Koa wilt there are no local hosts, it is suggested that one plant seeds from several different sources in the hope of finding a resistant tree. Currently, research about Koa wilt is focused primarily on determining resistant Koa varieties. Koa is a commodity, a dominant native forest species, and an important element of Hawaiian culture. Koa is highly prized hardwood that can sell for prices as high as $150 a board foot, a special measurement indicating one-foot by one-foot by one-inch wood piece. Koa is currently being grown on plantations to support this high demand, yet some plantations have a 90% tree
Acacia koa reaching in five years on a good site. Initially, bipinnately compound leaves with 12–24 pairs of leaflets grow on the koa plant, much like other members of the pea family. At about 6–9 months of age, however, thick sickle-shaped "leaves" that are not compound begin to grow. These are phyllodes, blades that develop as an expansion of the leaf petiole. The vertically flattened orientation of the phyllodes allows sunlight to pass to lower levels of the tree. True leaves are entirely replaced by long, wide phyllodes on an adult tree. Flowers of the koa tree are pale-yellow spherical racemes with