User:Viriditas/Cyperus laevigatus

Tasks

 * Expand habitat restoration info
 * Add images of makaloa mats, clothing, designs, etc.
 * Describe importance of aerenchyma to the quality of the fabric
 * Consider expanding two separate articles, one on the plant itself and one on the mats and the plaiting art of mat-making

Articles
Cyperus laevigatus (Hawaiian: makaloa ) is a species of sedge known by the common name smooth flatsedge. It is native to most continents and grows in wet areas, especially in brackish water, wet alkaline soils, mineral-rich hot springs, and other moist saline and alkaline habitat. It is found in or near fresh or salt water in the Hawaiian Islands and in salty pools in the deserts of the American southwest.

Description
C. laevigatus is a perennial sedge growing up to 60 centimeters tall, sometimes in clumps interconnected on a horizontal rhizome. The inflorescence is a small array of cylindrical spikelets with one to three leaflike bracts at the base. The spikelets vary in color from green to reddish to dark brown.

Cultural use in Hawaii
Great quantities of C. laevigatus were once common on the island of Niihau, growing besides intermittent shallow lakes and ponds. Native Hawaiians on Niihau cultivated the plant for its long stems. The stems were used for plaiting mats called makaloa. Although these mats were also made on other islands, the people of Niihau had a reputation for producing the finest mats using a number of different patterned weaves. The mats were also used for clothing on Niihau because the people did not have access to cloth made from wauke (Broussonetia papyrifera). Wauke has been found growing on the island in the past, but it might have been difficult to grow in the arid conditions of Niihau. Except for small, isolated plant populations, C. laevigatus faced extirpation from the introduction of grazing sheep in the 19th century. Recent conservation efforts have begun restoring the plants native habitat.

In popular culture
American author Jack London published On the Makaloa Mat (1919), his last collection of short stories before he died. Many of London's stories are based on his visits to Hawaii, the last one for 10 months beginning in December 1915.