Flower profile
Manono
Kadua affinis
Manono is a flowering plant. In Hawaii it's most often seen in bloom in January–November.
*iNaturalist research-grade observations, as of October 17, 2026.
On our lists for: Hawaii
Quick look
Kadua affinis, the manono or variable starviolet, is a species of flowering plant in the family Rubiaceae, native to the Hawaiian Islands. It is a highly variable plant, with a variety of growth forms including liana, sprawling shrub, shrub, and tree, and yellowish-green to purplish flowers, which goes a long way towards explaining its 200 synonyms.
- It belongs to the Rubiaceae family. iNaturalist
- USDA PLANTS describes it as a shrub / a tree with a perennial life cycle. USDA PLANTS
- In Hawaii, most iNaturalist sightings of it in flower come in January–November. iNaturalist
- iNaturalist has 502 research-grade sightings of it in Hawaii, ranking #97 among the 105 flowers on our Hawaii list. iNaturalist
Manono gift ideas
Handmade manono gifts from independent makers.
🌱 Sample spot. Handmade gift picks from independent shops will appear here once our shop partnership is approved. These cards are placeholders, not real products.
-
Placeholder
Manono art print
-
Placeholder
Manono greeting card
-
Placeholder
Manono mug
-
Placeholder
Manono earrings
-
Placeholder
Manono embroidery pattern
-
Placeholder
Manono sticker
When does it bloom?
In Hawaii, most flowering sightings come in January–November.
Conservation status
- Federal (U.S. ESA)
- Not listed No U.S. Endangered Species Act listing in the USFWS ECOS database. USFWS ECOS
- NatureServe
- Unknown We couldn't find this name in NatureServe Explorer. NatureServe
- Hawaii
- Not listed Not on Hawaii threatened and endangered plants (HAR 13-107; the state list follows the federal list), DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife. HAR 13-107
Checked October 17, 2026. Rankings and lists can change, so follow the links for the latest.
Can you eat it?
None of the sources we checked (NC State Extension (no page for this plant), USDA PLANTS) say whether it's edible or poisonous for people.
It isn't on the ASPCA plant list.
🌿 Never eat a wild plant unless you're certain of its ID; this isn't medical advice. Worried about a person? Call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222. Worried about a pet? Call your vet.
Where does it grow?
USDA PLANTS records manono in 1 states.
recorded by USDA PLANTS on our state lists not recorded
See the full list of states
Hawaii.
Hawaii counties with USDA records: Hawaii, Honolulu, Kauai, Maui.
More Hawaii flowers
Sources
- USDA, NRCS. PLANTS Database, profile HETE21.
- iNaturalist, Kadua affinis: taxonomy, research-grade observation counts and “Flowering” annotations, retrieved October 17, 2026.
- Wikipedia, Kadua affinis (lead quoted under CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Hawaii: Hawaii threatened and endangered plants (HAR 13-107; the state list follows the federal list), DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife.
- Hawaii: Hawaii noxious weed list (HAR 4-68).
- USFWS, ECOS species database (ESA listing check), October 17, 2026.
- Edibility and toxicity: no source found (marked "not well documented").
- Photo: Kevin Faccenda via iNaturalist · CC BY 4.0 · resized.