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Piper methysticum
Also called Peppers, Pepper Family, Pepper Plant Family
Kava is a shrubby perennial in the pepper family, grown mainly for its root, which is ground and made into a mildly psychoactive ceremonial drink across the Pacific. It needs a warm, humid tropical climate and rich, well-drained soil, and is typically harvested around four years old.
Kava or kava kava (Piper methysticum: Latin 'pepper' and Latinized Greek 'intoxicating') is a plant in the pepper family, native to the Pacific Islands. The name kava is from Tongan and Marquesan, meaning 'bitter'. Kava can refer to either the plant or a psychoactive beverage made from its root. The beverage is a traditional ceremonial and recreational drink from Polynesia, Micronesia, and Melanesia. Nakamals and kava bars exist in many countries. Traditional kava is made by grinding fresh or dried kava root, mixing it with water or coconut milk, and straining it into a communal bowl. Outside the South Pacific, kava is typically prepared by soaking dried root powder in water and straining it. It is consumed socially for its psychoactive effects, comparable to those produced by alcohol but without significant cognitive impairment or addiction risk.
Higuillo de hoja menuda · Vera cruz pepper · Betel · Madagascan Wild Pepper · Javanese Long Pepper · Cubeb · Piper darienense · Pepper · Kadsura Pepper · Long pepper · Black pepper · Javanese long pepper
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Kava by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
