In other parts of the world the wood is used in carpentry, the leaves and roots are used medicinally, the crushed seeds as fish poison and insecticide, and the fruits as a substitute for soap. Manele is an attractive, quick-growing tree with a fairly compact crown. It can be used as a specimen or shade tree and is especially effective in grove plantings. The fruit was once used like soap by local kids. The fruit contains a saponin which may cause gastroenteritis if eaten or dermatitis upon contact with your skin.
Actual poisonings are rare.
Manele will grow well in poorly-drained soils. Coffee twig borers are known to damage manele. Propagation is by seed. Scarifying seeds will enhance germination. Bishop Museum, Ala Moana Park, Lyon Arboretum, Waimea Arboretum and Botanical Garden, Halawa Xeriscape Garden.