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[SoulGrower]

I'd like to kick off a thread related to the cultivation of Piper methysticum. 

A recent visit to examine a purported Kava Kava plant, growing outside of tropical conditions, has re-invigorated my desire to grow this plant successfully.

Today I stumbled across this thread which is awesome!  There's no reason this plant shouldn't be prolific around here!!!  I'll be using this method immediately on the two varieties (maybe 3 hehe) I currently have.

Long ago I found this pdf, 'Pacific Kava - A Producers Guide', which is chock full of good info

So please feel free to contribute any resources you know of.  And best yet, those successful growing Kava already.. share what has worked for you!

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[SoulGrower]

Kind of a fragmented resource  but this is an excellent one and includes detailed info on different varieties.  It's titled "Hawaiian ‘Awa views of an Ethnobotanical Treasure"

You can view the first half with this pdf
www.awadevelopment.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/awabook-web-part-1-of-2.pdf

You can view the second via a pdf viewer at this website
http://gourmethawaiiankava.com/hawaiian-awa-views-of-an-ethnobotanical-treasure/

A bit cumbersome but WOW!

1 Like Mangrove likes this.

[danzick]

I tried to grow 3 varieties of kava several years ago, and failed miserably.  They never thrived and finally, just faded away.  Maybe this thread will inspire me to try again.

[SoulGrower]

Great resource for Tissue Culture of Kava.  Especially the procedure for sterilizing the explant (meristem).
Regeneration and establishment of whole plants from  kava ( Piper methysticum Forster) meristems in tissue culture

It also touches on the problems with disease.  Apparently, "Kava wilt" or "Kava dieback" diseases may be caused by cucumber mosaic virus.  Fortunately, I have never seen that type of progressive dieback on any of my plants.

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