Samoans have learned by centuries of experience which trees provide the best timber, which plants are edible, which make the best cordage, and which can be used as medicine.... [They] have been the keepers of this knowledge and these plants for close to three millennia, but s we begin the new millennium, traditional lore is unfortunately no longer being passed on to the younger generation. This loss of traditional plant lore and traditional plants prompted me to write [this book].