Today I planted awa mapulehu, one of the 13 noble Hawaiian kava varieties. Among all of them this is one of the most mellow strains with lower amounts of kavalactone and is ideal for every day drinking. Kava is a muscle relaxant and can cause a slightly euphoric feeling but depending on the strain, the effects can be more intense or longer lasting.
Take the Isa variety for example which is originally from Papua New Guinea. Isa is considered a tudei kava where the effects hit you hard and was traditionally used for medicinal purposes. Isa is way easier to grow compared to noble varieties and is sometimes sold as “potent” or “weekend” kava but it’s actually not that good for you and can cause side effects. So stronger is not necessarily better in kava’s case. Most kava connoisseurs prefer the mellow varietals and these usually sell at a higher price.
I unknowingly planted a bunch of isa 4 years ago so I’ll be replacing them with the Hawaiian ones. They do make a great filler when planted between cacao trees and like cacao they really love the shade too.
Originally posted on 2021-09-05, part of the daily planting journal behind Ha’a Chocolate’s food forest on Hawai’i Island.