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Aside from a brief scene at the end of the prior film, Star Wars: Episode VIII — The Last Jedi was the introduction to Ahch-To, the remote planet upon which the Jedi Order was said to have originated in ancient times. One of Ahch-To’s most notable features was the trunk of a giant dead tree. The inside was hollow, serving as a library of sacred Jedi texts. Much to Luke Skywalker’s surprise, Yoda’s Force ghost destroyed the tree and the texts within by summoning a bolt of lightning out of the sky. He believed that Rey needed to learn through experience rather than from «a pile of old books.» The tree was not identified in the film, but the reference book The Last Jedi: The Visual Dictionary explained that it was the remains of a special type of tree called an uneti tree.
Uneti trees were inherently connected to the Force. They were not sentient and therefore could not use the Force, but Jedi found it easier to focus while in their presence. During the High Republic era, the Jedi utilized the flowers of uneti trees to create calming tea and incense. Uneti wood could also be turned into paper, which was used for some of the sacred Jedi texts. The lore of uneti trees was not limited to The Last Jedi and its tie-in material, as these Force-sensitive plants were retroactively inserted into some earlier Star Wars projects, namely the animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars and the film Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.
The Uneti Tree First Appeared 4 Years Before The Last Jedi
A few episodes of The Clone Wars‘ fifth and sixth seasons showed a small uneti tree in the courtyard of the Jedi Grand Temple on Coruscant. It was referred to as the Great Tree, and Jedi often went to the courtyard to meditate beneath its branches. According to the short story «A Jedi’s Duty» by Karen Strong, Barriss Offee had a particular affinity for the Great Tree. Emperor Palpatine was evidently less fond of it, as he uprooted it when he converted the Jedi Temple into his Imperial Palace. However, he kept some pieces of the Great Tree in stasis so that his scientists could study its unique Force properties.
There were also trees referred to as the Great Tree on Endor and Kashyyyk, but they were not uneti trees and were unrelated to the Great Tree on Coruscant.
As shown in the comic book series Star Wars: Shattered Empire, Luke recovered these pieces of the Great Tree shortly after the events of Star Wars: Episode VI — Return of the Jedi, and he used them to grow some new uneti trees. He gifted one of these saplings to his fellow Rebel Alliance member Shara Bey, who planted it on Yavin 4. Shara was the mother of Poe Dameron from the sequel trilogy, so he grew up in the presence of this young uneti tree. Perhaps it was a sign that he was destined to eventually help the Jedi as part of the Resistance.
An Item From Rogue One Was Connected to Uneti Trees
The Jedi were not the only ones who valued uneti trees. The official Star Wars website revealed that Chirrut Îmwe’s staff was made of flame-hardened uneti wood. Chirrut was not Force-sensitive in the traditional sense, but he was in tune with the Force; he had faith in it, and during some key moments in Rogue One, it worked through him. For example, he was able to walk across an active battlefield during the Battle of Scarif without being hit by any stray blaster bolts. Perhaps carrying a piece of an uneti tree helped Chirrut subtly channel the Force.
Star Wars‘ Legends continuity took the idea of Force-sensitive plants even further. The Tales of the Jedi comic book series featured a species of sentient, shape-shifting plants called Neti, whose name likely inspired that of the uneti tree. The Neti were all Force-sensitive, and some became Jedi or Sith. The Neti has been fleetingly referenced in canon, but little is known about them. When Obi-Wan Kenobi first introduced Luke and the audience to the Force in Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope, he described it as «an energy field created by all living things.» Animals and even plants were a part of the Force, not just people, so it is fitting that trees have become so significant to the Jedi Order.
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