Its wood is very used for sculptures or to make objects such as drums, containers, or furniture. The trunk can reach 4 m and its flowers have a heart shape. The Tou’s flowers are employed in many traditional medicinal remedies (asthma, cough, pulmonary tuberculosis, etc.). Red dye, used for “tapa” (bark cloth), are made with its leaves mixed with mati seeds (Ficus tinctoria). Tou is one of the sacred trees planted near “marae”.
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