold the coconut leaves. Use the stems of this plant as a support for yam vines. Use the stem to make arrows.
Example: When young boys are circumcized, the leaf is mashed and rubbed on the skin of the boys who are sleeping in the nakamal--and mix with coconut oil to help hold it on the body. Said to help the person have better, smoother skin.
Example: Young stems are used to support the roof of ther house. Use yellow sap for glue. Fruits and flowers eaten by flying fox. Same effect as poison tree, they do not fly correctly, often falling and can be harvested to eat.