environmental sustainability

NATURE AND NUTURE

The Opaeula area of the north shore is known for its native red freshwater shrimp (Opae). As the ‘iwa flies, Lonohana Estate is about 1.5 miles from the ocean. The entire Kawailoa plantation (of which Opaeula ridge is a part) was farmed in sugar for almost the whole 20th century, until Waialua Sugar went out of business in 1996. We took over the 14-acre parcel at Opaeula 9 in 2009, and what we started with was desperately depleted soils covered in 10 foot high guinea grass and haole koa, interspersed with 1000s of meters of abandoned plastic drip tape that had been tilled into the soil.

Combating the seedbank of these invasive plants is an ongoing challenge. We live and work in the tropics and get approximately 50 inches of rain per year at the farm. We employ a variety of techniques to mitigate the need for harmful chemical sprays including weed cloth planted at the time our seedlings go into the ground. The goal is to get the cacao and hardwood trees to successfully canopy over the blocks as we go, when their shade and year-round leaf litter forms a natural weed barrier and mulch, further enhancing the soil’s health.

We rely on all the microorganisms below the surface to keep our soils loose as well as the midges that visit the trees to pollinate our cacao during the critical flowering period. Bringing the production cycle full circle, all of the cacao shells removed during the winnowing process as well as all the split cacao pods during harvest are returned to the orchard as mulch.