Gift of Goodness

Hakalau Chocolate makes a great indulgent-yet-healthy gift.  So when Rachel Calvert, owner of Balancing Monkey Yoga studio wanted to do something special for the over-worked emergency room staff at the Hilo hospital, she thought of gifting them our chocolate. Here is how she presented it.  We were honored to be part of this thoughtful gift, and donated a portion.

Cacao Orchard is Shaping Up!

We have been very grateful to get dry enough weather to shape the new cacao orchard beds.  Dan sculpted this steep section into terraces with his good ol' excavator, working carefully with the slope of the land to encourage drainage while not causing gullying and erosion.  We tilled in lime last week, and today we had a "perennial peanut planting party" with friends young and old to hold the slopes when we get those 10-inch-a-day rains (as fell earlier this month).  We also planted young pigeon pea bushes today, another nitrogen fixer, to provide shade, block the  Chinese rose beetles (nemesis of Hawaii cacao farmers), and be a source of fertilizing chop-'n-drop mulch. 

Below:

Granddaughter Paige presents: perennial peanut.  This nitrogen-fixing groundcover has tenacious roots to hold the steeper slopes.  Also makes a nice hat decoration!  Dan to the right, farm helper Renae to the left.

Below: This is what it's all about - two ingredient, antioxidant-rich, 100% local chocolate!  We are stocked up and ready to supply your winter celebratory needs, if you have any questions or special requests, just send us a note!  https://www.kulikefarm.com/shop

That's all for now.

Aloha,

Rachel and Dan