Here we had an influx of hippies pushing all types of weed legumes for several years, as a background for a permaculture gardens. I was among a few (very few) that argued that the new permaculture, using weeds, was not anything as wise as the old Hawaiian horticulture method.
Most of the hippie permaculture promoters have left the Island, including those who managed to teach classes at the community college (HCC).
Since the recent hurricane and more recent windstorms, where huge falling Albizzia trees wrecked Puna, the weed promoters have completely silenced.
The tried and true Hawaiian method (2000 years +) relied on foresting an area, dropping the trees, growing crops, then reforesting. Kukui, Aleurites mollucana was a major player in the Hawaiian food garden.
A taro patch was commonly grown for a few years, then covered with a thick mulch of Kukui leaves, left fallow for a year, then replanted again.
There were more Hawaiians living in the Islands in precontact times than there are people here today, and there were no grocery stores.
The old timers recollect on the fact that in past times, there was no money, but everyone had lots of food.
