News & Updates

As a self-taught gardener I learned by experience that any soil can be improved. The secret is to amend… amend… amend… I learned that early from reading Organic Gardening magazines in 1978. I also learned that it was possible to garden without poisons or fertilizers. When someone tells me they have clay soil, sandy soil or rocky soil, I can tell you that I’ve seen it all. I’m not a Master Gardener but I know how to plant and to be a good gardener you must start with the soil. No matter what type of dirt I’ve encountered, by adding compost, mixing potting soils or top soils to the existing soil helped me achieve a rich loamy medium in which to plant. My compost piles have always been created by digging a hole one foot deep and three feet wide….

In Hawaii there’s perfect weather year round and the seasons are subtle but we do have changes in our climate. There’s rain and drought. Hawaiians planted uala (sweet potatoes) and dry land taro root in Kula (dry land). Protea and lavender tolerate dry land well making them sustainable. Native plants survived without human intervention for thousands of years. The worst thing we can do is over water them. My orchids thrive in Maui Uplands where the climate is semi-wet semi-dry. We’re right in the middle where the land changes from green, to dry in Pukalani. It’s perfect because I have lush vegetation and it’s not too wet. We do water periodically but most of my plants I deep water once a week. I feed my orchids every few months. My cattalayas… My Bibb lettuce crop was harvested in June, now…

One of our largest group tours was this private tour with fifteen passengers who arrived on Maui via Carnival Cruise. You never know what to expect so you have to be ready for anything. Two of the guests were slightly handicapped. One gentleman had fallen on his face during rough waters on the cruise ship. Another lady had swollen legs due to her medical condition so at the Lavender Farm they were kind enough to transport these two via the gator to our luncheon area down off the lower walking tour trail. This was no problem for us. Rick loves taking care of elderly folks and I’m an RN with 16 years experience. Though I’m only practicing once a year now doing Flu shot clinics, my background is in Emergency Room and family practice. My last position was at Hana…

Tonight’s guests at Slow Food Maui‘s Taste Education series were Anthony LaBua and Maleta Van Loan of Maui Preserved. They’ve created a wonderful brand that supports local farmers and inspires creativity in the kitchen. Their first product, a Hawaiian Chile Pepper Sauce was created in 2010. They established their commercial kitchen in Haiku and since then have developed a line of products including spicy pickled pineapple spears, pickled beets, onions, Pohole (fiddlehead fern shoots), pickled strawberries, pineapple Thai Chili spread, and a Mexican Gherkin pickle. They acidify with either apple cider vinegars or a green tea brine. Mexican Gherkin was bright and crisp. The Pineapple Sweet Thai Chile spread had some heat and was delicious. Anthony talked about chef inspired products, sustainability, the demand for local food that could be preserved, food security and keeping the culture alive with new…

What a happy sight to see gorgeous flowers, sweeping vistas, blue blue ocean from grassy, green pastures high on the slopes of Haleakala. I smile when I look at this bouquet of lavender at Ali’i Kula Lavender Farm. Our guests from all over the world love nature and how the beauty of the land restores the soul and spirit. Maui has such diversity that not everyone knows… We love to travel off the beaten path to the small towns and back roads of Up Country as well as the farms that are well known. It brings the country to life. We see fields of cabbage, lettuces, kale, onions, strawberries and lavender,while recollecting on the old days of Maui and what life was like growing up in the sixties. My husband Ricky is Portuguese and his ancestors arrived on…

The Joy of Country is having flowers in our life every day… Fresh picked lavender… Petunias at Kula Country Farms… Did I say Lavender? Sweeping vistas… Earthy rich soil… Horses… Babies We love Country and sharing Maui’s Agricultural Beauty Marilyn Jansen Lopes http://mauicountryfarmtours.com 808 283-9131 @jamarilyn on Twitter

In Hawaii, we love island hopping but for some it’s not that often. As airfares rise it can cost up to $300.00 round trip just to get to Honolulu from Maui. If you’re savvy you can seek your tickets early and this week Hawaiian Airlines was as low as $65.00 each way. There’s so much to see and the land is magnificent as you cut through lush valleys from Honolulu to the windward side. I traveled to Honolulu for a class but was able to visit some friends in Kailua, Hawaii Kai and Waikiki. My friend Marianne Schultz works in this wonderful boutique called Sand People in Kailua. They have gorgeous clothing and chic beach themed gifts. There are tons of beautiful shops in Kailua filled with local artwork and Hawaiiana. I can’t wait to explore more. Marianne, Koele and…

A tour of the Lavender Farm in Kula, Maui is an agricultural adventure. In summer, as you approach the entrance, you begin to see thousands of grey mounds with purple stems bursting to the sky. Upon close observation you’ll see over 45 varieties of English, Spanish and French Lavender. Sweet English lavender has the long beautiful stems. French Lavender can be identified by the serrated leaf or French Braid like leaves. Spanish lavender has a peppery scent and buds shaped like pineapples or two bunny ears… The French varieties are most often used in culinary preparations. Lavender comes from the French word “lavage” and was used by royalty in ancient times to bathe. Hence, the lavender gives a sweet smelling scent to the bath and has many wonderful properties for the skin. It is a natural bug repellant, an antiseptic,…

As you can see, our celebration of Pies at Kula Country Farms was very popular… There were even more pies to follow these beauties. I was hoping for more pizzas and again didn’t get a chance to taste this one by @daniakatz because it’s difficult to eat that much pie! But it’s fun to see it all come together with everyone in their country spirit on Maui. There were some gorgeous two crust pies that I didn’t get close ups on, darn… it happens so fast with guests arriving… Putting out pies… Meeting, greeting, hugs, photos, talking story and all on a beautiful mountain farm overlooking the sea… look at these local strawberries from Kula Country Farms… @daniaedibleHI is responsible for putting the #MauiPie TweetUp together with Teena Monden of Kula County Farms here. I helped to tweet it and…

Today I had the pleasure of meeting my twitter and Facebook friend Marianne Schultz @DaMews in Kailua. She’s good friends with Camille of Camille’s on Wheels. (excellent foodie) Here holding mango pie. Marianne, Koele and me at Camille’s Camille @Camillesonwheel LOL 1 wheel We sampled grilled cheese with roasted pablano chiles on Hawaiian Sweet Bread that was fabulous and teriyaki soft taco with an amazing slaw that complimented everything with its sweet mirin mixture. Michael and Camille… Camille l be featured on The Food Network show Diners, Dives and Drive-Ins with Guy Fieri July 30th at 7:30 PM To top everything off Camille had baked Mango Pie that was delightful. She insisted I take a piece of pie to @AlohaBruce (my next stop) in Hawaii Kai. I had a wonderful day visiting friends…   Hawaii is the best place not…

  I know it’s been a while but here we are with a beautiful visual of our recent West Maui Coffee Tour. I was asked by Stephanie Hua of @lickmyspoon to share our West Maui Coffee Tour. She was here for the Kapalua Food and Wine festival and she will feature us on her blog….

April 19, 2012 Dania Katz, Chef and farmer James Simpliciano and Chef Jenna Haugaard made their dream come true… They created the first Kupu Maui Pop Up brunch event at Ali`i Kula Lavender FarmInspired by other Pop Up restaurants in Honolulu like “The Pig and The Lady”, Dania was determined to pull it off on…