September 2005. Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia, asks for the identification of a plant that It is usually found in cool places forming as ground cover, or as a pioneer plant in newly cleaned, weeded areas. It is an important medicinal plant in Pohnpei, known locally as “sakau en leng,” literally, the “kava from heaven.”

It was identified as Peperomia pellucida, a member of the Piperaceae, and quite spicy to eat. It is figured in the Weed Handbook of Western Polynesia by W Arthur Whistler (1983), and also appears in Wayside Plants of the Islands by the same author. See also the Cook Islands Biodiversity Website: http://cookislands.bishopmuseum.org/13691.