Peperomia tetraphylla fruit stalk with tiny sticky fruits (Photograph courtesy of C.H. Lamoureux via G.D. Carr ©.). Two slightly different variegated forms growing in pots, one from Maui and the other from O‘ahu (in green pot). A not-so-variegated wild Maui plant. (Photographs of variegated and not-so-variegated Maui plants courtesy of Forest & Kim Starr CC BY 2.0.) (Header photograph courtesy of Tom & T Herman [th92105] CC BY 4.0.)

Growth Requirements

General

    ʻAlaʻala wai nui kāne is best grown as a container plant, preferably indoors, because of the threat posed by alien snails and slugs that will eagerly consume it. If kept outdoors, a hanging basket or other types of defenses like copper barriers deserve serious consideration.

    Wild Peperomia tetraphylla grow under a wide range of environmental conditions: cold alpine to warm drylands, sunny cliffs to shaded lowlands, and wet to dry forests. Therefore, your ʻalaʻala wai nui kāne will likely be "happy" regardless of the temperature, light, and moisture conditions of the site you grow it in, with the following caveats:   

1. Make certain the media (in a container) or soil (outside) drains water extremely well. Otherwise, the roots and stems will rot, and your plant could die. Consider using a 75%-plus black cinder media mix or planting atop a pile of rocks mixed with some cinder and soil.

2. Water infrequently, and only when the surface media or soil is quite dry.

3. ʻAlaʻala wai nui kāne do need some light, so, if kept indoors, consider placing it under an artificial light source like an LED lamp or near a bright window. Some growers like to keep their plant safe indoors most of the time, occasionally taking it "on vacation" outside to get a bit more sunshine. 

4. Indoors, every so often, clean your plant by misting it with distilled or rainwater to mimic the rainwater-washing it would normally experience outside.

    Even under optimum conditions, Peperomia tetraphylla grows rather slowly and never gets very big. The fact that its leaves remain small regardless of environmental conditions is (in our opinion) a plus. While vegetative growth is slow, even a small plant will begin flowering within about a year. Over time, branches tend to get longer and longer. Therefore, you may want to periodically prune the longest branches to promote branching and maintain a more compact "bushy" appearance. These cut stems can be easily and quickly rooted in cinder, perlite, or vermiculite to create new plants for your friends. Plants with variegated leaves will sometimes become less variegated over time, but, unfortunately, so far, we've been unable to make the reverse happen.

    ʻAlaʻala wai nui kāne requires minimal fertilization. However, if its growth is too slow, try either: (1) a biannual application of a balanced controlled-release fertilizer with minor elements, or (2) monthly foliar feedings of an organic or inorganic water-soluble fertilizer diluted to ⅓ to ½ the recommended strength.

Pests and Diseases

    If kept as a houseplant, it's unlikely you will have any pest problems with your ‘ala‘ala wai nui kāne. However, outside, keep a wary eye for snail or slug damage. Keeping the plant in a container off the ground — or, better yet, in a hanging basket — will make it harder to find by these herbivores. If you decide to plant your ‘ala‘ala wai nui kāne in the ground or on a rock and the snails or slugs go after it, install barriers (copper or otherwise) around the plant, use traps, or resort to snail and slug bait poisons (see our Pests & Diseases page for a fuller discussion about what to do about snails and slugs). 

    Bacterial or fungal rot can be a problem if you overwater indoors or out — so don't. Additionally, make sure the media in the pot or the soil at the site where your ‘ala‘ala wai nui kāne is planted drains extremely well. If you start to lose a plant because of rot, quickly take one or two cuttings from a still healthy stem and attempt to root them in new clean media (i.e., perlite, cinders, vermiculite) in order to have a replacement plant. 

Special Features and Information

General

    Piperaceae is a large family with about 3,600 species in five genera. Members may be small trees, shrubs, or herbs, with the family having a pantropical distribution. Best known are species like Piper nigrum that are used as spices [WikipediA;Piperaceae].    

    There are currently 25 recognized native species of ‘ala‘ala wai nui kāne in Hawai‘i, 23 endemic species and two indigenous [Flora of the Hawaiian Islands]. Peperomia tetraphylla is one of the two indigenous species; the other is Peperomia leptostachya. 

    The sticky poppy-like seeds of ‘ala‘ala wai nui kāne have a slightly to sharply peppery taste similar to their famous cousin, black pepper (Piper nigrum). Peperomias, despite their name, are not related to bell and chili peppers, which belong to an entirely different plant family, Solanaceae or Nightshades. However, well-known local relatives of ‘ala‘ala wai nui kāne include: ʻawa or kava (Piper methystichium) and betle nut (Piper betle) — not to be confused with betel nut — which is chewed with the nut of the areca palm (Areca catechu) [WikipediA; Betel]. Both ʻawa and betle nut are stimulants.

Hawaiian Name

    Wai nui translates to "big water," while ‘ala‘ala translates to “ink sac in octopus or squid,” “scar of a scrofulous sore,” or “aerial tubers of bitter yam” [Pukui & Elbert 1986].

    An alternative interpretation of the meaning of the plant name ‘ala‘ala wai nui was shared with me (Koebele) many years ago by a Hawaiian coworker. If we assume that ‘ala‘ala is a modification or variation of the Hawaiian word ala, then the translation becomes "the path of big water." What might this big water be? How about the rain? And, where does ‘ala‘ala wai nui grow best? Well, it grows best on the side of a rock, a tree, or a cliff that faces the path of the rain. 

    Kāne is the Hawaiian word for man or male. Attaching kāne to the end of ʻalaʻala wai nui is most likely a reference to the phallic appearance of the plant's flower/fruit spike. The indigenous native mint (Coleus australis; syn: Plectranthus parviflorus), totally unrelated to native Peperomia species but frequently growing in similar habitats (e.g., on bare rocks), also has the Hawaiian name ʻalaʻala wai nui. However, it too, sometimes, has a qualifying term, wahine, likely a reference to the vaginal shape of its flower. 

Etymology

    Peperomia comes from the Greek words, peperi, meaning "pepper," and homoios, meaning "resembling," referring to its similarity to pepper plants in the genus Piper [Wagner et al. 1990]. The species name, tetraphylla, means "four-leaved," referring to the species usually having four leaves per node [Gledhill 2008].