But this lack of genetic diversity could put cultivated macadamias at risk

A majority of the world’s cultivated macadamias are grown in Hawaii, but the crunchy, creamy nuts are in fact indigenous to Australia.

As a recent study has shown, Hawaii’s macadamias appear to stem from a small group of trees, or possibly just a single tree, in Queensland-a stunning revelation, as far as nut-related discoveries go.

To their surprise, the scientists found that most of the Hawaiian plants could be traced back to a single population of Macadamia trees on private land in Mooloo, a locality in Queensland’s Gympie Region.

Based on historical records, we know that macadamia seeds were brought from Queensland to Hawaii twice in the late 19th century-first by one W.H. Purvis, then by R.A. Jordan, who planted the macadamias in Honolulu.

The researchers studied the DNA of three cultivated trees that were planted in Australia during the first decades of European settlement, among them an 1858 specimen that is believed to be the world’s first cultivated macadamia tree.

SMMRY