Hi everyone, I thought I would post some more pictures of my kava and how I grow it from cuttings. Enjoy.
The first picture is of the bamboo like joint or knuckle on the kava plant, it is this knuckle that we root in moss and then transplant it once it is rooted.-
The next 2 pictures is of the knuckles in the moss, it takes about 1.5-2.5 months to root, depending on the variety, weather conditions and the time of year.-
The next picture is of the rooted knuckle.-
The next picture is of a newly transplanted kava plant, this one is about 4 months old.-
The next picture is of a young kava plant, this one is about 6 months old.-
The next picture is of a older kava plant, this one is about 8 months old.-
The next picture is of a mature kava plant, it is 3 years old, notice my hand, I am pointing to the area of the plant we use. Everything below my hand is what we use for the kava powder, all parts of the kava plant that are above my hand we do not use in the powder, we do use the knuckles to grow more kava plants, the rest goes into the compost pile. Also notice the big lateral roots coming out of the bottom of the kava plant and going into the ground, this is what is referred to in Fiji as Waka, waka it means root in the Fijian language-
The next picture is of the lateral root of the kava plant. Notice the yellow color, it indicates that it is potent and full of kavalactones, this is one way we can tell if the kava is going to be good or not, some growers notice that there kava is not as yellow as mine and wonder why. It is all in the way you grow it. Also notice the star pattern in the root, the thing that makes the star is the hard fibers, this is the stuff we strain out of our kava drink. In between the fibers that make the star is the actual good stuff, the soft starchy content.-
The next pictures are of the lateral root, the first is washed but not peeled, the second is peeled, we take off the outer layer of the bark of the root. The inner bark is kept, it is the strongest part of the kava plant, it has the highest concentration of kavalactones, more than any other part of the plant.-
The next picture is the lateral root after being pounded to a pulp. Not much pulp because I just used a small portion of root.-
Notice in this picture the long flat fiber, this is what made the star pattern in the root.-
The last picture shows the inner bark at the top of the picture, the pulp in the center and the fibers that we throw away at the bottom.
When I make my instant kava from fresh root, I know my instant is strong because of the way I make it. Other instant kava might be different, some are not as strong, or give a lighter effect. I use the pulp and I only add enough water to make it wet so I can extract all the good stuff and separate it from all the fibers we do not want. All the other companies will use a lot more water and then they will dehydrate or spray dry that product, this is in effect a watered down product, this is what makes the quality variations in instant kava. I use less water so I get a better end product, it does take a lot more kava to make than the other guys use, I use about 40 pounds of fresh kava to get 1-2 pounds of dry instant kava. When I am done, I will remove the water and then dry the pulp and then grind that into a very ultra fine powder. By the way, I invented this processing technique of making instant kava from fresh root, I did this before the other guys were even in business, me and the local kava experts over here in Hawaii were enjoying my instant long before it came on the market. I like to contribute to the kava scene and it makes me happy to have started this instant kava product, it has really taken off now.-
I hope you all enjoy the pictures and let me know if you have any questions. Aloha.
Chris
The first picture is of the bamboo like joint or knuckle on the kava plant, it is this knuckle that we root in moss and then transplant it once it is rooted.-
The next 2 pictures is of the knuckles in the moss, it takes about 1.5-2.5 months to root, depending on the variety, weather conditions and the time of year.-
The next picture is of the rooted knuckle.-
The next picture is of a newly transplanted kava plant, this one is about 4 months old.-
The next picture is of a young kava plant, this one is about 6 months old.-
The next picture is of a older kava plant, this one is about 8 months old.-
The next picture is of a mature kava plant, it is 3 years old, notice my hand, I am pointing to the area of the plant we use. Everything below my hand is what we use for the kava powder, all parts of the kava plant that are above my hand we do not use in the powder, we do use the knuckles to grow more kava plants, the rest goes into the compost pile. Also notice the big lateral roots coming out of the bottom of the kava plant and going into the ground, this is what is referred to in Fiji as Waka, waka it means root in the Fijian language-
The next picture is of the lateral root of the kava plant. Notice the yellow color, it indicates that it is potent and full of kavalactones, this is one way we can tell if the kava is going to be good or not, some growers notice that there kava is not as yellow as mine and wonder why. It is all in the way you grow it. Also notice the star pattern in the root, the thing that makes the star is the hard fibers, this is the stuff we strain out of our kava drink. In between the fibers that make the star is the actual good stuff, the soft starchy content.-
The next pictures are of the lateral root, the first is washed but not peeled, the second is peeled, we take off the outer layer of the bark of the root. The inner bark is kept, it is the strongest part of the kava plant, it has the highest concentration of kavalactones, more than any other part of the plant.-
The next picture is the lateral root after being pounded to a pulp. Not much pulp because I just used a small portion of root.-
Notice in this picture the long flat fiber, this is what made the star pattern in the root.-
The last picture shows the inner bark at the top of the picture, the pulp in the center and the fibers that we throw away at the bottom.
When I make my instant kava from fresh root, I know my instant is strong because of the way I make it. Other instant kava might be different, some are not as strong, or give a lighter effect. I use the pulp and I only add enough water to make it wet so I can extract all the good stuff and separate it from all the fibers we do not want. All the other companies will use a lot more water and then they will dehydrate or spray dry that product, this is in effect a watered down product, this is what makes the quality variations in instant kava. I use less water so I get a better end product, it does take a lot more kava to make than the other guys use, I use about 40 pounds of fresh kava to get 1-2 pounds of dry instant kava. When I am done, I will remove the water and then dry the pulp and then grind that into a very ultra fine powder. By the way, I invented this processing technique of making instant kava from fresh root, I did this before the other guys were even in business, me and the local kava experts over here in Hawaii were enjoying my instant long before it came on the market. I like to contribute to the kava scene and it makes me happy to have started this instant kava product, it has really taken off now.-
I hope you all enjoy the pictures and let me know if you have any questions. Aloha.
Chris
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