Occupations of the Hawaiian tribe:

The early Hawaiians were primarily fishermen and cultivators. On their

colonizing trips from their homeland, they brought in their canoes planting
stocks of their primary staple food crops as well as of plants yielding materials
for housing, clothing, and utensils and of ornamental and medicinal value.
Establishing and nurturing these plants in the fertile and well-watered soil of
their new home, they eventually formed the basis of a well-developed
agricultural economy.

Sometime during the settlement period, probably after crops were growing
well and domesticated animals were reproducing, an economic shift from the
sea to the land took place. As the population grew, this would have provided a
more efficient means of subsistence than total reliance on fishing. Some
farming was done in open grassland and forests, where irrigation was not
necessary because of sufficient rainfall. Other crops grew in the lowlands or
alluvial valley bottoms, where flowing water provided irrigation.

A few edible food plants were indigenous to the Hawaiian Islands. Those used
and carefully tended were pandanus and some ferns and probably 'ohelo and
'akala. The main native farming implement consisted of the o'o, a digging stick
of hard wood of variable length, from six to nine feet long, with either a flat
point or a flat blade. With the additional use of adzes, fire, and cutting
implements, the early Hawaiians were able to clear vegetation; control streams
by constructing dams, irrigation ditches, canals, and terraces; cultivate the soil
of mountain slopes and valley bottoms; and build stone walls to arrest erosion.

As with all other aspects of Hawaiian culture, agricultural practices closely

interfaced with religion, traditions, and customs. Because this endeavor was so
dependent on the powers of nature, every step of the agricultural cycle —
preparing the land, planting crops, caring for plants, and harvesting — was
accompanied by appropriate ceremonies