; P-

ICD
m

o
m
o

Tussock of Pod litorosa. Ewing Island, Auckland Islands.
I'hil. Institute of Canterbury.] [Photo, S. Pape.

3:

(Ztn

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS

AND THEIR STOHY.

BY

L. COCKAYNE, PH.D.. F.L.S.,

CORRESPONDING MEMBER OF THE BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF EDINBURGH,

ILLUSTRATED WITH 71 PHOTOGRAPHS.

"The traveller, from whatever country, on arriving in New Zealand, finds hiraselt
surrounded by a vegetation that is almost wholly new to him, with little that is at first
sight striking, except the Tree-fern and Cordyline of the northern parts, and nothing
familiar, except possibly the Mangrove; and as he extends his investigations into the
Flora, with the exception of Pomaderris and Leptospermum, he finds few forms that remind
him of other countries."— J. D. HOOKER, " Flora Novae-Zelandiae," Vol. i ; Introductory
Essay ; Nov., 1853.

WELLINGTON.

JOHN MACK AY, GOVERNMENT PRINTEB.
1910.

PREFACE

THIS little book is based on a series of ten articles
written by me for the Ly Helton Times, Dunedin
Evening Star, and Auckland Star, which appeared
during the months of April and May, 1907. To the
above journals I here tender my hearty thanks for
permission to reproduce those parts of the original
articles that seemed suitable.

The text as it now appears has been changed in no
small degree- -much has been rewritten and amplified,
and several additional chapters have been added, parts
of two being founded on a paper I published originally
in the Young Man's Magazine; while Chapter IX,
dealing with introduced plants, is altogether new.

As for the book itself, it is the first attempt to deal
with the plant-life of the New Zealand biological region
as a whole on ecological lines. The subject is pur-
posely treated in the most elementary manner ; techni-
calities are studiously avoided as far as possible, the
scientific names of the plants excepted, as the use of
these is obviously unavoidable.

In the chapter dealing with the cultivation of New
Zealand plants special reference is made to school
gardens, for the guidance of such teachers as may use
this book.

The subject-matter is, in part, the outcome of my
delightful wanderings for many years over the length
and breadth of the Dominion, studying the while the
plants as they grow naturally ; but, on the other hand,
I owe much to the writings of my predecessors and

IV

contemporaries, especially those of Sir Joseph Hooker,
F.B.S., the late Mr. T. Kirk, F.L.S., and my friend
Mr. T. F. Cheeseman, F.L.S., F.Z.S.

Besides the photographs taken personally, a few
were generously given by Messrs. J. Crosby- Smith,
F.L.S., W. C. Davies, M. C. Gudex, M.A.; F. G.
Gibbs, M.A., J. J. Collins, A. Hamilton, and W. H.
Field, M.P., and to these gentlemen my sincere thanks
are due. I am also much indebted to Mr. W. C.
Kensington, I.S.O., for permission to make use of any
photographs published in my reports on botanical survey
to the Department of Lands and Survey ; and to the
Philosophical Institute of Canterbury for the use of
three photographs from the important work just issued
by that body on the Subantarctic Islands of New
Zealand. My friend Professor C. Chilton, M.A., D.Sc.,
has most generously assisted me in revising the proofs,
and I thank him most sincerely.

The book is published under the auspices of the
Department of Education, and I gladly take this oppor-
tunity of thanking the Hon. G. Fowlds, Minister of
Education, for having arranged for the publication of
the work. My thanks are likewise due to Mr. W. E.
Spencer, M.A., M.Sc., of the Education Department,
wTho has rendered valuable assistance in various ways.
Finally, it gives me much pleasure to express my obliga-
tions to the Government Printer, Mr. John Mackay,
and to the photographic branch of his Department.

L. C.

Christchurch, 15th August, 1910.

TABLE OF CONTEXTS.

Page.

AUTHOR'S PREFACE . . . . . . . . . . . . iii

. CHAPTER I.

THE GENERAL HISTORY OF THE PLANTS.

The New Zealand biological region — Special botanical interest of New Zealand
—Origin of the flora — Australian and South American connections — A
bridge to South America — South American worms, spiders, and fishes
—South American plants — The struggle for existence — Grass land versus
forest — The kowhai of Chatham Island — Rival theories of evolution
Plant societies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

CHAPTER II.

How THE STORY HAS BEEN WRITTEN.

Sir Joseph Banks — His love of natural history — Banks and Solander in New
Zealand — The first work on the New Zealand flora — Explorations by the
French — Allan Cunningham and his brother — Raoul and the plants of
Banks Peninsula — The work of Colenso — A novel collecting-kit — Sir
Joseph Hooker and, New Zealand botany — Classical works on the plant-
life of New Zealand — Explorations in the Southern Alps — Hector,
Buchanan, and Haast — Thomas Kirk and the modern period of New
Zealand botany . . . . . . . . . . 14

CHAPTER III.
THE FORESTS.

A priceless possession — Rain-forest climate — The two classes of forests

—General characteristics of the mixed forest — Origin of special forest

plants — Lianes and epiphytes — Flowers — Fertilisation — New Zealand

timbers — The kauri forest — The kahikatea forest — The mixed forest and

its distribution — Beech forests . . . . . . . . . . 25

CHAPTER IV.
THE NATURAL SHRUBBERIES.

Some peculiarities of New Zealand shrubs - - The southern heath - - The
northern heath — Parasitic plants — The central heath — Adaptations of
the heath-plants — The subalpine scrub — Shrubby veronicas and dai-v-
trees — Prolonged juvenile forms of New Zealand plants Some interest-
ing experiments — Various forms of the yellow kowhai . . ~>^

VI

CHAPTER V.

THE VEGETATION OF THE COAST. Page.

General remarks — Adaptations of coastal plants — Physical and physiological
dryness — Plants of sandy and rocky shores — Seaweeds — Sandhills —
Reclamation of dunes — The wonderful mangrove — Coastal shrubberies
—Vegetation of rocks and cliffs — Salt meadows and salt marshes —
Stephen Island, the home of the tuatara — The Three Kings and Poor
Knights Islands . . . . . . . . . . 63

CHAPTER VI.
THE MEADOWS.

European contrasted with New Zealand meadows — The meadows of the
Dominion — How meadows are formed by nature — Valuable indigenous
grasses — Flowers of the lowland pastures — The mountain meadows —
Colours of the alpine flowers — Buttercups, ourisias, yellow forget-me-
nots — An alpine desert — Drought-resisting contrivances — Peat-forming
plants • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 84

CHAPTER VII.

PLANTS OF FRESH WATER, SWAMPS, AND BOGS.

Scarcity of aquatic plants in New Zealand — Water-ferns — The red Azolla —
The pond- weeds — The water- milfoils — Fresh- water algae — Vegetation of
hot springs — Effect of plants on changing the land-surface — Swamp
vegetation — The niggerhead — Economic importance of swamps — New
Zealand hernp — Bogs and bog-plants — Sphagnum and its peculiarities
— Flesh-eating plants — A vegetable trap . . . . . . 105

CHAPTER VIII.

PLANTS OF THE OUTLYING ISLANDS.

A goblin forest — The ancient forest of Antarctica — A seashore cushion-
plant — Finest floral display outside the tropics — Giant tussocks —
Young albatroses — Macquarie Island— The Snares — Beetles, spiders,
and amphipods of the Bounties — Peculiar trees of the Chathams — A
lovely shrub — The tree-groundsel — The great forget-me-not — The Ker-
madec Islands — Tropical plants on the Kermadecs.. .. .. 114

CHAPTER IX.

THE NATURALISED PLANTS.

Plant colonists — Origin of the naturalised plants — Method of arrival —
Statistics — Distribution — Definition of term " weed ' —Origin of weeds
-Bracken, manuka, and piripiri as weeds — W'eeds and human beings
—The horned poppy and marram-grass — History of a pasture — Micro-
scopic weeds — A Chatham Island orchard — The struggle between native
and introduced plants — Equipment of aggressive species — Origin of a
gum forest — Plant-sanctuaries — Esthetic value of acclimatised plants
-Hedgerow plants — Likelihood of new weeds — Eradication of native
species . . . . . . . . . . • • • • 126

Vll

CHAPTER X.

THE STORY OF SOME COMMON PLANTS. Pa we.

~

Relationships of the cabbage-tree — How gravity affects direction of growth
—Fertilisation and seed-dispersal — Distribution of the cabbage-tree
—Use of the tree in Maori times — The species of Phormium — The diverse
stations of Phormium — Fertilisation by birds — The leaves of New Zea-
land flax — Use of flax by the Maoris — Garden varieties of Phormium
-Diseases . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 37

CHAPTER XI.

THE STORY OF SOME COMMON PLANTS — continued.

Abundance of manuka — Tea-tree or ti-tree ? — Various stations of manuka
— The different species and forms of Leptospermum — Uses — The fuchsia
as a deciduous tree — Object of leaf-fall — The species of Fuchsia — Con-
struction of the flower — Contrivances for cross-fertilisation — The wood
and its properties . . . . . . . . . . 140

CHAPTER XII.

THE CLASSIFICATION OF THE PLANTS.

Popular plant-names and their defects — Advantage and meaning of
scientific names — Explanation of terms " genus " and " species ''
Principal divisions of the plant kingdom -- Rapid glance at the
families and genera of New Zealand flowering-plants — Ferns, mosses,
fungi, and algae --The slime fungi partly animal, partly plant . . 153

CHAPTER XIII.

THE CULTIVATION OF THE PLANTS.

Indigenous plants suitable for school-grounds — Difficulty of growing native
plants much exaggerated — Methods of collecting and propagating—
Plants suitable for growing from cuttings or from seeds — The school-
garden — List of native plants suitable for schools — Cultivation of
alpine plants — List of easily grown alpines . . . . 1<>7

APPENDIX.

DIFFERENCES IN NOMENCLATURE OF PLANTS CITED IN THIS BOOK FROM THAT

OF CHEESEMAN'S MANUAL . . . . . . . . 177

INDEX.

COKEECTIONS.

Page 7, line 19 from top, for " puketea " read " pukatea."
„ 22, „ 2 from top, for " well " read /' will."
„ 30, „ 4 from bottom, " rosy-crimson " refers to M. diffusa.
„ 83, „ 10 from bottom, for Placostylis read Placostyius.
„ 89, „ 15 from top, for " pink " read " purple."

„ 107, „ 2 from bottom, after "green' insert the word

" bodies."

„ 120, „ 4 from bottom, and also page 170, line 9 from bottom,

for chathamica read chathamicum.

„ 139, „ 7 from bottom, after "egg" add the words "within

the ovule.'

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS

AND THEIR STORY.

CHAPTER I.

THE GENERAL HISTORY OF THE PLANTS.

The New Zealand biological region — Special botanical inteiest of Xew Zealand

—Origin of the flora — Australian and South American connections — A bridge

to South America — South American worms, spiders, and fishes — South

American plants — The struggle for existence — Grass land versus forest — The

kowhai of Chatham Island — Rival theories of evolution — Plant societies.

LYING isolated from neighbouring land-masses far out in the broad
Pacific, New Zealand offered conditions for plant-life different from
those of most other regions. Its area, greater by far than, that of any
oceanic group of islands, is sufficient to have allowed the development of
a rich vegetation made up of many species. The land of the " Maori
and Moa," as a poet has called our land, has long been famous from
both the ethnological and zoological standpoints. The remarkable
race of aborigines, with their interesting manners and customs, is
known far and wide. Scientific men the world over, and many of
the general public, for that matter, have an acquaintance more or
less intimate with the giant birds of a former age. and their fast-
vanishing relatives, the kiwis of to-day.

But when it comes to the question of the plant-life there is a pause.
To be sure, New Zealand is known as the land of ferns, and not with-
out truth ; yet this admired group is found nearly all the world over,
and is really much less important than are plenty of the other in-
digenous plants. Many members of our flora, indeed, are .specially
noteworthy, and there is little doubt but that, as a whole, the plants

2 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

of New Zealand are every whit as interesting as are the animals, while,
although less voluminous, their story can hardly be surpassed in
interest by that of the vegetation of an entire continent. A plant
population can surely claim its share of recognition when it can boast
of including the largest known buttercup,1 the smallest member of
the pine-tree family,2 a forget-me-not with leaves as big as those of

:.> j

FIG. 1. — The Chatham Island Forget-me-not (Myosotidium nob He), growing near

sea in north of Chatham Island. [Photo, L. Cockayne.

rhubarb3 (fig. 1), a speedwell 40ft. in height,4 tiee-like daisies,5 mosses
a foot or more tall,6 brown seaweeds of enormous size7 (fig. 2), and
those strange anomalies of the plant world, the vegetable-sheep.8

ORIGIN or THE FLORA.

Leaving the above-mentioned remarkable plants to be dealt with
in due course, the first question which seeks an answer is how such

1 Ranunculus Lyallii.

2 Dacrydium laxi folium.

3 Myosotidium nobih.

4 Veronica yiyantea.

5 Species of Olearia.

6 Polytrichum dendroides and

Dawsonia superba.
1 Macrocystis Dubem'i and

D'Urvilha utili*.
8 Species of Haastia and Raoulia.

THE GENERAL HISTORY OF THE PLANTS.

05

W)

o

"C5

05
IB

O

c5

05

02

g

p

4 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

a rich, peculiar, and varied assemblage of plants came together in
a region so isolated as the New Zealand archipelago. This leads to a
second query, as to the origin of those special plants which are found
in no othei land. To answer these two questions at all fully is not
possible in the present state of knowledge ; still, some general idea
has been reached through the labours of New Zealand naturalists
and others.

Let us in imagination peer into that remote past when New Zea-
land had finally emerged from the ocean, and when its surface, desti-
tute of all life, was ready to receive its plant and animal immigrants.

Now, it is quite impossible to estimate geological time from figures.
When we try to think of millions of years, our minds become con-
fused ; and so those long periods during which the earth gradually
assumed its present form are designated by certain names representing
divisions of geological time. These have been classified according to
the fossils contained in the rocks. The divisions are five in number,
and are named respectively, beginning with the earliest — the Archaean,
the Primary, the Secondary, the Tertiary, and the Quaternary or
Recent. These, again, are divided into smaller subdivisions, each,
however, still of an unthinkable age.

With the first two great divisions we have nothing to do here.
The history of our plants commences at that subdivision of the
secondary period known as the Jurassic, when there flourished on
the earth in general cycads, ferns, horse-tails, and pine-trees.
The ancestors of the present crayfish and molluscs then lived
in the seas, and huge reptiles wandered through the moist forests.
Those plants which are propagated by means of the minute bodies
knowTn as spores — ferns and mosses, for instance — are able to travel
vast distances by means of the wind, and, if the conditions are favour-
able, they soon gain a footing on unoccupied ground. Thus it is quite
easy to account for the presence of the same species of the lower groups
of plants in many lands far distant from one another. But when
one comes to deal writh the more highly organized seed-plants, whose
seeds could travel over a vast body of water only by the merest chance,
and writh animals in general, many of which are still less adapted for
ocean transit, speculations as to great changes having taken place on
the surface of the globe come into play, and former land-connections
betwreen regions now separated by the broad ocean have to be
assumed.

THK CKXKK.M, HlSTOItY OF TI1J-; IM.ANTS. 5

Without going into details, zoological and botanical statistics and
evidence show clearly enough that New Zealand has received ii>
plants from two main sources — (1) the Malay Archipelago and Aus-
tralia taken together, and (2) South America, together with a pro-
blematical land-area existing in Tertiary times in the Southern Ocean.
of which ice-bound Antarctica and even portions of New Zealand
itself may have been parts.

According to geologists, the land-surface of New Zealand under-
went great changes during Tertiary times ; at one period reduced to
quite a small group of islands, and at another, the land having risen
hundreds of feet, stretching north, east, and south, and uniting the
scattered members of the archipelago to the main islands. How far
" Greater New Zealand," as it may be called, extended is a matter
of conjecture, but naturalists are generally agreed that it was joined
to Australia and the Malay Archipelago by way of New Caledonia
and the New Hebrides. The chief matter in dispute is whether there
has ever been an actual land-connection with South America.

Now, although the author has, in certain of his writings, favoured
the idea of a New Zealand - South American union, there is a good deal
to be said against the view, especially from the geological standpoint.
Perhaps the strongest evidence that a ' bridge ' to South America
existed lies, as Dr. W. B. Benham, F.R.S., has shown, in the presence
in New Zealand of a family of South American earthworms — animals
which certainly could not travel over the ocean. A spider hitherto
found only 011 those distant granite rocks, the Bounty Islands, is allied
not to any existing Australian or New Zealand species, but to a South
American family. Galaxias, a genus of fresh-water fishes, occurs
chiefly in South America and New Zealand, while there is also a species
in South Africa. There is much more zoological evidence, but this will
give the reader a sufficient idea as to its character.

Evidence derived from a study of plant-distribution can never
by itself be regarded as conclusive, since there are various means-
such as birds, ocean-currents, floating logs, icebergs, and the wind-
by which seeds can be conveyed over the ocean. But the greater the
distance to be traversed, the less likely are they to be carried in this
manner. Heavy seeds, such as those of the kowhai, could not be
blown by the wind for thousands of miles, and yet our plant of that
name is identical with one growing in Chile. Our fuchsias, calceolarias,
beeches, and a number of other plants have their headquarters in

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

South America, and must either have come thence to New Zealand,
or have reached both these regions from the old problematical con-
tinent of the south.

Besides the kowhai, a number of other species are common to
New Zealand and Fuegia. The following are some of the more
important : Veronica ettiptica, a shrubby speedwell, confined to the
coast of the South Island, to one locality north of Cook Strait, and
to the New Zealand subantarctic islands ; Crassula moschata,
a rather small succulent plant with red stems, common on many
parts of the South Island coast, Stewart Island, the subantarctic
islands, and Chatham Island ;
Colobanthus quitensis, a tiny
plant of the pink family, oc-
curring in some parts of the
South Island mountains ; Cori-
aria ruscifoUa, the tutu ; Geum
parviflorum, a pretty white-
flowered plant of the subalpine
and alpine region ; Luzuriaga
marginata (fig. 3), a beautiful
little plant, growing amongst
moss in forests, and bearing a
large white berry, found at
sea-level in Southland, Stewart
Island, and Westland, but only
in subalpine forests in the North
Island ; two small species of
rush, Juncus scheuzerioides and
J. novae-zelandiae ; one of the
wood-rushes, Luzula racemosa ;
two sedges. Carex Darwini var.
urolepsis, which up to the present has only been recorded from
Chatham Island, and one of large size, C. trifida.

Oxalis magellamca, a pretty white wood-sorrel, occurs ::n New
Zealand, South America, and East Australia. A number of other
plants are so closely related as to be virtually common to these
three regions. Finally, Macquarie Island is an interesting case, since
no fewer than thirteen of its twenty-eight species of ferns and
flowering-plants belong to South America or to the chain of distant
subantarctic islands.

FIG. 3. — Luzuriaga marginata. Common
to New Zealand and subantarctic
South America.

[Photo, J. Crosby-Smith.

THE GENERAL HISTORY OF TIIK PLANTS. 7

Quite recently, through the explorations of the Swedes in tin-
first place and of Sir Ernest Shackleton in the second, it has been
proved beyond doubt that forests containing both subtropical and
temperate trees existed during Tertiary times in Antarctica. On
Seymour Island, which is virtually a part of the antarctic continent,
latitude 64° south, the Swedish Antarctic Expedition discovered a
number of impressions of leaves in the sandstone rock. These have
since been identified, and in some cases the species show strong rela-
tionships to plants living at the present time in South America, New
Zealand, and Australia. Most interesting to us is the unlooked-for
presence of a fossil Knigktia allied to the re ware wa (Knightia excelsa),
a tree found only in New Zealand, though there are in New Caledonia
two other species of the genus, but belonging to a different section.
Then, too, there is the genus Drim.ys, with the living Drimys axillaris
(the pepper-tree), and two other New Zealand species ; while D.
Winteri (the Winter's bark) and D. aromatica are respectively Fuegian
and Tasmanian representatives. Laurelia, a genus of only two
species — one in Chile, and the other L. novae-zelandiae, the well-
known puketea of the New Zealand northern forests— occurred in the
forests of Tertiary Antarctica. Araucaria braziliana, of subtropical
Brazil, and A. Bidwillii, of Australia, are closely related to a fossil
araucaria, while the well-known monkey-puzzle tree of Chile (A.
imbricata), the Norfolk Island pine (^4. excelsa), and certain New
Caledonian trees belong to the same genus. Other examples could
be cited, but sufficient has been said to show that the remarkable
discoveries of the courageous explorers strengthen the evidence
in favour of land-connection between New Zealand, Australia,
and South America, while the existence of an ancient antarctic
vegetation, correlated, of course, with a much warmer climate, can
no longer be denied.

THE STRUGGLE FOR EXISTENCE.

Putting on one side the question whether our plants came by
land or were conveyed by winds, birds, or water, and granting that
they finally got a foothold, it will be seen that soon a struggle would
arise between these newcomers for the possession of the soil. Such
a strife would be somewhat analogous to that which has taken place
between our colonists themselves, and has resulted in riches for
some and poverty for others.

2— Plants.

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

Every one who cultivates a garden, however small, has to cope
with what are called weeds — i.e., with the plants equipped in some
special manner for occupying the soil at the expense of others. A
species that can rapidly repioduce itself from seed, or by suckers,
creeping stems, and the like, has a great advantage over one of slower
propagating-power, and will soon smother it out by force of numbers
alone. Some plants have large leaves, which they flatten against
the ground, and so occupy at once more than their share of the soil.
Others have a peculiar taste, making them objectionable to snails,
slugs, or insects, and so triumph over plants liable to the attacks of
such animals. But there is no need to multiply instances ; any one
interested can search for examples, and a most fascinating quest it is.*
The advantages in some cases are so small as not to be appreciable
by us ; but, however slight the benefit, the plant possessing it must
conquer in the long run.

: In nature this strife between plants is always in progress — a
silent but nevertheless a deadly conflict. The calm aisles of a forest
are a battlefield where the trees, shrubs, and more lowly plants strive
for the mastery, while at the same time the forest itself wages incessant
war with the adjoining grass-land — the one or the other aided by
climatic changes, an abundant rainfall favouring the forest and drier
conditions the meadow. Thus, when the plant immigrants arrived
from the north and from the south, these two bands of invaders from
quite different regions, and not attuned to each other, would engage
in fierce battle ; many would fall, and those escaping would be driven
into inhospitable spots.

What may be accepted as traces of such warfare are still to be
encountered. For instance, the beech (Nothojagus] forests may be
taken as typical of southern South America — of stormy Fuegia, in
fact — while the ordinary New Zealand mixed forest represents, in
part, one band of subtropical invaders. This latter forest is the
common " bush" of New Zealand, extending from the extreme north
of the region to the south of Stewart Island, and even to the distant
Aucklands. But near Chelsea, a suburb of Auckland City, may be
seen some New Zealand beech-trees. Other isolated groups exist
farther north, and even reach that most charming spot, the Little
Barrier Island. These solitary trees are doubtless remnants of a

* This matter is gone into again in Chapter IX.

THE GENERAL HISTORY OF TIIK PLANTS. '.»

battalion of the great subantarctic or antarctic plant army, held
now in bondage by their northern conquerors. Farther south tin-
beeches are more powerful: but. driven from the fertile land, they
occupy the poorer soil of the lowlands or the inhospitable mountain-
slopes, where they oppose a solid front to the biting blasts.

A remarkable example of the restricted distribution of a tree i.s
shown by the kowhai of Chatham Island. This plant is common on
certain volcanic ground near Auckland City. It was formerly ex-
tremely abundant in the Catlin's River forest, and in fact is found all
over New Zealand, growing in various distinct kinds of soil. But in
Chatham Island you may search the forest everywhere and find no
trace of this graceful tree except on the limestone country near the
edge of that extensive lagoon, the Whanga. There it is abundant, in
company with the ordinary trees of a Chatham Island lowland forest,
which latter elsewhere occupies volcanic ground. Here, then, is
some slight advantage, not yet estimated by science, afforded to the
ordinary trees by the volcanic soil which enables them to exclude
the kowhai ; whereas the limestone soil does not afford this
benefit, and there all the trees meet on equal terms, flourish! i in
side by side.

How many plants of which no trace has been found, may have
existed in New Zealand, and mav have been destroved through, changes

«. ». ' c?

of conditions leading to some slight advantage for their competitors,
none can tell ; but that many ancient types of surpassing interest
must have so perished is quite well known from such fossil plants as
have been found, and amongst which, side by side with existing gener;1..
are others not now to be found in any part of Australasia.

How PLANTS CHANGE THEIR FORMS.

It has been shown above how a constant warfare goes on between
the plant inhabitants of the most quiescent forest or meadow. ;-.nd
how some survive and others perish. This truth forms the corner-
stone of the doctrine of evolution. Just as there is no actual stability
in the vegetation of a region, so is there none in the individual species.
Constant change is the undeviating plan of nature.

The original plant-immigrants settling down in their r.e\v home
would be exposed to novel conditions of soil and climate, and to con-
tact with other plants and animals. This new environment would
possibly bring about slight changes in the organisms, and in time

10 XEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

such small variations would so accumulate that new forms in har-
mony with the new conditions would arise. Such forms have arisen,
and constitute, in large measure, the plants which are peculiar to
New Zealand, and form nearly three-fourths of the flora so far as

\j

ferns and flowering-plants are concerned. This is stating the main
facts of evolution in very general terms ; no one really knows how it
has come about, though no scientists deny the phenomenon. That is
to say, evolution is proved up to the hilt, but its methods are still
under discussion.

Three principal theories are in vogue. The first, of which Darwin
and Wallace are the illustrious authors, is knowrn as the theory of
natural selection. It takes the well-known fact that all organisms
vary in all directions, and considers that if certain variations are
beneficial they will persist, and by degrees, in the course of an enor-
mous number of generations, become so intensified that a new species
will result. As for the unbeneficial varieties, they will in course of
time perish through the conflict with the more fitted.

Quite recently the eminent Dutch botanist, Hugo de Tries, has
shown, by numerous far -reaching experiments extending over many
years, that certain varieties, differing markedly from the parent in
some hereditary characteristics, appear all of a sudden, and that a
new species comes at once into the world without the lapse of long
years. If such a species is adapted to its surroundings it will remain :
but, if not, it will go to the wall. This is called the mutation theory.
Quite a large amount of evidence in favour of this theory is afforded
by New Zealand plants, and a most interesting field of study lies in
the collecting and growing varieties of variable species, and ascertain-
ing how far such are constant and reproduce themselves ' true '
from seeds. Phormium, Veronica, Epilobium, Celmisia. and Ranun-
culus are genera which might with profit be studied experimentally,
and which will never be properly understood otherwise.

A third school believes that the direct action of the conditions to
which a plant or animal is exposed evokes changes in accord with
such conditions. This is called the New Lamarckian doctrine, or the
doctrine of the inheritance of acquired characters. For instance, if a
plant grows in a wind-swept locality (fig. 4), according to this view, in
the course of time its descendants might have the form of wind-swept
plants no matter where they grow. Or if a land plant could be grown
successfully in water, it might develop special structures peculiar to

THE r;KM-:i?.u. TIISTOHY OK TIIK I-I.ANTS.

LI

•> i

•^" '".

"\ a
s

•f.

- -f.

12 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

aquatic plants, and these would in time become hereditary. This
latter theory is mentioned because a number of New Zealand species
appear to afford some confirmatory evidence.

PLANT SOCIETIES.

The plants having come to New Zealand, having fought many
battles, and having in numerous cases given rise to new species, their
final settling-down might, at the first glance, seem the work of blind
chance. Yet it was nothing of the kind.

A seed falling upon any piece of ground would, if it germinated,
depend for its subsistence upon its power to make the best of the
circumstances. Were other better-equipped plants present, the
species in question would be wiped out. Also, wrere its structure
and organs not suitable for living under the conditions provided, it
would soon vanish even were there no competition. In consequence,
soil and climate exercise a selective power, and so permit various
species of plants to live together under a definite set of conditions.
Thus have come into being those collections of plants known as plant
societies or associations,* ' which, taken all together, make up the
vegetation of New Zealand. These societies are sometimes quite
distinct in themselves, but frequently they merge into one another,
just as that human society called a town merges into the adjacent
farming community by way of the suburbs.

The two most important groups of plant societies are forests and
grass-land. There are numerous varieties of both in New Zealand-
and some of them are described further on. Another large class con-
sists of those societies which depend upon the presence of an excess of
water in the soil, as in swamps and bogs ; while some plants float upon
the water of streams or lakes, or are quite submeiged. Others owe
their presence to the very opposite set of circumstances — scarcity of
water ; and even in humid New Zealand something like a desert
vegetation may be found in not a few places, but its presence depends
rather on the nature of the soil than on an insufficient rainfall. Then
there are the societies peculiar to the sea-coast, where salt in the
soil and exposure to strong winds are important factors. In such
places are sandhills, salt meadows and marshes, shingly or sandy
beaches, and cliffs. Rocks have societies of their own, and some-

* Also called by some " plant-formations," but there is no uniformity as yet
in the use of this term.

THE GENERAL HISTORY OF THK PLANTS. 13

times most peculiar ones, which depend upon the nature of tin- ro<-k.
its steepness, its exposure \vitli regard to wind and ram. ;i.nd upon
its altitude above the sea. Minor societies frequently exist \\itli.in
the larger ones, and, should certain changes take place, may become
dominant.

From what has been said, it can be seen how important a part tin-
study of plant societies plays in the investigation of the botany of any
region. Those of New Zealand, unlike those of Europe, temperate
Asia, and even much of North America., which have been modified
out of all recognition through the long occupation of man, are ;t.bso
lutely primeval even yet in many places. But they, too, are rapidly
being modified or destroyed altogether in the progress of settlement.
In the temperate regions of the Old World there has been little chance
of studying virgin plant societies ; the science of botany began too
late for such a work. It is to countries like ours that science looks
for such special studies as will bring about that advance in know-
ledge that will shed light upon the methods by which nature planted
the great garden of the world.

C2 C"

14 XEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

CHAPTER II.

HOW THE STORY HAS BEEN WRITTEN.

Sir Joseph Banks — His love of natural history — Banks and Solander in

Zealand — The first work on the New Zealand nora — Explorations by the
French — Allan Cunningham and his brother — Raoul and the plants of
Banks Peninsula — The work of Colenso — A novel collecting-kit — Sir Joseph
Hooker and New Zealand botany — Classical works on the plant-life of New
Zealand — Explorations of the Southern Alps — Hector, Buchanan, and Haast
-Thomas Kirk and the modern period of New Zealand botany.

As was shown in the last chapter, if long descent counts for anything,
the plants of New Zealand rank high among the aristocracy of the
vegetable kingdom. On the other hand, their first historians became
acquainted with them only one hundred and forty-one years ago.

Sir Joseph Banks and Dr. Daniel Charles Solander, dining the
month of October. 1769, found themselves in a new world, whose
plant-life was all strange, and where every tree and shrub and herb
was a fresh surprise and a great joy. And yet for ages before these
intrepid scientists had ventured forth, and for ages, likewise, before the
remote ancestors of the Maoris had completed their most peiilous
voyage, year by year unseen, the alpine meadows of the Southern Alps
had decked themselves with a wealth of blossoms, the pohutukawas
of the northern cliffs had been each summer a crimson glory, and
in the swamps the lurid blooms of the flax had attracted countless
bell-birds and tuis with their nectar.

Even from boyhood Banks had shown much taste for natural
history. The story goes that, walking along an English lane gay
with wild flowers, he exclaimed, ' ' How beautiful ! It is surely more
natural that I should be taught to know all these productions of
nature in preference to Latin and Greek ! ' From that time onwards
natural science was his occupation, and during a long lifetime he
devoted his wealth and energies to its advancement. Thus it was
that, at his own expense, he presided over the natural-history investi-
gations of Captain Cook's first voyage, accompanying that illustrious
navigator, and taking as his colleague Dv. Solander, as well as several
assistants.

HOW TI1K STORY HAS BEEN WRITTEN. 15

Banks and Solander, whose names are always bracketed together
in New Zealand botany, investigated only a comparatively fewr places
on the coast. These were : Queen Charlotte Sound and Admiralty
Bay, in the South Island ; and, in the North Island, Poverty Bay,
Tolaga Bay, Anaura, Mercury Bay, the Thames River (near its mouth),
and the Bay of Islands. They collected in all 360 species of flowering-
plants and ferns — a remarkably large collection considering the diffi-
culties they had to encounter — a land without roads, and Natives
who at any moment might prove hostile. One of their ' finds '
deserves a passing word. This is the beautiful shrubby groundsel
(Senecio perdicioides), which they collected at Tolaga Bay, but of which
no more specimens were gathered for more than a hundred years.
But now, since its rediscovery some time ago, it has been introduced
into cultivation, and may be admired in many gardens.

Banks caused about two hundred fine folio copperplate engrav-
ings to be prepared, and descriptions of more than three hundred
plants were written by Solander. Plates and descriptions both are
preserved in the British Museum, but, marvellous to relate, they
have never been published !

THE FORSTERS, FATHER AND Sox.

Sir Joseph Banks's explorations in the vast unknown lands of
the south spurred him on to fresh exertions. He accordingly made
arrangements to join Cook's second voyage, the Government of Eng-
land accepting his services, as well it might. So extensive were the
preparations he made that he was obliged to specially raise money to
meet the expenses. He engaged, so we read, " Zofltany the painter,
three draughtsmen, two secretaries, and nine servants acquainted
with the modes of preserving animals and plants." The Comptroller
of the Navy, however, succeeded in putting so many obstacles in
Banks's way that he withdrew in disgust from the project. Not-
withstanding all this, Banks, to his everlasting credit, took great
interest in the voyage, and succeeded in getting Dr. John Reinhold
Forster, with his son John George, appointed naturalists to the ex-
pedition.

This second voyage of Captain Cook was of special interest to the
botany of New Zealand, since a portion of the real South Island vege-
tation was investigated for the first time, that of Queen Charlotte
Sound, examined by Banks and Solander on the previous voyage,

16 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

having closer affinities with that of the North Island. A lengthy
stay was made at Dusky Sound in 1773, and Queen Charlotte. Sound
was revisited. Only 160 ferns and flowering-plants were collected, a
small gathering for a district so rich in plant-life as that including
the West Coast Sounds of Otago.

The remains of Captain Cook's hut at Dusky Bay still stand, and
the spot was visited by the author some years ago. There nature is
exactly as it was at the time of Cook's visit. The same rich shrubbery
marks the shore ; kidney-ferns now, as then, clothe the forest-floor
and climb up the beech and pine trees, from whose boughs, too, de-
pend the long dark-green shoots of a drooping lycopod (Lycupodium
Billardieri).

The elder Forstei1 published an account of some of the plants
in a work bearing the ponderous title, ' Characteres Generum Plan-
tarum quas in insulis Maris Australis collegit. J. R. Forster." This
was followed by a work by the son, ' ' Florulae Insularum Australium
Prodromus," giving descriptions in Latin of 170 New Zealand plants;
but these descriptions are altogether too short to be of any real use.

MENZIES, D'UEVILLE, AND RICHARD.

In 1791, Captain Vancouver, of Arctic fame, visited Dusky Sound,
and in the dripping forests Mr. A. Menzies, the surgeon of the expedi-
tion, reaped an abundant harvest of the lower plants, which there
grow in the richest profusion — the mosses and liverworts. Many of
these are beautifully figured in Sir W. J. Hooker's fine work, ' ' Musci
Exotici," which appeared in 1818-20. For twenty-seven years to have
elapsed between the collecting and publishing of these plants speaks
volumes for the leisurely methods pursued by scientific men a hundred
years ago as contrasted with the haste of the present age.

And now the French come into our story, for science is cosmo-
politan. In 1822, Admiral D'Urville, then an officer, but five years
later captain of the same vessel, the "Astrolabe," occupied himself
on the shores of Cook Strait in making collections, in company with
an excellent naturalist, M. Lesson. The plants they gathered were
described by A. Rich?,rd in a sterling work bearing the title, ' Essay
d'une Flore de la. Nouvelle Zelande." So well did Richard perform
his task that the book is a necessary adjunct to the library of any
New Zealand botanist at the present day, especially as it clears up
certain points left in doubt by the Forsters. The names of D'Urville.

HOW THE STOKY HAS BEEN AY KITTEN. 17

Lesson, and Richard remain embalmed in the New Zealand flora
in Eapanea Vrrillci. Pseudopanax Lessonii, and Polystickum Richard! :
while D'Urville Island, the French Pass, and Astrolabe Harbour tell
of this important expedition.

THE CUNNINGHAMS AND THE PLANT-LIFE OF NORTHERN AUCKLAND.

Allan Cunningham, the colonial botanist of New South Wales,
who must not be confused with his namesake the Scottish poet, visited
New Zealand, in 18^6. The scene of his labours was the Bay of Islands

•/

and the district adjacent. Cunningham, accompanied by the Natives,
spent some five months collecting plants while wandering through
those virgin kauri forests, so soon to be destroyed. In 1833 his ill-
fated brother Richard* proceeded to New Zealand in H.M.S. '' Buffalo."
presumably to assist in procuring spars for maintopmasts. This
duty performed. R. Cunningham left the ship at Whangaroa. remaining
alone, solely in the interests of science, according to his biographer.
" on the shores of a harbour densely inhabited by savages, who had
but a few years before massacred the crew of the ship " Boyd.' and
more recently had, seized upon the houses and, property of the "\Ves-
leyan missionaries, who. after much fatigue, privation, and insult,
had effected a settlement among them." But. as luck would have it.
the Maoris remembered his brother Allan, with whom they had been
on most friendly terms, and so they welcomed the venturous botanist,
and assisted him to the utmost of their power.

The two Cunninghams found many " new ' plants — i.e.. such
as had not been described in any publication. These, together witl
a description of the other known New Zealand plants, were published
by Allan in his ' ' Flora Novae-Zelandiae Praecursor ; or. a Specimen
of the Botany of the Islands of New Zealand ' -an important work
containing valuable details as to the actual stations of the plants,
indispensable information so frequently not given by many authors.

*

RAOUL AND THE BOTANY OF BANKS PENINSULA.

The visit of the French to Akaroa in 1840, and the narrow escape
from a colony of that nation being established on New Zealand soil,
are matters of general history. Less well known is the fact that

* He was botanist to Mitchell's expedition to interior of New 8outh Wales
in lS3o, and, getting separated from the party, was killed by the Natives.

18

XK\V ZEALAND PLANTS.

• • .
-

HOW THE STOHY HAS BKKX \\1UTTKX. 19

accompanying the expedition was an enthusiastic botanist, Raoul by
name, the surgeon of the corvette ' L'Aube." He collected most
assiduously the plants of Banks Peninsula, and also those of the Bay
of Islands. His services to New Zealand science are kept ever green
through the name of that genus of most interesting plants, Paoulia.
(fig. 5), bestowed en them in his honour by Sir Joseph Hooker. Raoul's
results were published in a splendid work, written by himself, and
illustrated with fine plates, entitled " Choix de Plantes de la Nouvelle
Zelande." One of the species discovered by Raoul (Pittosporum
obcordatum) in the neighbourhood of Akaroa has never been found
there since his visit, but lately a few plants have been discovered
near Kaitaia, in northern Auckland.

COLENSO AND HIS BOTANICAL WORK IX THE NORTH ISLAND.

Six years before Raoul's visit, the Rev. William Colenso (fig. 6).
then a young man of twenty-three, landed in the Bay of Islands, and
from that time on. for a space of sixty-five years, he was a most ardent
investigator in ethnology, the Maori tongue, zoology, and botany.
This last alone concerns us here.

As a missionary amongst the Natives in the very early days of the
colony, Colenso travelled much in the wilds, and was brought face to
face with nature. He collected plants of all kinds most industriously,
sending them in large quantities to Kew. Before Colenso's explorations
comparatively little was known regarding the alpine vegetation, which
is, indeed, in more ways than one, the most interesting of all. Endur-
ing considerable hardships, in company with, several Maoris he crossed
over the Ruahine Mountains, being the first European to accomplish
this feat. On the summit the alpine vegetation in all its beauty
met his delighted gaze. But here are the explorer's own words :
When we emerged from the forest and the tangled shrubbery at its
outskirts on to the open dell-like land just before we gained the summit.
the lovely appearance of so many and varied beautiful and novel
wild plants and flowers richly repaid me the toil of the journey and
ascent, for never did I behold at one time in New Zealand such a pro-
fusion of Flora's stores. In one word. I was overwhelmed with astonish-
ment, and stood, looking with all my eyes, greedily devouring and
drinking in the enchanting scene before me. . . . Here were
plants of the well-known genera of the bluebells and buttercups,
gowans and daisies, eyebrights and speedwells of one's native land

20

XEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

closely intermixed with the gentians of the European Alps and the
rarer southern and little-known novelties — Drapetcs, Ourisia. Cya-
thodes, AbrotancUa, and Raoulia"

Further on, sentiment exhausted, the naturalist sought the practical.
" But how was I to carry off specimens of these precious prizes, and
had I time to gather them ? These mental pictures completely

FIG. 6. — The late Rev. William Coleuso.

[From a photo in the possession of A. Hamilton.

staggered me, for I realised my position well. \Ve. had left our encamp-
ment that morning, taking nothing with us. so we were all empty-
handed, and no New Zealand flax grew there. However, as I had
no time to lose, I first pulled off my jacket, a small travelling- coat,
and made a bag of that, and then, driven by necessity, I added thereto
my shirt, and by tying the neck, &c., got an excellent bag ; whilst
some specimens I also stowed in the crown of my hat."

HOW THE STORY HAS BEEN WRITTEN. 21

Colenso's botanical waitings are voluminous, and consist chiefly of
papers published in the " Transactions of the New Zealand Institute."
dealing with new species of plants, or what he considered to be new.
Many New Zealand plants were named in his honour, including the
semis Colensoa.

SIR JOSEPH HOOKER AND THE SUBANTARCTIC ISLANDS OF NEW

ZEALAND.

Sir Joseph Hooker was botanist to the famous Antarctic Expedition
which left England in 1839 under the command of Sir James Ross. So
far as the Dominion is concerned, Hooker visited the Auckland and
Campbell Islands, and also the Bay of Islands, where he and Colenso
met. He published his splendid results in several magnificent volumes,
as a part of the botany of the antarctic voyage, with life-like coloured
plates, under the titles " Florae Novae- Zelandiae," and " Flora Ant-
arctica." But Hooker's work on the New Zealand flora does not
end here. By an arrangement with the New Zealand Government
ho wrote the classical " Handbook to the New Zealand Flora," which
deals not only with the flowering-plants, but with the ferns, mosses,
liverworts, fungi, and seaweeds. When it is borne in mind that
Hooker was compelled to work almost exclusively from dried and
frequently scanty material, his results are little short of marvellous.
It is true that in some cases recent research has thrown new light on
his conclusions, but that does not in the least detract from the ad-
mirable accuracy of his work, which will ever remain an object-lesson
for New Zealand botanists, and an edifice not to be rebuilt, but merely
to be added to.

Hooker's work as a field naturalist, too, in the subantarctic islands
was most thorough. Only one who has been to that region of wind
and rain, and has attempted to make a botanical collection, can ap-
preciate the completeness of his collections, and marvel at the immense
amount of work accomplished in so brief a time.

THE BOTANICAL EXPLORATION OF THE SOUTHERN ALPS.

Between the publication of the "Flora Novae-Zelandiae " and the
Handbook many important botanical explorations were undertaken in
New Zealand, and the alpine flora of the South Island stood especi-
ally revealed in all its richness. This result was brought about in

22 XKW ZEALAND PLANTS.

large measure by the labours of Di. A. Sinclair, R.N., Mr. J. T. Bid-
well, Dr. Monro, Mr. W. T. L. Travers, Sir Julius von Haast, Sir James
Hector, and Mr. J. Buchanan. Other collectors and botanists also
did excellent work not only in the alpine region, but in other parts ;
but space forbids further details, writh the exception of mentioning
the work of Dr. L. Lindsay, who botanized in eastern Otago, and
published a most interesting account of that district.

Dr. Sinclair collected in various parts of the North Island and in
the mountains of Nelson. He was associated with Haast in an explora-
tion of the Rangitata, but was drowned in attempting to ford that
treacherous river. ' Near the banks of the river, just where it
emerges from the Alps, with the perpetual snowfields glistening in the
sun, amidst veronicas and senecios, and covered with celmisias and
gentians, there lies his lonely grave," writes Haast. Sir J. Hooker
considered Sinclair as only second to Colenso as a botanical explorer,
which is indeed high praise.

Mr. Bidwill's explorations began so early as 1839. He made the
first collection of alpine plants in New Zealand, in what is now the
Tongariro National Park, and an interesting account of his travels
appears in his little book, ' Rambles in New Zealand," which was
published in 1841. Forstera BidwiUu and other plants bear his
name.

The extremely interesting mountains of Nelson, whose flora differs

«/

in many respects from that of the dividing-range farther south, and
has affinities with the North Island mountains, were explored, inde-
pendently of one another, by Monro and Travers, and also by Bidwill,
each adding considerably to our knowledge of the species of flowering-
plants. The name of Monro is seen in many species of plants, and
after Travers was called the genus Traversia, which is now, however,
merged in Senecio.

Sir Julius von Haast first made known the alpine flora of Canter-
bury, and in part of Westland, which is still largely a terra incognita,
making every use of his opportunities as Provincial Geologist.
According to Hooker, he contributed more new species to the flora
than any collector since Colenso. The name of a genus, Haast ia, is a
slight tribute to his exertions.

Farther south, Sir James Hector and Mr. J. Buchanan performed
a large amount of careful and arduous work, and made known for the
first time the botany of the Otago lake district. Buchanan also

HOW 'I1 UK STOIJY HAS BEEN WRITTKX. 23

pul)lished many observations on botanical matters, and wrote a work
on the grasses of New Zealand, in which life-size figures of all the
species of that family, as then known, are given. He also paid a
short visit to Campbell Island.

The earlier work of Lyall must not be omitted. In 1847-49, as
surgeon to the survey ship ' Acheron," he collected very largely
on the New Zealand coast, paying especial attention to the lower
plants. It is a remarkable fact that a plant originally discovered
by him. and most plentiful on the shores of Foveaux Strait, Euphrasia
r<'i><-ns. is almost wanting in herbaria. The genus Lyallia of Kerguelen
Land was founded in his honour ; but to us his name is better known
through the magnificent buttercup, Ranunculus LyaUii.

MODERN NEW ZEALAND BOTANY AND THOMAS KIRK.

The publication of Hooker's Handbook brings us to what may be
called the modern stage of New Zealand botany. Here the late Mr.
Thomas Kirk stands foremost. For many years he held the position
of leader of botanical thought in New Zealand, and was not only an
industrious collector, but a prolific writer, as is proved by the 140
papers to his credit in the Transactions, so say nothing of publications
elsewhere. He also wrote the " Forest Flora of New Zealand." which
is the classic so far as our trees are concerned. At the time of his
lamented death he was engaged on a new Flora of New Zealand, which,
to the great loss of science, he did not live to complete. Fortunately,
one-half \vas finished, and, although it lacked the correcting hand of
its author, it will stand as one of the foremost publications on New
Zealand fioristic botany. Other workers there have been to whom
New Zealand botany owes much - notably, Mr. T. F. Cheeseman,
the author of the admirable ' Manual of the New Zealand Flora " ;
and Mr. D. Petrie. who has added much to our knowledge of the
plants of Otago — but most of them are still active, and their work
is speaking for itself to the scientific public.

From this short sketch, which does but scant justice to the history
of botanical research in New Zealand, it can be seen that our knowledge
of the flora has been a thing of slow growth, and that it represents the
labour of many men. Such arduous work has. for the most part,
brought little, if any, pecuniary gain to its votaries, and in many
cases still less recognition from their fellow-colonists, or even from

3 -Plants.

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

the scientific world. Some, like Sinclair and Richard Cunningham,
have given their lives to the cause. All have spent much time and
labour. It surely seems that these men are as worthy of the regard
and admiration of their fellows as those who, in more public positions
and with much blare of trumpets, serve the nation. But the naturalist
gets a reward other than the plaudits of the crowd. The constant
communing with nature is a source of ennobling pleasure, while the
discovery of a new fact is in itself an ample recompense for all the
toil of research.

THE FORESTS. 25

CHAPTER III.

THE FORESTS.

A priceless possession — Rain-forest climate — The two classes of forests — General
characteristics of the mixed forest — Origin of special forest plants — Lianes
and epiphytes — Flowers — Fertilisation — New Zealand timbers — The kauri
forest — The kahikatea forest — The mixed forest and its distribution-
Beech forests.

HOWEVER little the average New-Zealander may know about the
plants of his country, few there are who cannot raise some en-
thusiasm regarding the ' bush," as the forest is everywhere called.
To old and young it is a delight — the stately trees ; the birds, fearless
of man ; and, above all, the wealth of ferns appeal to all. But that
this forest is a unique production of nature, found in no other land, is
not a matter of common knowledge, though truly it has many claims
to be considered a priceless possession.

According to the famous plant-geographer, Schimper, New Zea-
land has a rain-forest climate. That is to say, if no inhibitory con-
ditions existed, one green mantle of trees would cover the whole land.
Although this is not the case at present, it was in great part so when
the early settlers arrived.

But this great forest was not all of one kind. The need of timber
for house-building soon proved that various kinds of trees were more
abundant in one locality than in another, and that some were wanting
in one forest while plentiful elsewhere. As the trees had in many cases
Maori names, the settlers soon learnt — in a rough manner, it is true-
something as to the composition of the forests and their distribution.
But, as some Maori names are used very loosely, accuracy was quite
impossible. In this little book, therefore, although it is written for
the non-botanical, the scientific names, which are definite, are used,
as well as their more popular equivalents when such exist.

There are two distinct classes of New Zealand forests — viz., those
consisting of many different species of trees, and those that are
formed of but one kind,, or nearly so. To the first category
belong, with one or two exceptions, most of the lowland forests,

2b NEW XE.U.AXD PLANTS.

and to the latter the upland and subalpine beech forests and the
swamp forests of kahikatea.

Let us consider first the ordinary mixed forests, the " bush '
l>«r excellence. These differ so considerably in their composition as
really to constitute different societies, but all have much in common.

GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE MIXED FOREST.

With one or two exceptions the trees are evergreen, and consist
of many species belonging to diverse families. Occasionally the bases

' V'

i V * A

FIG. 7. --Base of Kahikatea (Podocnrpiift dacrydioides), showing tlie rounded
l)uttresses. Ancient forest of Canterbury Plain, Riccarton.

[Photo, T-. Cockayne.

of the trunks develop plank-like buttresses (tig. 7), and their upper-
most roots frequently stretch over the forest-floor, half-buried, or at
times raised high above the ground. Such roots and bases of the
trees are closely covered with mosses and liverworts. In their inter-
stices humus lodges, in which many ferns and seedling plants find a
fitting home.

The forest is made up of different layers, if we consider the general
level of the foliage. The tall trees form the uppermost layer : the

THK FOUKSTS.

9.r

smaller trees a.ncl tallest shrubs the second ; smaller shrubs. tree-
ferns, and juvenile tribes the third; and finally comes the forest-floor,
with its carpet of mosses, liverworts, and filmy ferns, through which
lirow the smaller ferns and herbs. A most important feature of the
forests is afforded bv the. climbing-plants, or lianes, as they are often
called, which, rope-like, hang from the tree-tops, form an impene-
trable tangle, or gracefully entwine the smaller trees and shrubs.

Tree-ferns, sometimes 1^0 ft. or 30 ft. in height, with enormous
feathery leaves like giant umbrellas, frequently occur, often in groups

FIG. 8. — Lichens growing on the trunk of the Kamahi (Weimnauitix ntcemosa}.

Forest of Milford Sound.

I'lioto, L. Cockayne.

and groves. Close-growing, small-leaved shrubs of dense habit form
thickets. On tree-fern stems, on fallen trees, and even on the forest-
floor are sheets of delicate filmy ferns. Lichens of great size, white or
golden or dusky, abound (fig. 8). Perched high up in the forest-roof,
in the forks of the branches are bird-nest-like masses, several feet in
circumference, of a plant of the lily family (kahakaha, Astelia Solandri)
(fig. 9). Long fronds of ferns and lycopods several feet in length hang
drooping from the boughs, and certain orchids, with aerial roots, and

28

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

03

-.
03

•- -r

g

i»5:
?_

C

THE FORESTS. 29

shrubs of various kinds, too, grow high on other trees, whose boughs
thus support veritable gardens. In some few cases the flowers
of a tree are produced on the thick branches, as in the kohekohe
(Dysoxylum spectabile), and not, as usual, from amongst the leaves.
Now, should a botanist knowing nothing of New Zealand read this
description, he would at once conclude it was no account of the forest
of a temperate climate, but of one in the tropics. And this is quite
true : the common forest of New Zealand, owing partly to its origin, but
far more to the moist and equable climate, must be classed with the
tropical, not with the temperate forests.

ORIGIN OF SPECIAL FOREST PLANTS.

The forest also tells us a good deal about the evolution of the
wonderful adaptations of certain plants to the conditions it provides.
On walking through its interior one cannot fail to notice the sub-
dued light, which is so much less than in the open. Above all things,
most plants require sunlight. Without this they cannot manufacture
in their leaf laboratories their necessary food from the carbonic acid

•/

of the air. In a forest, then, there must be a struggle for the sunlight.
The tall trees meet the difficulty by raising their tops high into the
heavens. But with the smaller plants it is another matter, and these
must either become attuned to a minimum of light, or make some
special effort to get their fair share. Consequently, we find a spindling-
habit of growth in many young forest-trees — long, straight, thin stems,
and few lateral branches ; ' drawn up to the light ' ' is the gardener's
phrase.

Carrv out this idea a little further, and vou have certain plants

«/ */ j.

putting out long shoots, which, too weak to stand alone, lean against
other trees for support. Go a little further still, and such long shoots
develop certain organs to assist them to cling to the supporting tree.
So, by slow degrees, modification after modification arises for the
end in view, until the wonderful family of lianes or climbing-plants is
evolved, whose roots can enjoy the cool and rich soil of the forest-
floor, but whose crowns dispute with the tree-tops for the light of
heaven, and under its influence bring forth their flowers, ripen their
fruits, and manufacture stores of food within their green leaves.

Lianes may be conveniently divided into scramblers, root climbers,
twiners, and tendril climbers, names which speak for themselves.
Fuchsia Colensoi, a much more slender plant than the tree -fuchsia

30 NEW ZEALAND PLAX'J'S.

(F. excorticata), offers a transition to the scrambling habit, being
frequently merely a shrub, and at other times a true liane, its thin
shoots being thrust amongst the branches of another tree for their
support. Here there is no special differentiation of climbing-organs ;
but in the various species of Rubus it is different. On their leaf-
stalks and midribs these have developed special curved hooks for
climbing purposes, which grip so tenaciously whatever they touch
that they have earned for these plants the sarcastic term of " lawyer."
Frequently the leaf-blades are much reduced in size, and the midribs
are elongated, so that the leaf is changed in function, and has become
a special climbing-apparatus. In New Zealand there are several
species of Rubus, which differ considerably in shape of leaf, size of
flower, and colour of fruit, the commonest and the one with the
largest leaves and most showy flowrers being R. australis. One of the
commonest root climbers, which with its leathery, green, sword-like
leaves much affects the physiognomy of northern forests, is the kiekie
(Freycinctia Banksii), whose fleshy bracts, called "tawhara" by the
Maoris, are sweet and edible. The roots fasten the plant very firmly
to the support, being given off at right angles or thereabouts to the
stiff climbing-stem, and, passing right round the support if slender,
finally put forth many rootlets, which are parallel, or nearly so,
to the main roots, and close together.

The various species of climbing - ratas cling most closely when
young by means of numerous short roots to the tree-trunks, their
leaves more or less flattened against the bark, but finally, as the stems
become cord-like, or rope-like, the roots wither away. For the dif-
ferent species the Maoris had the general name " aka." so scientific
names here are alone available. Metrosideros florida, the giant of the
group, has cable-like stems, sometimes 6 in. or more in diameter,
covered with loose bark. It bears splendid scarlet flowers. M. albi-
flora, M. scandens, M. Colensoi, and M. hypefficifolia have white flowers,
or, in the case of the two latter, pinkish. The last-named is the most
common, being found in both the main Islands and Stewart Island,
growing not only on trees but also on the ground. M. fJ iff lisa, is a,
strictly northern plant, as is also M. albiflot'd, which with its most
beautiful rosy-crimson flowers easily takes precedence over its rela-
tions when in full bloom. With one exception the climbing-ferns are
also root climbers : e.y., the climbing-polypody ( Polypodium Billardieri),
whose leathery, dark-green, broad loaves, most diverse in form, are to

TI1K FOHKSTS.

31

^4%?^

.FiG. JO. — The Climbing Fern (UlecJmum fili/orme), showing the small early leaf-
form .oa left -sad iar«e adwlt leaf -form on right. Kapiti Island.

f Photo, L, Cockayn*-.

Lands Department.]

32

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

be seen in abundance in most New Zealand forests, and the climbing
hard-fern (Blechnum fili forme), with its two quite distinct forms of
foliage-leaves on the one plant (fig. 10), and which is very common
in all the drier forests of the North Island and of the lowlands of
northern Nelson and Marlborough.

FIG. 11. — The Liane, the Supplejack (Ehipogonum scamh H*}. growing as a member

of a taxad forest.

[Photo, L. Cockayne.

The well-known supplejack (Ekipogonum sea-miens), a plant of the
lily family, forms close entanglements in most lowland forests (fig. 11)
Originally many of these stems have, wound round young trees, which

THE FOKKSTS. 33

have been strangled to death, while others have Kroken ;i\\;i.v from
the branch to which they had clung. The two species of Muehlni-
beckia, relatives of the common dock, are also twining-plants. Thev
are easily recognised by their soft, green, abundant leaves, and when
in fruit by the small black nuts seated on a fleshy and almost tran>
parent cup. Very frequently, as bush boys and girls well know, their
rope-like stems hang swaying from the forest-roof, the original support
long vanished. Parsonsia heterophyUa, a pretty plant producing
abundance of small sweet-scented flowers, is another verv common

it

twining-liane. It occurs especially on the forest-outskirts, or when;
the bush has been partially cleared. It and its near relative. P. <-n/i-
sularis, may be recognised by the curious long green fruit, something
like a kidney-bean in outward appearance. It is especially remark-
able for the diversity of forms assumed by its leaves. These may be
arranged into three series — viz., small round, long narrow, and finally
moderately broad and of an oblong type. Between the small round
and the long narrow are all kinds of transitional forms. One variety
of the related P. capsularis never reaches the final adult stage, but
produces flowers while in the narrow-leaved condition, and so it
may perhaps be considered a fixed juvenile form of Parsonsia
hcterophylla.

The mange-mange (Lygodium articulatum) is a beautiful climbing-
fern, whose masses of tough slender stems wound round one another
make a substitute for a wire-wove mattress by no means to be despised.
The leaf of an ordinary fern consists of a stalk and blade, the con-
tinuation of the former being called the midrib. The blade may be
divided or undivided ; in the former case the divisions may be little
leaves, each with its own stalk. In nearly all cases the leaf continues

•/

to increase in length for a certain time, when its growth is concluded.
There is usually no further increase year after year. But the remark-

«/ •*

able fern we are considering (Lygodium) is regulated by no such rule.
for its midribs may continue to grow until the leaf is so long as to reach
the tops of tall trees. The midrib thus has become a climbing organ,
and a leaf many yards in length is different altogether from what one
imagines a leaf to be. At regular intervals lateral leaflets, which are
also capable of great extension, are given off from the midrib, one at
a time, and distant from each other about 4 in., each being furnished
with a verv short stalk. Two quite different kinds of leaflets may U-

34 XKW XKAI.AXD PI, ANTS.

noted — those which bear spores,* and those which function as ordinary
leaves — but between the two are all kinds of transitional stages, very
interesting to observe.

Those beautiful flowering-plants, the clematises, are tendril
climbers, the tendrils being modified leaf-stalks. Clcnidfix imtirixa
is the large white-flowered species ; C. hexasepala has also white but
smaller flowers ; (_'. Colensoi produces masses of yellow flowers in
the spring. It is especially abundant in the Wellington Province.
(\ afoliata is a curious form which looks rather like a mass of iushe3.
It has few or no true leaves ; but they would be a harm rather than a
benefit, for it grows in extremely dry places. All the New Zealand
species of Clematis have male and female flowers on separate plants,
the male being much the more showy.

The New Zealand passion-flower (Tetrapathaea austral it) is another
tendril climber. In autumn its orange or red fruits, containing nume-
rous black seeds, are very showy. It is not found everywhere, and
does not go farther south than Banks Peninsula.

All the lianes are worthy of the closest study, and not the least
interesting point is to observe the differences between the climbing
and non-climbing shoots. Also, it is remarkable how certain species,
such as some of the. lawyers and Metrosideros scandens. are lianes under
one set of conditions and virtually shrubs under another. It is
interesting, too. to grow this class of plants from seed, and to observe
how the climbing habit is not shown at all, or very little, by the early
seedling (fig. 12).

Another method by which plants seek the light is to boldly leave
the ground and perch high on the trees. Most instructive transitions
between this perching habit and the normal may be observed in any
New Zealand forest. The perching-lilies (Astclia) (fig. '.)) also grow on
rocks or form huge clumps on the ground. Many ferns live indifferently
either on trees or the forest-floor, as does also the lovely shrul.by
forest-groundsel (Senecio Kirkii). Certain plants are almost exclusively
perchers (epiphytic). Thus Pittosporum cornifolium and P. Kirkii
ar< of this class, and it is interesting that all the other members of the
are ordinary terrestrial trees or shrubs. Urixflhi'm lm-i<ln. with

* A spore is any single cell that becomes free from the parent plant and is
capable of developing into a new individual. The spores of ferns are contained
in spore-cases, and uroups of these make the dots or round patches on the under-
surfaces of some of the leaves of ferns.

THE FORESTS.

35

its great leathery shining green leaves, is frequent high up in the
forks of some forest giant; but it also grows on rocks near the sea,
and under cultivation makes a most handsome shrub for the open
border. Some of the orchids are epiphytes, and these have a special
root-tissue which is quite spongy, and can absorb whatever moisture
drips on to it. These perching-plants build up immense masses of

'V

i

FIG. 12. — On left. Seedling of a finally much-branched Drought-resisting
Shrub. On right, Seedling of a Climbing-plant.

[Photo, L. Cockayne.

soil on the tree-trunks, and it is the water-holding capacity of
this which in part enables them to live under what appear such
adverse circumstances. Certain ferns and lycopods are generally
epiphytic--e.gr., the drooping-spleenwort (Asplemum flacci(hun).
the shining-leaved Asplenium adiantoides, and many of the filmy
ferns.

Seedling trees are very common as perching-plants, or epiphytes,
to use the scientific term, and some of the forest giants begin theii
career in this manner. These finallv send down to the ground

36

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS,

ill

FIG. 13. — Roots looking like climbing stems descending down trunk of a Rimu
(Dacrydium cupressininn) coming from an epiphytic Broadleaf (Griselinia
littoralis).

Lands Department. |

[Photo, L. Cockayne.

THE FORESTS. 37

roots which grow into a solid " root-trunk" ; the former host is locked
in their embrace and stifled. The northern rata (Metrosideros robusta),
the tree-heath of the Chathams (DracophyUum arboreum), and in the
south the broadleaf (Griselinia littoralis) (fig. 13) frequently behave
in this most ungrateful manner.

Though many plants are eager to get into the fresh air and sun-
light, others are the reverse, and have developed different adaptations
in accord with other aspirations. The interior of a thick forest has
an atmosphere charged with vapour not altogether unlike that of a
glasshouse. Plants living under such conditions are subject to much
the same environment as submerged water-plants, and have deve-
loped similar leaves, which are so thin as to be able to absorb any
water which may fall upon their surfaces. Such, amongst others, are
the filmy ferns (species of Hymenophyllum and Trichomanes), the
beautiful crape-fern Todaea superba, and its relative Todaea hymeno
phylloides. Plants like these can exist only in a moist atmosphere ;
the full rays of the sun or a dry atmosphere cause them to shrivel up,
and thev soon die when removed from their forest home. Manv

V »/

mosses and liverworts also belong to this category, and mimic in their
forms the smaller ferns, to which, of course, they bear no relationship.

THE FLOWERS OF THE FOREST.

New Zealand forests are not distinguished for their brilliant flowers.
On the contrary, most of our forest blossoms are inconspicuous and of
a dull colour. But there are some notable exceptions. The northern
and southern ratas (Metrosideros robusta and M. lucida) bear mul-
titudes of crimson blossoms. The yellow kowhai (Sophora grandi-
flora and S. mierophylla) has been fitly termed the New Zealand
laburnum. The various species of trees known as lacebark (Hoheria
populnea, H. sexstylosa, and H, angusti folia) are, in their season, dense
masses of snowy flowers. Pennantia corymbosa (the kaikomako) vies
in its purity with any bridal flower. The putaputaweta (Carpodetiis
serratus) is a rival of the English may. The tawiri (Ixerba brexioides)
of the Auckland upland forest is so showy that the Maoris had a special
name, " whakou," for its blooms. The tree-manuka (Leptospermum
ericoides), with its multitude of white or pinkish flowers, quite equals
the popular Spiraea Thunbergi of gardens.

The heketara (Olearia Cunninghamii) produces multitudes of daisy-
like flowers in the spring. The wineberry (Aristotelia racemosa, mako-

38 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

mako) has distinctly pleasing rosy-coloured flowers. The hinau
(Elaeocarpus dentatus) has numerous white drooping flowers. The
large -flowered clematis (Clematis indivisa, puawhananga) is esteemed
by all, and its snowy blossoms are frequently torn from their forest
home only to wither.

THE FERTILISATION OF THE FLOWERS.

The methods by which flowers are fertilised are of high interest,
and for the past half-century have received much attention. Space
permits only a brief mention here.

The majority of flowering-plants have two special organs for pur-
poses of fertilisation, the stamen and the pistil. The former produces a
yellow " dust," the pollen ; the latter contains within a little chamber*
one or more little roundish or oval bodies, the ovules. Each ovule
contains in its interior what may be called an " egg." If the pollen
falls upon that part of the pistil termed the ' stigma ' at the right
time, a union will eventually take place between some of the essential
part of the pollen and the egg. This will lead to the formation of
an embryonic plant within the ovule, which, when the embryo — i.e.,
the little plant with seed-leaves and rudimentary root and stem — is
fully developed, is termed the seed.

In some instances the stamens and pistil are close together on the
same flower, and pollen and stigma are ready the one for the other
at the same time, in which case the flower can fertilise itself. But in
a considerable number of instances self-fertilisation is impossible,
and the pollen of one flower must be applied to the stigma of
another. Such cross-fertilisation, as it is called, has been proved to be
beneficial for many plants. A large percentage of New Zealand trees
and shrubs have the pollen-bearing flower on the one plant and the
ovule-bearing on another. Others again are so constructed that the
pollen is ripe before the stigma of the same flower is ready to receive
it. or the stigma may in other species be developed before the pollen.
In all these cases cross-fertilisation is alone possible. This may take
place in two ways : either the wind may carry the pollen from one
flower to another, as in the genus Coprosnm and in many other cases,

Mil the pint's the ovules ure not enclosed in a chamber, and there is no
stigma. The pollen is conveyed by the wind and deposited on the ovules
directly.

THE FORESTS. 39

or animals may convey it dusted on some part of their bodies. In
accomplishing this work, insects play a very important role. Birds
also fertilise a few New Zealand plants, amongst others the puriri
(Vitex luccns) and the waiuatua (Mkabdothamnus Solandri).

This action of insects in fertilising plants has led to a widely
spread error in New Zealand, and one is frequently gravely informed
that bees change the colours of flowers- ' inoculating ' is the term
used. That is to say, the opinion is held that a bee sucking honey
from, say, a white flower can turn it red, or blue, or yellow, as the case
may be. Of comse, neither a. bee nor any other insect can do any-
thing of the kind. If, however, the pollen of one flower is transferred
by means of an insect, the wind, or any other agency, to the stigma of
a closely related individual of a different colour, the seed which is
eventually produced may give rise to a plant bearing a flower coloured
differently to that of the parent plant ; or, in other words, a hybrid
has been produced. Here, then, is the source of the error in an im-
perfectly understood truth.

NEW ZEALAND FOREST-TREES AS TIMBERS.

The forests are of great commercial importance to the Dominion.
Some of the timbers are excellent for house-building, others are used
as piles for bridges and sleepers on railways, and some are ornamental
and can be used for furniture and general decorative work. The
wood of the kauri (Agathis australis} is celebrated the world over, but.
alas, it is rapidly being exhausted. There seems, however, every pro-
bability, according to the late Mr. H. J. Matthews, that a kaiui forest
from which the large trees have been cut would in time reproduce
itself. With this opinion the writer, from his own observations, is
quite in accord. It is unlikely, however, that such restoration would
be of commercial importance, since the kauri is a tree of extremely
slow growth.

At the same time, it must not be forgotten that forests, apart
altogether from their timber value, are of the greatest importance
to all countries because they help to conserve and regulate the
water-supply — a quite different matter, however, to influencing the
rainfall. Thus no forest-growth, whether primeval or secondary,
should be destroyed without some strong economic reason. There
are thousands of acres fit only for the natural growths now clothing
them, and the destruction of these forests would be a fatal mistake.

4— Plants.

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

THE FORESTS. 41

Aii important by-product of the kauri is the resin, known as
" gum." This is usually dug out of the ground, covered now by the
northern heath, but originally occupied by kauri forest. Trees, also,
have incisions made into their bark — a mischievous proceeding, the
sap flowing out freely, and soon hardening into resin, which is re-
moved finally by men Avho climb the trees (fig. 14).

The kahikatea (Podocarpus dacrydioides), the rimu (Dacrydium
cupressinum), and the miro (Podocarpus ferrugineus) all afford excellent
timber for various purposes, the two latter being confused in many
timber-yards. The matai (Podocarpus spicatus) is a fine wood for
resisting weather, and is only excelled by the totara (Podocarpus
totara) and the Westland pine (Dacrydium Colensoi), the D. westlandi-
cum of the " Forest Flora," and the yellow-pine (D. intermedium).
Thess two last, also, are used largely for railway-sleepers. For
fencing-posts the puriri (Vitex lucens), the broadleaf (Griselinia
littoralis), and the kowhai are excellent, but the first and last
become scarcer daily. It should be quite feasible to raise the
kowhai artificially in any quantity, since it germinates readily
from seed, and will grow very well in the open. The New Zealand
honeysuckle (Knightia excelsa, rewarewa) is one of the handsomest
woods in the world. Unfortunately, great quantities are destroyed
through settlement — a destruction which should be stopped, if
possible.

Other valuable timbers are : The northern rata (Metrosideros
robusta), which is extremely hard and useful for wheelwright's work
and bridge-building, as well as being an excellent firewood ; the various
species of Nothofagus, especially N. fusca, yielding a durable and
strong building-material, which w^arps more or less ; the pahautea
(Libocedrus BidivilUi), a very light wood, of a red colour, out of which
canoes have been made ; the towai or kamahi (Weinmannia race-
mosa), yielding an excellent bark for tanning, and a wood both
ornamental and strong ; the pukatea (Laurelia novae-zelandiae), with
pale-brown, soft but strong and tough wood, which has been used
for boat-building and furniture ; the maire-rau-nui (Olea Cunning-
Jiamii), an extremely strong timber.

Further details, however, are unnecessary ; they may be found
by those interested in Kirk's " Forest Flora," and in the admirable
report of the Lands Department entitled ' Forestry in New Zea-
land." Most of the trees have some use or other ; but, as is the case

44

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

Z-

-*—

o

c
—

c5
h— I

eS

C

c

o

c

o

^ g

I

o

c

9:

•a

S5

THE FORESTS.

o

8

4 =

1—1 2

•~ 5

fcC

fcJQ

^
o

a;

c

X

6 I

£ g,

§

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

THE FORESTS. 43

in all recently settled countries, the best timbers alone are used, and
the rest go to the wall, to make room for the flocks, herds, and crops
of the settler, although in many instances the forest is undoubtedly
the best crop the land will ever yield.

THE KAURI AND KAHIKATEA FORESTS.

As stated at the beginning of this chapter, New Zealand contains
many varieties of forests. Here only some of the more distinct are
mentioned.

The kauri forest extends from the north of Auckland Provincial
District to almost latitude 38°. It is probably the noblest tree com-
munity of temperate regions. The kauri (Agathis australis] (fig. 15)
is not a close relation of the Old World pines, but is nearer to the
monkey-puzzle family (Araucaria).

A kauri forest by no means consists of that tree alone, for the
taraire (Beilschmiedia tarairi) — very handsome, with its rather large
leaves, darkish - green above and bluish - white beneath — is often
dominant.* The kauris form smaller or larger clumps. The kauri
trees themselves are some distance apart, and the spaces between
are filled up with a close growth of the huge tussocks of the kauri-
grass (Astelia trinervia) — which, of course, is not a grass at all, but
belongs to the lily family — and a sedge (Gaknia xanthocarpa], with
leaves sharp as a razor ; while growing through these are certain shrubs
or small trees, especially the aromatic-leaved maireire (Phebalium
nudum), the spiderwood (Dracophyllum latifoUum), Kirk's groundsel
(Senecio Kirkii), bearing in its season white daisy-like blossoms, and
the silver tree-fern (Cyathea dealbata}. Where the undergrowth is
more scanty the stately kauris appear in all their grandeur, their
huge grey, shining, columnar trunks rising up 60 ft. and may be 80 ft.
without a branch (fig. 16), and dwarfing altogether the other trees.

High above the general forest-roof tower the great spreading
branches, themselves equalling forest-trees in size. At the base of
each tree is a pyramidal mound of humus caused by the shedding of
the bark. Common in the kauri forest is the fantastic and irregular
trunk of the rata (Metrosideros robusta) (fig. 17), its base covered
with sheets of translucent kidney - ferns (Trichomanes reniforme).

* This is specially true of the northern forests. Those of the Thames and
the Waitakerei Range contained much more tawa (Beilschmiedia taica).

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

THE FORESTS.

x •*-

I— O

fcC

=0

O

00

g

O
f-i

-

c

52;

c3

o

o

OJ

1

46 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

Seen from without, a kauri forest is equally remarkable. The spread-
ing heads of the kauris rise so high above the general forest-roof that
it looks as if one forest were superimposed upon another. Very fre-
quently there is found in the undergrowth a miniature tree-fern (Blech-
num Fraseri), which has a very slender trunk 1 in. or less in diameter—
not thicker, indeed, than a stout walking-stick — and rarely more than
3 ft. tall, and which spreads into large colonies by means of long
slender creeping stems. Dicksonia lanata, too, another small tree-
fern, but with a stout trunk, is frequently plentiful in some places,
and may then form much of the undergrowth.

The kahikatea forest consists almost exclusively of Podocarpus
dacnjdioides - - multitudes of long, straight trunks, like masts of
ships, rising from the swampy ground. High up some of the stems
climb the New Zealand screw-pine, the kiekie (Freijcinetia Banksii),
which also everywhere forms a rigid entanglement along the forest-
floor. Dead trees bridge the ever-present pools of water, and certain
shrubs, of which in the north Coprosma tenuicaulis is one, form more
or less dense thickets.

VARIATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF THE MIXED FOREST.

The mixed forest varies according to latitude and altitude, but
a general groundwork of plants is always present. Many northern
forms are wanting in the south, and, conversely, the more important
southern species are less frequent in the north at a similar elevation.
Latitude 38° forms a fairly definite boundary for quite a number of
trees and shrubs, and latitude 42° a second boundary, though the
former, and to a greater extent the latter, is overstepped in several
instances.

The pines (species of Podocarpus and Dacrydium), as they are
popularly called, but more correctly designated taxads, since they are
related to the yew (Taxus), are everywhere important members of the
society under discussion. Confined to the north are --the taraire
(Beilschmiedia tarairi], the mangaeo (Litsea calicaris), the makamaka
(AcJcama rosaefolia), the tawhero (Weinmannia sylvicola], the toatoa
(Phyllocladus glaucus), and, some other trees and shrubs.

Amongst the trees not spreading much beyond latitude 42° are
some very common ones of the northern forests. Some of these are—
the karaka (Corynocarpus laevigata], which reaches Banks Peninsula ;
the tawa (Beilschmiedia taica) ; the kohekohe, or New Zealand cedar

THE FORESTS. 47

(Dysoxylum spectabile) ; the rewarewa (Knightia excelsa) ; the pukatea
(Lauretta novae-zelandiae} ; the tanekaha (PJiyllocladus trichomanoides) ;
and some of the New Zealand olives.

The southern mixed taxad forest extending from latitude 42° to
the south of Stewart Island is distinguished rather by the absence
of the northern plants than by any peculiar species of its own, though
such are not lacking. The Town Belt of Dunedin consists of a remnant
of such a forest, and small pieces still exist all over the east of the
South Island. But in the west and south the ground is still occupied
by mighty forests, which for luxuriance of growth, wealth of ferns,
lianes, mosses, and liverworts can hardly be surpassed. Here, too,
many plants found in the North Island only in the subalpine region
occur at sea-level.

THE BEECH FORESTS.

The beech forests (fig. 18), incorrectly called k' birch' by the
settlers, consisting of species of Nothofagus, are quite distinct from all
those of which we have hitherto treated, although they have some
species in common. The dense growth of the evergreen foliage shuts
out a large percentage of light, and in consequence the undergrowth is
.scanty. Some South Island subalpine forests of pure mountain-beech
(.V. cliff ortioides) contain in many parts little but seedling beech-trees.
Woody lianes, too, are wanting,* as are the more highly organized
perch.ing-plan.ts. Nor are ferns nearly so plentiful as in the mixed
taxad forest, though one, Polystichum vestitum, is frequently abundant
(fig. 1 9) . The tree-trunks are frequently covered completely with a black
fungus (Antennaria). Parasitic on the beech-trees are two mistle-
toes, the one, Elytranihe tetrapetala, having most showy scarlet flowers,
.and the other, E. flavida, having yellow flowers. A small club-moss,
Lycopodium fastigiatum, is sometimes very abundant on the forest-
floor. In moist places there are frequently large colonies of the giant
moss (Pohjtrichum dendroides), looking rather like a pine-tree in minia-
ture. Where the forest comes to an abrupt termination in the sub-
alpine region it is invaded by some of the shrubs of that zone. At
lower altitudes, and in the south of the North Island, various species
of beeches and other forest-trees are mixed together, as in the Day's

* Sometimes a species of Rubus is present (P. scJimidelioides, var. colorati<x).

50 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

CHAPTER IV.

THE NATURAL SHRUBBERIES.

Some peculiarities of New Zealand shrubs — The southern heath — the northern
heath — Parasitic plants — The central heath — New vegetation since eruption
of Tarawera — Adaptations of the heath plants — The subalpine scrub-
Shrubby veronicas and daisy-trees — Contrivances of scrub plants to resist
drought — Prolonged juvenile forms of New Zealand plants — Some
interesting experiments — Various forms of the yellow kowhai.

NEW ZEALAND SHRUBS ix GENERAL.

IN all gardens where a speciality is made of our native plants, it is not
the trees which are there to be found, but rather the shrubs of the
open country. Obviously, these latter are more easy to cultivate
than forest plants. But this is not the sole reason : it is special
beauty of form or flower that has marked them out as of peculiar
merit. In any large garden in the world New Zealand shrubs would
deservedly occupy a prominent place. Moreover, they belong, in
many instances, to families which have no shrubby representatives in
the Old World, whence all our ideas as to botanical form are derived.

The Germander speedwell is a pretty little creeping-plant of Eng-
lish lanes, with bright - blue flowers. It has many relatives in the
Old Country, and in both hemispheres ; but, with the exception of its
New Zealand cousins, one other in Fuegia and a couple or so in Aus-
tralia and Tasmania, all are herbs, or at best only woody in part.
Nearly all the New Zealand speedwells are woody, and vary in habit
from plants a few inches tall to forest-trees. Plants of the daisy
family are usually herbaceous ; but in a few7 regions, especially oceanic
islands, shrubby forms occur, New Zealand being comparatively rich
in such forms. Shrubby plants of the heath family are also frequent
in our natural shrubberies, and some are of large size and quaint form.

The New Zealand shrubs, too, show some excellent examples of a
certain remarkable phenomenon common amongst our plants, but
much less frequent in other regions of similar size. This is the passing-
through a juvenile form, during the development of the individual,

THE NATURAL SHRUBBERIES. 51

altogether distinct from the adult form, such a juvenile form fre-
quently persisting for a considerable period of time. Many of the
forest-trees have the same curious life-history ; but the whole
question is briefly dealt with towards the end of this chapter.

There are distinctly two kinds of natural shrubberies in New Zea-
land— viz., those covering extensive areas with a monotonous, uni-
form garb, and those occurring mainly in belts composed of many
different species of shrubs. The former may be designated " heaths,"
the latter " scrubs."

All over New Zealand the heaths owe their physiognomy to the
dominance of the manuka (Leptospermum scoparium), a plant belong-
ing to the myrtle family, with slender stiff stems, small leaves, and
numerous white flowers. These heaths may consist almost entirely
of manuka, or other shrubs may be mixed through it. In whatever
part of New Zealand it may occur, manuka heath is distinctly a sign
of poor land. This shrub is of most catholic tastes. Dry ground or
wet. it is all one. It may be found in swamps, knee-deep in water,
in sour sphagnum bogs, on wind-swept sandhills, on the faces of dry
cliffs, and even on ground impregnated with " chemicals " near boiling
springs and mud-volcanoes. Besides the above species, there is also
the tree-manuka, L. ericoides. and a species of very limited distribu-
tion, L. Sinclairii.

THE SOUTHERN AND THE NORTHERN HEATHS.

In the South Island the manuka heath, so far as the shrubs go,
frequently consists of pure Leptospermum scoparium. Sometimes other
shrubs occur in varying quantities, of which Discaria toumatou (the
wild-irishman, tumatakuru) and Cassinia fulvida are frequent, while
C. Vauvilliersii is not uncommon. The ground-plants vary according
to the altitude, soil, and climate. On the Bluff Hill the heath is
much richer in species ; and specially noteworthy are the large bushes
of the mingimingi (Styphelia acerosa], some with abundance of white ,
and others with pink drupes. The bracken fern (Pt&ridium esculentum)
is a common constituent of heaths, and is frequently the most im-
portant plant.

Where the ground is very wet, as on the pakihis of western
Nelson, the heath approximates to bog, and would be so reckoned
but for the small amount of peat on the surface. The plant-
covering consists of various rush-like sedges (Cladium glomeratum,

52 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

C. teretifolium, C. capillaceum), the bog umbrella - fern, a creeping
club-moss, a beautiful gentian (Gentiana Townsoni), Epacris pauciflora,
the very rare eyebright (Anayosperma dispermum), some orchids and
sundews, and, of course, abundance of manuka.

In the northern part of the North Island the heath is much richer.
Amongst its members are the following : A fine daisy-tree (Olearia
/iirfuracea), some plants of the heath family (e.g., Stypnelia fascicu-
lata. Dracophyllum Urvilleanum, Epacris pauciflora), a shrubby

• •

FIG. 20. — Pomaderris Edyerleyi, a Heath-plant. Xorth Cape.
Lands Department.] [Photo, L. Cockayne.

speedwell (Veronica diosmaefolia), the palm-lily (Cordyline australis),
and Coprosma rhamnoides. Smaller shrubs are Pomaderris ellipfx-n
(kumarahou), P. phylicaefolia (tauhinu), P. Edyerli-t/i (fig. 20), and,
smaller still, Styphelia Fraseri, a most common plant, with small
pungent leaves and edible yellow " berries," which is found in various
plant societies, from the sea-level to the alpine region in both Islands.
Beneath the shrubs, or in the open spaces, is a profusion of the
graceful club -moss (Lycopodium densum). The climbing umbrella-

THE NATURAL SHRUBBERIES. 53

ferns (Glcichcnia circinatd and G. dicarpa] form considerable colonies.
Everywhere are two rush-like plants (Schoenus brevifolius and S.
Tetulo) growing amongst the scrub or forming tussocks. The flat-
leaved and -stemmed Lepidosperma l<itcra!c, another of the sedge
family, is frequent in places. The dwarf cabbage-tree (ti-rauriki),
(Cor-dyUne pumilio), not looking a little bit like its tall relative, is
abundant. Formerly its thick underground stem, incorrectly termed
& root, was a favourite food of the Maoris. Careful search will reveal
quite a wealth of ground- orchids, all of which are interesting, and
some pretty. The climbing sundew (Droscra auriculata), which has
pretty pink flowers, and who.se tuber beneath the ground allows it
to occupy a dry position, is a common plant. The iridaceous plant,
turutu (DianeUa intermedia}, a plant with bright-blue berries, is very
common. In the far north of the Auckland Provincial District is
the curious parasitic plant, Cassytha panicuhita, which entwines
tightly other plants, and stretches its cord-like pale-coloured stems
just above the surface of the ground from plant to plant, forming
veritable entanglements.

C. paniculata belongs to that remarkable class of plants known as
parasites. These are plants which live at the expense of others, to which
they are attached. They are provided with special organs for draining
the " life-blood " of their unfortunate host. Many, such as the plant
in question, have little if any leaf -green, and so are quite incapable
of manufacturing their food ; but a number, amongst which must be
numbered the New Zealand mistletoes (Tupeia, Elytranthe, &c.), are
quite able to manufacture the requisite sugars, but nevertheless
maintain entirely the parasitic habit. Parasites must not be con-
fused with perching-plants (epiphytes), as is so often done. The
latter are lodgers, or guests, who live on the surface of other plants,
but do not draw on them for supplies.

THE CENTRAL HEATH OF THE NORTH ISLAND.

On the pumice-covered tableland towards the centre of the North
Island the heath changes its character. Certain of the northern
plants are wanting, and some peculiar to the region, or nearly so,
appear. Here is that exquisite shrub, Gaultheria oppositifolia, with a
profusion of flowers like a glorified lily of the valley. Here also is
a peculiar brownish-leaved shrub of the heath family, Dracophyllum
siibulatum. Manuka is, of course, in abundance as usual.

54 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

In 1886 the eruption of Tarawera led to the burying of large areas
of this plant society by volcanic ash. So thickly did this fall that in
some places an actual new land-surface was formed for repopulation.
This was of great interest, since opportunities for observing the settle-
ment of a large area of virgin soil under natural conditions are rarely
afforded ; and in this case there is a clue to what may have taken
place long ago in the evolution of the plant-covering of the adjacent
country.

Where the heath was but thinly covered, it has reappeared almost
in its original form ; but where the covering was many feet in depth
there is quite a different story. Very shortly after the eruption heavy
rain occurred, and the comparatively loose soil was cut into innumer-
able deep but narrow gullies, with many lateral ones opening into them.
The sharp ridges between these gullies are bare, but on their sides
wave masses of toetoe grass (Arundo conspicua), a plant not very
abundant in the adjacent heath. The "seeds' of this grass would,
of course, be brought by the wind. Another common member of the
newr society is the tutu (Coriaria rusci folia), its ' seeds," of course,
having been brought from the plants of the adjacent heath by birds.

ADAPTATIONS OF THE HEATH PLANTS.

AVithout water, plants cannot exist. It may therefore be expected
they have developed many special contrivances to insure the necessary
supply. Especially important are those connected with water storage
or saving, where there is danger of drought. The clay hills on which
the northern heath nourishes, although soaked with water in the
winter, become exceedingly dry in the summer, and had the plants
no provision for husbanding their water they would die for lack of
moisture.

The leaves of plants serve various purposes. On their under-
surfaces usually are many most minute openings, too small by far
to be seen with the naked eye, which afford communication between
the interior of the leaf and the atmosphere. Through these openings
a constant stream of water-vapour issues, and through them, too,
a perpetual current of air enters. From the air the plant gets its
oxygen for breathing, and its carbonic acid for food purposes, while
the water passing away makes room within the plant for a fresh supply
charged with nutritive matter drawn from the soil by the roots. If,

THE NATURAL SHRUBBERIES. 55

however, the water-vapour passes from the leaves faster than it can
be replaced by the roots, the former will wilt, and in time the plant
would die of thirst.

Many contrivances have been evoked to hinder this, and the form
of the leaves is in part an expression of the relation of a plant to its
water-supply. The heath and the subalpine-scrub plants noted below
show many interesting drought-resisting contrivances. Although a
leaf loses water principally through its minute pores, some may pass
away from the whole leaf-surface. To hinder this the surface is
specially thickened, or covered with water-resisting substances, such
as wax.

Variations of leaf-form play an important part. Do away with
leaves altogether and the case is met. Carmichaelia australis, a
northern plant of the pea family, is leafless, but has green, flattened
stems, which can function as leaves. The almost leafless wild-irish-
man (Discaria toumatou) has developed rounded spines which, though
they serve likewise as leaves, offer much less surface than would long
green stems. The needle-like leaves of the dracophyllums not only
present little surface, but they are vertical, and so never feel the full
effect of the sun's rays, which together with dry air and high winds
have much effect on the rapidity with which a plant loses water.
Pomaderris phylicaefolia reduces its water-losing surface by recurving
the edges of its leaves. Olearia furfuracea has a mat of dense hairs on
the under- surf ace of each leaf.

THE SUBALPINE SCRUB.

In many places on the high mountains in New Zealand, especially
in a part where the rainfall is excessive, upon emerging from the
upper forest one is confronted with a formidable natural fence, many
chains in breadth, dividing the forest from the meadow land. On
certain mountains this belt is absent, or represented by stunted beech-
trees or isolated patches of shrubs. The above barrier, composed
of a thick and varied growth of shrubs, is designated the " subalpine
scrub," and if unprovided with a track is virtually impenetrable
(fig. 21). The shrubs, dense in themselves, have such wiry or rigid
branches interlacing into one another that no passage can be made
between them. In many places where it is impossible to crawl on
one's hands and knees beneath the close mass, the only alternative
is to walk upon the top.

5— Plants.

56

XEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

Jf^;$^.i/;f^

• o

r c

PI

"

-B --
x ~

— ~f.

.~ i; ^

3 ~ 3

THE NATURAL SHRUBBERIES.

57

At first sight it miuht seem that such plants would be worthless
for garden purposes, and yet they are the very elite of the New Zealand
flora. The scrubs of the montane and subalpine river-beds and
terraces may also be included here.

These scrubs are the headquarters of the shrubby speedwells
(Veronica). Here is Veronica cupressoides, named most fittingly,
for no one seeing it for the first time and out of bloom could dream
it was not a cypress. Other veronicas met with are- -*V. buxi folia
var. odor a. forming shining green bushes, round as a cricket-ball ;

• .

FIG. 22. — Olearia macrodontfi (probably).

[Photo, J. Crosby Smith.

V. Trarersii, which is of similar habit, but with much less glossy
foliage ; V. yhmcophyUa, with sage-green leaves ; V. subalpina, an
early- blooming species ; V.monticola; V . vernicosa ; and, indeed, there
are dozens of species, many of which strongly resemble one another.

Daisy-shrubs (Olearia) are much in evidence. Common are—
0. Hid foli a (the native holly), with musk-scented prickly crinkled
leaves ; 0. macrodonta, somewhat like the above, but with broader
and greener leaves (fig. 22) ; 0. nummularifolia (fig. 23). with small

58

ZEALAND PLAXTS.

CS

o
o

O

-4-J

O

(M

-

o

s

-^

(£.

o

ft

•i

s

THE NATURAL SHRUBBERIES. 59

hard and leathery leaves ; 0. cymbifoUa, similar to the last- mentioned,
but with the margins of the leaves much recurved ; 0. moschata,
after the manner of 0. nummulari folia, but with larger and paler-
coloured leaves ; 0. nitida. with rather large, glossy leaves, covered
on the under-surface with a shining mat of hairs ; and 0. Colensoi,
with thick, rather large leaves, much toothed and covered beneath
with a thick mat of white hairs. The remarkable 0. lacunosa, with
its leaves rather like those of a juvenile lancewood, and its relative
0. excorticata, with broader and shorter leaves, are rarer, being con-
fined to the Tararua Mountains in the North Island, and to the north-
west and west of the South Island.

Other plants of the daisy family are the cassinias, C. Vauvilliersii
and C. albida, this latter being confined to the Kaikoura and neigh-
bouring mountains. To the same family belong also the shrubby
groundsels, very common plants of the subalpine scrub, such as
Senecio elaeagnifolius, S. Bid-will ii, S. cassinioides, and S. Monroi.

The heaths are represented by various species of Dracophyllum
and by Archer-la Traversii and Gaultheria rupestris, the latter to be
recognised by its lily-of-the-valley-like flowers, after the manner of
those of G. oppositifoJia of the central heath.

Drctcophyllum Traversii is a magnificent small tree, with smooth,
naked, brown stems, crowned at their extremities with rosettes of
stiff, reddish leaves, having long-drawn-out points arching down-
wards. The subalpine flax (Phormium CooJcianum}, also a plant of
sea-cliffs, is common, as is also, in some localities, one of the spear-
grasses (Aciphytta Colensoi, var. maxima}, a most formidable plant
with bayonet-like leaves a yard long.

Little can be said here regarding the adaptations of the members
of this society. Like subalpine plants the world over, their surround-
ings, notwithstanding an abundant rainfall, demand protection against
drought. A dense, felt-like mass of hairs is frequently present on the
under- surf aces of the leaves. Very leatherv leaves are common, and

V *J

these have a special internal structure to account for their leatherrness,
which is of advantage to its possessors. Other adaptations similar
to those found in the before-described heath plants are frequently
present.

60 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

PROLONGED JUVENILE FORMS OF NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

If the seed of Veronica cupressoides, or of any one of the " whip-
cord veronicas," as they are aptly designated, be sown, it will quickly
germinate and produce a young plant, altogether distinct from its
parent. In the old plant the leaves are represented by green scales
pressed closely against the stem ; they are also thick, and have a
peculiar anatomical structure. In the seedling, on the contrary.
there are true leaves with a stalk and blade, which are quite thin and
of an anatomical structure absolutely different from that of the adult.
In other words, the juvenile and the adult plants might be two different
species, each adapted for a quite different mode of life, the adult for
an arid climate and the juvenile for a- moist forest region.

If we are in a position to carry on our investigations a little
further, and to grow some of the seedlings in the open air and others
in a glass case so constructed as to always contain air saturated
with moisture, the plant in the open will by degrees assume, the adult
and dry-climate habit, while the other will remain in the juvenile
and wet-climate form, not for a week or two merely, but for years :
indeed, so long as it is kept in a " moist chamber " it will remain a
juvenile plant.

And now for a third experiment. Take a rooted cutting ot an
adult piece of the veronica, and place it in the moist chamber. After
a few weeks its new growth will be of the juvenile form, and juvenile
and adult leaves will be on the plant at the same time (fig. 24). Similar
experiments with certain of the New Zealand brooms (CarmiGhaelia)
and with the wild-irishman (Discaria toumatou} will lead to a similar
result. To inquire into this matter at length would be out of place
here, but any general account of New Zealand plant-life would be
most incomplete without some reference to this extraordinary
phenomenon. A few analogous examples may throw • a little light
on the subject. Many coprosmas and other shrubs belonging to
diverse families* have a curious habit of growth, which makes them
•outwardly so similar that they are not easy to be distinguished when

* The following are. some of these shrubs: The weeping-matipo (
divaricaia), Pittosponnn rigidum, the mountain-currant (Arixfotvlia fruticosti). the
wauwaupaku (Nothopanax anonniJiini), various species of Hymenanlhcra, and
Melicytu* in icrantlms.

THE NATURAL SHRUBBERIES.

61

not in flower or fruit. Their branches are stiff and wiry, and interlace
one with the other into a dense mass. A similar form is assumed
by trees and shrubs subject to constant wind, especially if combined
with a dry station.

If seed of the small-leaved kowhai (Sophora microphylla) be sown,
a "small and erect plant soon appears. But after a time this puts forth

FIG. 24. — Young Plant of Veronica lycopodioides ; which had in part assumed the
adult form with scale-leaves, putting forth true leaves in consequence of
cultivation in moist air and rather feeble light. [Photo. L. Cockayne.

zigzag branches, and in a year or two a shrub of dense habit, similar
to those mentioned in the last paragraph, results. But it does not
remain always such a shrub, for in due course its upper part will grow
into a tree, with erect branches and large leaves.

62 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

Sow the seed of Sophora grandiflora. Again comes the small,
erect plant ; but this is succeeded by no shrubby, dense form : the
young plant continues its development without noticeable change
until it is fully grown into a tree. Finally, sow seed of Sophora pro-
strata. Again the upright early seedling appears, then the juvenile
shrubby stage, as in S. microphylla ; but this time it never develops
into a tree, but has this shrub stage as its adult form. Finally, with-
out going into further details, there are about two hundred New Zea-
land plants which have adult forms differing considerably from the
juvenile, many of which can, when fully grown, revert to the early
form.

Now, it is held by certain biologists than an organism in its indi-
vidual development passes, more or less completely, through the
stages assumed by the species at various times during its past evolu-
tionary history. If this is so, then juvenile stages represent ancestral
stages, and such a plant as the seedling whipcord veronica, with leaves
of the above-mentioned experiment, is the ancestor of the present
river-terrace V. cupressoides, artificially brought back into the world,
and kept so long as the moist-air treatment continues. This treat-
ment, too, shows that the ancestral plant lived in a much moister
climate than is New Zealand at the present time. The behaviour
of Sophora, too, throws some light on the matter. The very earliest
stage would be the ancestral form ; but as this is the same in both
S. grandiflora and S. microphylla, the former is ancestral from begin-
ning to end of its development, whereas the latter, in its middle stage,
exactly resembles S. prostrata.

All this points out that there came a period of drought in New
Zealand, or of a climate requiring drought-resisting adaptations.
Then certain adaptations against excessive dryness came into being,
as in the cases of the shrubby form of Sophora and the adult of
Veronica cupressoides. On a more recent change to a wetter climate
some individuals of the former genus would grow out of this drought-
resisting form, others would remain unchanged ; but in the case of
the veronica no reversion has taken place, but the " ancestral form '
still remains latent.

THE VEGETATION OF THE COAST. 63

CHAPTER V.

THE VEGETATION OF THE COAST.

General remarks — Adaptations of coastal plants — Physical and physiological
dryness — Plants of sandy and rocky shores — Seaweeds — Sandhills — Reclam-
ation of dunes — The wonderful mangrove — Coastal shrubberies — A natural
post-card — The coastal veronica — Vegetation of rocks and cliffs — Salt
meadows and salt marshes — Stephen Island, the home of the tuatara — The
Three Kings and Poor Knights Islands.

GENERAL REMARKS.

A COAST-LINE between four and five thousand miles in length, extend-
ing from nearly the latitude of Sydney in the north to far beyond
that of the southernmost point of Tasmania in the south, may well
furnish a great deal of diversity in both species and societies of plants.
The varieties of stations for plant-life are also augmented by the
physical features of the shore. In some places calm fiords, flanked by
towrering, precipitous mountains, stretch far inland ; in others an iron-
bound coast faces the ocean storms. There are long stretches of level
shore — of gravel or of sand — extensive estuaries, and tidal rivers. In
short, the two main Islands, together with Stewart Island, present
a diversified coast not surpassed in variety of physical features by any
other of equal size.

ADAPTATIONS OF COASTAL PLANTS.

Latitude being left out of the question, in all parts of the world
coastal vegetation, both in its form and distribution, depends upon
certain factors. Of these, salt in the soil and exposure to sea-sprav
and violent winds are of prime importance. Wherever they occur,
genuine seaside plants have various features in common. The most
important of these are contrivances to regulate the water-supply,
the commonest of \vhich is succulence of leaf and stem, one or
both. This succulence is caused by the presence of special tissues
which serve for water-storage. Many New Zealand coastal plants
exhibit this feature. The ice-plant (Mescmbrijanthenmm australe,
pig's-face, horokaka), which so frequently drapes the coastal cliffs

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

with its pale-green leaves, and bears rather large rose-coloured flowers,
is a pleasing and familiar example (fig. 25). This species must not be
confused with the Hottentot fig (M. edule), a native of South Africa,
now naturalised on many sandhills, but which possesses leaves still
" fatter ' than those of its indigenous sister, and bears larger and
yellow-coloured flowers. Other common coastal succulents are : Sali-
cornia australis (fig. 26), a stem-succulent common in salt meadows,
and Suaeda maritima, - a leaf.-succulent, usually growing in rather
wetter ground.

FIG. 25. — The New Zealand Ice-plant (Mesembrianthera^tm anxtmle), growing on

rock near sea. Lyall Bay, Wellington.

[Photo. L. Cockayne.

Succulence has been shown experimentally to be brought about
by excess of salt in the soil, and certain plants to which salt is not a
deadly poison can be made artificially succulent. Some of the intro-
duced plants of this country, as, e.y., the spotted catchny (Silan
anglica, var. quinquevulnera) , acquire much fatter leaves when growing
near the sea than inland.

THE VEGETATION OF THE COAST

65

>.

S-t

o

£

c
jz

c

c

"

66 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

That plants growing in wet stations, such as salt meadows and
marshes, should be furnished with appliances to combat drought appears
very remarkable. The truth seems to be that for some reason not
yet sufficiently explained, although many theories are rife, the plant
dare not use too much brackish wrater, and so is actually in the same
position as a plant of a desert region. When dealing with the bog
vegetation it will be seen that it, too, is in a similar condition, and so
is that in the neighbourhood of solfataras and the like.

Schimper has summed up these conditions in an excellent manner,
pointing out that two kinds of dryness exist. These he has named
"physical5 and "physiological.'' Physical dryness arises from want
of water in the soil, but a physiologically dry soil may contain any
amount of water, but yet of such a quality that its plant inhabitants
cannot use it. To quote a common example, the sea is physiologically
dry, so far as man is concerned. Physiological dryness alone concerns
plant-distribution .

SANDY AND EOCKY SHORES ; SEAWEEDS.

Sandy shores are common enough on the New Zealand coast ; and
as these, when sufficiently firm, are patronised as playgrounds for our
children and ourselves, something as to their plants may be of interest.
Such a shore may sometimes be quite without plants, except for the
remains of seaweeds which mark the high-tide limit. Where the
shore is sheltered, the shore convolvulus (Calystegia SoldancUa)
(fig. 27), with its lilac-striped flowers, is often present. Here, too, is
the home of the tiny buttercup (Ranunculus acaulis), its leaves of three
small succulent leaflets flat on the sand, and its little yellow flower
buried right up to its neck. The New Zealand spinach (Tetragonia
expansa), the succulent Atriplex Billardieri, and the prickly Salsola
Kali are also plants of the shore.

Gravelly and rocky shores are richer in plant-life than sandy ones,
since they are much more stable. On them in some places a dock
(Rumex neglectus) is common. This has a rather stout creeping stem,
which enables the plant to make considerable patches on the gravelly
shore, where it grows far more luxuriantly than on the peaty ground
which it also inhabits. On the stony shore of Foveaux Strait a
small plant of the cress family (Lepidium tenuicaule) puts down an
enormously long root in quest of the fresh water which flows seaward
beneath the stones.

THE VEGETATION OF THE COAST.

67

-^

^

I

X

•s

O

7)

68 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

Where rocks jut out into the sea, forming pools, there the beau-
tiful red seaweeds have their home ; but where the sea dashes with
fury, the huge brown ones are found. As two of these are so frequently
cast up on the shore, they, at any rate, must be known to most who
aie acquainted with the seaside. The one (Macrocystis Diibenii)
grows to an immense size, and its leaves float upon the surface of the
sea by means of their small bladders full of air, while, dozens of feet
below, the cord-like stems are anchored firmly to the rocky floor of the
ocean. The other (D'UrviUaea utilis) is found in rougher water, its
stouter stem showing a honeycomb-like structure when cut into.
UVrvillaea gets its name from the Admiral D'Urville mentioned in
Chapter II. By the Stewart Island Maoris its " leaves ' are made
into bags for holding the preserved mutton-birds.

In the calm waters of the West Coast Sounds, where not too deep,
are flower-gardens of the sea, whose loveliness can be seen for con-
siderable depths through the transparent water. Generally speaking,
the depth of water determines the distribution of seaweeds. Thus
the green ones are found in the shallowest pools, and the red in the
deepest, while the brown occupy a position midway, and some of these
may be seen writhing like snakes over the glistening rocks at low
water (fig. 2). Some seaweeds behave like the perching-plants of the
forest, and have taken up their abode on other species.

SANDHILLS.

On many parts of the coast, sand is continually being brought on
to the shore by the advancing waves. In the neighbourhood of high-
water mark the shore soon becomes dry, and the sand is then borne
landwraids by any wind coming from the sea. Where the sand
accumulates faster than it is blown away, a hill, or dune as it
is frequently called, is formed. Any obstacle in the path of the blown
sand will also arrest its progress and cause its heaping-up. The
dunes of New Zealand are of great extent, and occupy an area of more
than three hundred thousand acres. In some parts of the coast the
belt of dunes is more than six miles in width, and in the north of the
Auckland Province, on the west of Stewart Island, and elsewhere the
sandhills attain a height of several hundred feet, though usually they
are much lower.

Frequently the dunes are very unstable, and in some places so
much so that great areas of moving sand exist. These i; wandering

THE VEGETATION OF THE COAST.

69

•dunes ': (fig. 28) insidiously advancing inland, do great damage-
burying fertile fields, filling up valuable flax-swamps, choking water-
courses, and overwhelming forests, plantations, pasture-lands, and
even human dwellings. Happily nature has done much to stop such
inroads, and the wandering dunes of New Zealand are chieflv tin-

•>' .-.'.,._ ./ «

result of damage dpne by grazing animals and by burning.

In order that a plant can live on drifting sand it must have the
power of binding that unstable compound into a firm mass. Plants

FIG. 28. — General view of a Wandering Dune occupying ground formerly good
grazing-land. Dime-area of western Wellington.

Lands Department.]

[Photo. L. Cockayne.

with rapidly growing underground stems, which have the power of
rooting near the tips of the branches and putting forth new shoots as
fast as the old ones are buried, are sand-binding plants par excellence.
With few exceptions, wherever sandhills exist on the globe, such
plants accompany them.

In New Zealand there is a most excellent example in the pingao
(Scirpus frondosus) (fig. 29). Its thick, rope -like stems, commonly
called roots, form a perfect entanglement inside the dune, and its

70

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

semi-tussocks of stiff, golden-coloured leaves crown many sandhills

•/

from the North Cape to the Bluff. Unfortunately, rabbits and some
other animals do not despise this plant, notwithstanding its most
unappetising-looking leaves. In consequence, they destroy this natural
protector of our shores, which came into being in a land where grazing
animals, the moa excepted, were unknown, and so developed no pro-
tective adaptations.

The spiny rolling-grass (Spinifex hirsutus). a native of Australia
also, is another very important indigenous sand-binder. Its stout

FIG. 29. — Breach in Foredune made by Sea, north of Rangitikei River. The

Pingao (Scirpus f rondo* us) on right.
Lands Department.] [Photo, L. Cockayne.

stems, often many feet in length, at first creep over the surface of the
sand, firmly fixing themselves by means of many roots. Finally
they are buried, and the tufts of long flexible leaves, covered densely
with soft silvery hairs, project out of the sand. The pollen-bearing
and ovule-bearing plants are distinct. When the seeds are ripe, the
mature inflorescence breaks off. and, borne by the wind, hops on its
long spines over the sandy shore like some huge insect, until, at

TPIE VEGETATION OF THE COAST.

71

last falling to pieces, the ' seeds ' are deposited and finally buried.
S. hirsutus naturally builds up fairly stable dunes which in some
places have a surface so even as to look like a railway-embankment
(fig. 30), as in the case of the dune fronting the shore near Wai-
kanae, in the Wellington Province.

In Europe, America, and elsewhere plants and grazing animals
assumed their present forms side by side. The marram-grass of Europe
(Ammophila arenaria) is a case in point. This, although naturally

-. - •. . J > , . ' V -'

. , • .-/•• »v « , ., •',

' ^MitovKH

' . ^"i . • i, ,.

FIG. 30. — Natural and even Foredune built by Wind and the Silvery Sand-grass

(Spin if?.? hit-tutu*). Coast near Waikanae.

Lands Department.] [Photo, W. H. Field.

little better as a sand-binder than our Scirpus or Spinifex, is of in-
finitely more value for ' reclaiming ' our moving sands, since it is
not relished as food, and. grows rapidly and luxuriantly. With the
marram may be used the lyme-grass (Elymus arenarius), another
European sand-bind1 -r.

Besides grasses, trees and shrubs are of great service for sand-
fixing. Of the latter, the tree-lupin of California (Lupinus arboreus) is a

6— Plants.

72

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

most valuable plant when used with discretion. But the question of
dune-fixing is too complex for discussion here, and, so far as New
Zealand goes, the matter is still quite in its infancy.

Where the dunes are more stable, other special ' sand-plants '
are common. Of these, Coprosma acerosa (fig. 31), with wiry, reddish-
coloured, interlacing twigs, is found everywhere ; and so, too, is
Pimelia arenaria, a low-spreading shrub, with pretty silvery leaves
and white flowers. Certain species of Cassinia, which belongs to the

•

•f .

'4. k1**"'1'

^M*-£&t, '"*

*>£?>;*••;&>& •*•.».&&

. -»**

FIG. 31. — The Sand-coprosma (Coprosma acerosa) building a Temporary Dune

Coast of Canterbury.
Lands Department.] [Photo, L. Cockayne.

daisy family, are very frequent features of this society, but they are
different in various parts of the Dominion. In the Auckland region it
is Cassinia retorta ; Taranaki, Hawke's Bay, and the shores of Cook
Strait have the tauhinu or cottonwood (('. leptophylla) ', while
farther south the yellow-leaved C. fulrida is the sole representative
until the Bluff Hill or certain places on the east of Otago are
reached, when C. Vauvittiersii, a common subalpine shrub, puts in
an appearance.

THE VEGETATION OF THE COAST. 73

Where the force of the wind is less felt, a heath may make its ap-
pearance, and the manuka, (Leptospermum scoparium), the cabbage-
tree (Cord yline australis), the toetoe (Arundo conspicua}, the flax
(Phormium tenax), and, from the shores of Cook Strait southwards,
the wild-irishman (Disearia toumatou) occur in force (fig. 32).

Hollows in the dune region are very frequent, the sand being
blown away until the ground-water is almost reached. Where the
water cannot get away there will be swamps and even shallow lakes.

FIG. 32. — Heath of Sand-plain. In front, the Wild-irishman (Di*cnri<i totamttou).
Lands Department.] [Photo, L. Cockayne.

In sandy hollows the pioneer plant is a creeping-sedge (Carex pumila),
which soon builds miniature dunes. The sand-gunnera (Guntu-ni-
(irenaria), forming close mats of small pale-green leaves flattened to
the ground, is also very abundant in many localities. Such hollows
finally become occupied by introduced grasses and plants of the clover
family, and these render the dune region of economic importance,
though the grazing by sheep and cattle leads in time to instability
of the nature-fixed hills and to the filling- up of the hollows.

74 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

THE MANGROVE.

Let us leave the dunes, and, in imagination, sail up one of those
wide estuaries in the west of the Auckland Province — Hokianga or
Kaipara Harbour, or one of the tidal rivers of the east — the Wha-
ngarei, for instance. If it is high tide, we shall see on either side
of the stream, a belt of close-growing, dull-coloured, small trees, rising
out of the turbid water. These consist of the mangrove (Avicennia
officinatis), and the sight is one almost unknown in any other land
outside the tropics. It is, in fact, one of the natural wonders of New
Zealand.

Now, quite undeservedly, the mangrove has got a bad reputation.
A mangrove swamp is supposed to represent all that is most hideous
on earth — alligators in crowds, a fearsome odour, crabs waiting to
pick such of the victim's bones as are left by the alligators, malaria,
and deadly microbes in vast abundance. Even in the tropics this
picture has been shown to be absurd, and in New Zealand the man-
grove belt is quite a pleasing feature of the northern rivers. It is
also a most beneficial plant, as it materially assists in turning muddy
useless shores into good dry land.

Moreover, the mangrove is one of the most noteworthy plants in
nature. As our boat proceeds up the river the tide has turned,
and the slimy flats, where the mangrove is rooted, come into view.
There, projecting out of the mud. are thousands of upright bodies,
6 in. or so in length, looking much like stout asparagus-shoots. One
might feel sure these were young mangroves. But they are nothing
of the sort, strange as it may seem. They are roots, which, instead
of passing downwards to anchor the trees, grow upwards into the air.
On being examined, they are found to consist largely of a very porous
tissue. Plants, like animals, cannot live without oxygen. They need to
breathe just as much as we human beings do ; without air they would
die of suffocation. In the soft mud is little of the life-giving gas.
hence the necessity for the mangrove to obtain a supply for its ordinary
roots. This it does with these erect organs, which are the veritable
lungs of the tree. Of course, the aerial parts of the mangrove, like
those of any other tree, procure oxygen by means of the small pores
in the leaves and minute openings in their bark.

The mangrove, too, has another peculiarity of even greater interest
than that just described. If a seed were to fall on the muddy floor
of a tidal estuary, being washed hither and thither by the ebb and

THE VEGETATION OF THE COAST.

75

• 'tetV-fii
t8K3K$

wmfa

*«4

o

a
. >>

"

•r.

l— i

+3

o

-

3 O

rw -^>

•Z -

7 E

•ft

O

.O

^

X

-g

o

•S

-s

76 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

flow of the tide, it would have little chance of germinating. Con-
sequently, the embryos in the seeds of the mangrove develop con-
siderably while still on the tree, emerging from the seed and producing
rudiments of roots ready for rapid growth. When such young plants
fall from the tree, the roots grow rapidly. They pass downwards and
outwards from near the tip of the stem below the seed-leaves, and
so anchor the plantlet firmly in the unstable ground. Nor is this all.
The seed-leaves are fleshy and full of nourishment, and on this the
young mangrove lives in part* until the time when, provided with
foliage, it is in a position to manufacture for itself the sugary foods
it requires from the atmosphere and the water. Surely none need
cast contumely on such a plant as this !

COASTAL SHRUBBERIES.

The beautiful inlets of Stewart Island derive their charm in large
measure from the assemblage of trees and shrubs along the water's
edge, especially when the southern rata (Metrosideros lucida), its
boughs almost dipping into the water, has burst into flaming crimson.
In similar situations the inuka (Dracophyllum longifolium) and the
smaller New Zealand flax (Phormium Cookianum) are common.

Where the coastal scrub of Stewart Island is densest, it has received
the name of " mutton-bird scrub." This consists largely of the puhe-
ritaiko, a very fine shrubby groundsel (Senecio rotundifolius) (fig. 33).
which makes an excellent garden plant even as far north as Auck-
land. The leaf is frequently 4 in. or more in diameter, and is covered
so closely with a mat of buff-coloured hairs on the under-surface that
it can be written upon. The leaf may thus be made to serve as a
post-card, which can be posted at the most southerly office in Aus-
tralasia— that on the Isle of Ulva, in Paterson Inlet.

In the West Coast Sounds this groundsel forms thickets, associated
with some other shrubs, of which the principal are — the charming
Olearia operina, Veronica elliptica, and F. saUcifolia. A close relation
of 0. operina, the teteawaka (0. angustifolia\ (figs. 34 and 35), which
has flower-heads 2 in. or so in diameter, with violet centres, occurs
in Stewart Island. There are also a few plants at the base of the
Bluff Hill. These latter, unfortunately, are badly attacked by a

The seed-leaves are green, and so they supply the growing plant with
additional food-material of their own manufacture.

THE VEGETATION OF THE COAST.

77

•zr -^

O rt

O o

O O

- w

'*} '- ~

4 E= d

C O

if. -

•r.

• — r.

Q

93

78

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

native parasitic fungus, one of the rusts, those protean plants which
totally changing their form and habits, spend a part of their existence
on one plant and another
portion upon quite a dif-
ferent species.

Veronica elliptica, the
coastal shrubby veronica,

tj

mentioned above, deserves

a few words. In the first

place, it is one of our South

American connections.

When fairly sheltered it is

a fine upright - growing

shrub, covered closely on

its outer twigs with rather

thick palish - green small

leaves. Like all the other

veronicas, its flowers have

only two stamens. The

corolla is at first bright

purple, but soon fades to

white. The scent of the

flowers is delicious. It is

abundant in the Auckland

and Campbell Islands, the Snares, Stewart Island, the west coast of the

South Island, and the east coast to about as far north as Dunedin.

From the remainder of the South Island it is absent, but appears

again on the shore of Cook Strait at Titahi Bay, near Wellington.

Strange to say, it extends no farther to the north, though it grows

freely from seeds, and may be cultivated at any point on the .New

Zealand coast.

FIG. 35. — Flower-heads of Purple-flowered
Drtisy-tree.

[Photo, J. Crosby Smith.

VEGETATION OF CLIFFS AND ROCKS.

Metrosideros tomentosa, the well-known pohutukawa, the Christmas-
tree of which the Aucklanders are justly proud, was formerly much
more abundant than at present. It grows frequently on the faces
of cliffs, stretching outwards over the oyster-covered rocky shore.
Some of its roots are fixed in the solid rock, and creep for long dis-
tances over the surface — a most remarkable sight — while others

THK YK<;KTATIOX OF THE COAST.

79

are given off quite high up the trunk or from the branches ; but these
do not usually reach the. ground. Not infrequently the pohutukawa
is of a quite erect growth, as may be seen in many coastal forests
(fig. 36). It occurs on the coast from the Three Kings Islands to
Poverty Bay and Taranaki, and inland on the shores of Lake Taupo,
Waikareinoana, Rotorua, Roto-iti, &c. Other common coastal trees
in the north are the karo (Pittosporum crassi folium], P. um-
beUatum, and the whau (Entelea arborescens). On the trunks of the
pohutukawa the perching-lily (Astelia Banks ii) often forms enormous

-, 1

41 J3

FIG. 36. — Pohutiikawa growing a,s erect many-stemmed Tree in School-grounds.

Kawakawa, East Cape.

[Photo, L. Cockayne.

masses, and this also clothes the coastal cliffs. These, even when fully
exposed to wind and sea, are abundantly beautified by the charming-
lily, Arthropodium cirrhatum.

The coastal cliffs of east Maryborough in due season become scenes
of great floral beauty. Here the rather straggling shrub Olearia
insignis has its home. Its large, thick, and very leathery leaves,
buff on the under- surface, and its fine flower-heads, render it a con-
spicuous object. How a plant in such a position, growing as it does

80 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

on the driest rocks imaginable, can get sufficient food seems a mystery*
It puts one in mind of William Watson's lines-
Some adventurous flower

On savage crag-side grown
Seems nourished hour by hour
From its wild self alone.

Growing in company with 0. insignis is Phormium Cookianum?
its leaves drooping from the cliff ; the delightful Veronica Hulkeana,
with varnished green leaves, whose masses of delicate lilac flowers-
have earned for it the name of Newr Zealand lilac ; and the aniseed
( A ngelica Gingidium) .

The only member of the gourd family in New Zealand is at the
present time quite rare on the mainland, and it may be best seen on
some of the outlying islands of the north. On the Little Barrier,,
at the foot of the cliffs, it is abundant, scrambling over the kawa-
kawa (Macropiper excelsum), or ascending to the topmost branches,
of the pohutukawas.

Certain ferns are peculiar to the coast, and are frequent on the
cliffs. The most widely spread is the sea - spleenwort (Asplenium
obtusatum). The coastal hard -fern (Blechnum durum) occurs only
in the southern part of the South Island and in Stewart Island, but
it is abundant also in the New Zealand subantarctic islands and the
Chathams. All the coastal ferns have very thick and stiff leaves.

THE SALT MEADOWS AND SALT MARSHES.

Along the banks of tidal rivers and estuaries there is frequently
low ground covered at flood tide with brackish water, or, where higher,
subject merely to a periodical submerging. Of both such situations-
the covering is fairly uniform throughout New Zealand. Colonies-
of rush-like plants form the bulk of the vegetation. The most striking"
is the rush-like Leptocarpus simplex, whose stiff, reddish, jointed
stems, a yard or more tall, render it very conspicuous. It belongs to
a family (Restionaceae) confined almost entirely to South Africa and
Australia. A true rush (Juncus maritimus, var. australiensis) is
also very common, but it has not been found south of Timarii.
Dotted over the salt meadow, or growing in close masses, is the shrubby
ribbonwood (Plagianthus divaricatus), a shrub of a dense habit, and
made up of slender, wiry, dark-coloured interlacing twigs covered.

THE VEGETATION OF THE COAST. 81

with narrow leaves, most of which it casts oft' in the autumn. Its
relationship to the beautiful lacebarks and ribbonwoods is indeed
concealed in its habit, but revealed in the structure of its minute
flowers and fruit, as well as in its tough bark.

On the drier ground of the salt meadow are a number of creeping,
turf-making plants, mostly with long roots and small thick leaves.
The chief of these are Samolus repens, a white-flowered plant of the
primrose family, but not a bit like a primrose ; SeUiera radicans,
which has a curious corolla, looking as if a portion had been removed,
also white ; Cotula dioica, with aromatic leaves and yellowish button-
like flower-heads ; and Atropis stricta, a small grass. In some places,
but by no means everywhere, growing in the pools or streams, is a
beautiful musk (Mimulus repens}. Its flowers are bright lilac in colour,
with an orange throat. Extremely abundant also in some localities
(e.g., on the northern shores of Cook Strait), and dotting the ground
everywhere, is the pretty relative of the last-mentioned, Mazus pumilio.
The curious Eryngium vesiculosum, a plant of the carrot family, which
can increase enormously by means of runners, and so become a weed,
is an occasional salt-meadow plant.

Where the water cannot get away, and the ground is never dry,
and uncovered only at low tide, will be found a salt marsh. In the
wettest places colonies of the great bulrush (Scirpus lacustris] will be
present, but only where the water is not too salt. More salt-enduring
is the smaller Scirpus maritimus. Leptocarpus simplex will generally
be the dominant plant, and will cover many acres to the exclusion of
all else. A sedge, Car ex litorosa, is peculiar to the salt marsh. Many
of the plants mentioned above also occur, specially Juncus maritimus.
These salt-marsh plants are of considerable economic importance, as
they help to build up solid ground in estuaries, and also to maintain
the banks of tidal rivers.

BOTANY OF THE SMALL COASTAL ISLANDS.

The small islands near the coast are of extreme botanical interest,
and sometimes of great beauty. Some are quite in their virgin con-
dition, while others have been changed by man, especially where the
lighthouse-keepers lead their solitary lives.

On Stephen Island, in Cook Strait, famous as the home of the
tuatara lizard, the last representative of a long-since-vanished race,
can be seen every stage of human progress from the "forest primeval'

82

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

o

-tJ

o

p

?5i

•^

O

o

I -. J^

w

""= .=-
J'2,

• ^

~~< ^

zi •

_

S

= 3

I 3*
P

:J

THE VECETATIOX OF THE COAST. 83

to the cabbage-garden. This forest is quite a remarkable one, and
such portion as still remains should be preserved from further destruc-
tion. It consists chiefly of the kohekohe (Dysoxylum spectabile),
Paratrophis opaca, Macropiper cxcelsum, and Rhapalostylis sapidn
(the nikau palm). The trees are stunted, have many spreading
branches, and are garlanded by the fern Blechnum fili 'forme (fig. 37).

Open Bay Island, off the coast of south Westland, is in its virgin
state. It would be an unpleasant experience to pass a night there,
since in its peaty soil, honeycombed by the holes of petrels, veritable
leeches and wetas of huge size and formidable aspect abound. The
vegetation consists of a most impenetrable sciub of kiekie (Freycinetia
Banksii), almost the last survivor of a forest which must have clothed
these islands long ago, when connected with the mainland of Westland.
Very interesting, too, must be the Three Kings, where Mr. T. F. Cheese-
man found abundance of that magnificent tree, supposed to be almost
extinct, the puka (Meryta Sinclair ii}.

Only a brief reference can be made to the Poor Knights, recently
visited for the first time by Captain Bollons and the author, where
the big snail, Placostylis Hongii, is still abundant, and where the
arborescent vegetation consists largely of Suttonia divaricata, an
unexpected plant. Nor can the coastal meadows of Southland, white
with gentian and eyebright, be described, nor the cliff vegetation of
the Nuggets, where an alpine celmisia clothes the barren rock : nor
many other charming spots, lapped by the many-voiced ocean. Suf-
ficient, however, has been said to show that we need not climb into the
clouds to find our wild flowers, and that those who are wont to take
their pleasure sadlv bv the seashore mav find there a field of new

4- t v i/

interest.

84 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

CHAPTER VI.

THE MEADOWS.

European contrasted with New Zealand meadows — The meadows of the
Dominion — How meadows are formed by nature — Valuable indigenous
grasses — Flowers of the lowland pastures — The mountain meadows-
Colours of the alpine flowers — Buttercups, ourisias, yellow forget-me-nots—
An alpine desert — Drought-resisting contrivances — Peat-forming plants.

MEADOWS IN GENERAL.*

WHEN the early settlers reached their antipodean home they must
have been struck by the absence of green fields gay with buttercups,
daisies, cuckoo-flowers, coltsfoot, and oxeyes, and would have laughed
at the idea of New Zealand meadows. To many, even yet, it may seem
absurd to compare the tussock slopes with the emerald hillsides oi
Britain. As for wild flowers, there are some who remember regretfully
those of the Motherland, and lament that their adopted home has
nothing to offer in exchange for the cowslips, primroses, anemones,
bluebells, and heather of their youthful days.

Be all this as it may, New Zealand has plenty ot natural meadows
in a plant-geographical sense, if not in that of our boyhood. For
those who will seek them, too, it has also wild flowers that can vie
in beauty with those of any other region.

Natural meadows are a distinct expression of climate and soil,
and, as stated in the first chapter, forest would cover the whole land
were there no inhibitory circumstances. Such, however, exist, the
most important being altitude, the nature of the soil, and climatic
influences, especially constant wind. The tussock meadows of the
Canterbury Plain, of the tableland near Mount Ruapehu, and of the
slopes of so many of our mountains are expressions of the above fact.
So, too, are the alpine meadows above the forest-line (fig. 38).

* Plant-geographically our t- meadows " really belong to different biological
categories, such as steppe, fell-field, £<•. ; but, as these terms are by no means
clearly defined, I still use the term " meadow," as in my writings in general.

THE MEADOWS.

85

In the wet districts meadows are lacking, except on the high moun-
tains. In the drier parts, such as eastern Hawke's Bay, eastern and
•central Otago, and the Canterbury Plain, they are much in evidence,
.and, where the soil is very stony, may even merge into deserts.

Besides the meadow lands just mentioned, there are in the Dominion
many others where the fields are green enough, and where, at any
rate, buttercups, daisies, and oxeyes are not absent, much to the
regret of the farmer. But such fields are quite artificial, and afford

... .-V

;V" • ••: V

. 38. — Forest (Xothofagus cliff ortioides) giving place to Grass-land, the effect
of wind. Near Source of River Poulter, Canterbury.

[Photo, L. Cockayne.

merely examples of the changes wrought by man — changes which he
accomplished long ago in the British Isles, where the meadows, and
forests too. for that matter, must be entirely different from those of
primeval Britain, and where no natural combinations of plants now
exist. And since the advent of the wrhite man, New Zealand has year
by year changed more and more, so that had not great national parks
been wisely set aside, where it is to be hoped the vegetation will ever

86 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

remain undisturbed, the time would not have been far distant when
the Dominion's beautiful vegetation — her most special characteristic
-would be confined to a comparatively few spots of limited area.

EVOLUTION OF MEADOWS.

A very common feature of many parts of New Zealand, especially
in the mountainous regions, is a broad, shingly river-bed, bounded
on either side by high terraces, or sometimes filling up a narrow valley.
The water of these rivers is not usually confined to one channel, but
meanders in several narrow streams over the wide stony bed, which
in consequence is in places quite dry, and ready for plant-colonists.
These are not slow to avail themselves of the chance to ' take up
land," and engage the wind or the birds to convey them to their new
holdings, while some even travel by water.

Amongst the earliest settlers are the willow-herbs (Epilobium) ,
thanks to their light seeds furnished each with a tuft of hairs. Various
species of Eaoulia come in a similar manner, and large, round, moss-
like cushions or patches of silver and green result (Raoulia australis,
R. tenuicaulis, R. Haastii). Lichens cover the stones with curious
markings, and mosses spring up between them. As these earlier
plants decay, humus is added to the silty, sandy soil, and vari-
ous drought-resisting shrubs (Discaria toumatou, Cassinia fulvida.
species of Carmichaeliq) put in an appearance, together with grass-
tussocks. Such shrubs may remain quite isolated, and the tus-
sock become dominant, in which case the shelter will favour the
settlement of many small herbaceous plants, including grasses, and
a meadow will result. Or, on the other hand, some condition may
favour arborescent growth - - a natural shrubbery of veronicas, co-
prosmas, and other shrubs with wiry branches may appear, to be
replaced finally by a beech forest. Meadows formed in this manner
may be seen in process of evolution in many places, and it was in
this way that the great river-made plains, equally with the "fans'
of debris at the outlet of creeks, have been colonised by their plant
inhabitants. When the forest on a hillside has been burnt, if there
are frequent winds, trees cannot be reinstated, and meadow will
result. Such fires have been frequent even in the pie-European
days. Grasses, especially drought-resisting species, will have a much
better chance of growth than trees after a fire, and a meadow will in
an astonishingly short time replace the forest. This replacement is

THE MEADOWS. 87

quite assured when in the case of an upland beech forest (Xotho-
f(t</us cliffortioides) the dry leafy floor has been burnt to the soil
beneath and the tree-seeds destroyed. Bearing these facts in mind,
and recognising the rain-forest climate of New Zealand, mentioned
in Chapter III. it is not impossible that much of the Dominion
now treeless, such as Central Otago, was long ago occupied by more
or less extensive forests.*

LOWLAND AXD MONTANE TUSSOCK MEADOWS.

The tussock meadows of the montane regions and the plains are
of great commercial importance. They are, in fact, the home of those
vast flocks and herds on which the prosperity of the Dominion .so
largely depends. The study of their plants is therefore of high eco-
nomic interest.

Foremost come the grasses, replaced now in so many cases by
those of Europe, and by the host of introduced weeds. Some of
these indigenous grasses are most valuable for stock. The tussocks
belong especially to two species — Poa caespitosa and Festuca rubra.
As a food for stock the poa is not of much moment, but Festuca rubra
is of considerable value. The blue - tussock (Poa Colensoi] forms
much smaller tussocks than either of the above, and is a most valuable
economic grass. Another grass of great importance is the blue-grass
(Agropyron scabrum), still more or less abundant in some localities.
The various forms of Danthonia pilosa and D. semiannularis are very
important indeed, since they will tolerate burning and increase natu-
rally upon the poorest ground, where they are probably of more value
than any European grass that can be used. This must not lead the
farmer to suppose that " danthonia," as all these different forms are
called in the papers and by the seed-merchants, will ever replace rye-
grass, cocksfoot, or red-clover in the better land. There, undoubtedly,
the European grasses surpass any of the native ones ; but these latter
owe their importance to their suitability for poor ground and high
country.

On the lower meadows certain plants with more or less conspicuous
flowers are to be met with. Here are some of the buttercups (E<unm-

This remark has no bearing on the question of very ancient totara forests,
whose presence is suggested, as Mr. R. Speight has shown, by the abundance of
totara logs in Central Otago and certain river- valleys of the Canterbury mountain-

region.

7-PIants.

88 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

culus hirtus, Pt. multiscapus), the slender bluebell (Wahleribergia
gracilis), the pretty Convolvulus erubescens, the creeping Dichondrn
re-pens, the yellow Oxalis corniculata, the small daisies (Lagenophora
petiolata, L. pumila), and the little Geranium micro phf/Uum.

THE MEADOWS OF THE HIGH MOUNTAINS.

To see the really fine displays of flowers which New Zealand can
offer, one must seek the high mountains in the summer-time. Here
the meadows are true natural gardens. But to view such in full
perfection, those places must be visited to which no grazing animals
have had access.

The real subalpine and alpine meadow flora begins on the moun-
tains near the East Cape, and, extends over the high summits of both
Islands to the hills forming the southern part of Stewart Island. The
South Island ranges are much richer in species than those of the North
Island ; but the closeness of growth in many places on the mountains
of the latter, as on the Tararuas, Ruahines, and Kaimanawas, makes
up for this difference. The mountains of Nelson, both east and
west, are very rich in alpine plants. They contain some of the North
Island species, together with others peculiar to themselves, and a large
percentage of those found farther to the south. To the east the Kai-
koura Mountains form a small but distinct district, having some
special societies and a number of peculiar plants, of which the remark-
able Helichrysum coralloides (the stout stems with closely pressed
woolly white leaves looking not unlike coral, hence the name) and a
veronica growing on the face of solid rocks (V. rupicola) may be men-
tioned. Proceeding southwards, we find that the Alps of Canterbury
and Westland, crowned in many instances -with perpetual ice and
snow, form a barrier between the northern and southern alpine plants.
These invade this mountain area on its borders, but it has plants
peculiarly its own — e.g., Ranunculus Godleyanus, Helichrysum pauci-
ftorum, Myosotis decora.

The Otago alpine plants differ considerably as to species from
those of Canterbury and Westland, and still more from those of
Nelson and the North Island. Peculiar species are, Veronica Hcctori,
Celmisia Pelriei, Aciphylla simplex, Ranunculus Matthewsii, &c.
Finally, Stewart Island and the mountains of Southland have much
in common.

THE MEADOWS. 89

These high mountain meadows are by no means closely
growing associations of plants. On the contrary, these latter are
-cnerally in clumps, or dotted about, the ground between baing
quite bare, and the amount of bareness is governed by the rainfall.
Thus, where the latter is great and the number of rainy days excessive,
there is little bare ground except on the steepest slopes and near the
mountain-tops, while on the mountains of Stewart Island the meadow-
is largely made up of bog-plants of the cushion form, through which
grows a very strange grass (Danthonia piuu/cns), with extremely
rigid and sharp-pointed leaves (fig. 39).

If a foreign botanist, conversant with the alpine plants of other
regions, were to visit a high mountain meadow in New Zealand, he
would be amazed at the prevalence of white and yellow flowers, and
the almost entire lack of reds and blues. His eye would encounter
no blue gentians, no pink primulas. He would be much less surprised
at seeing plant forms very similar to those of other alpine regions, yet
bearing flowers quite different from his old acquaintances — i.e., belong-
ing to other families. This latter fact he would find an admirable
illustration of the phenomenon that similar conditions evoke or pre-
serve similar life-forms even in regions widely remote. As for the
prevalence of white and yellow flowers, he would possibly have no
suggestion of any moment to offer beyond that the white might be
adapted for fertilisation at night-time by moths, and that yellow is
a most frequent colour amongst flowers everywhere.

But if there is some monotony as far as the colour of our alpine
flowers goes, there is none in regard to their form. The herbaceous
plants of the European Alps in many instances die to the ground
yearly, whereas those of New Zealand are mostly evergreen. The
spear-grasses (Aciphylla} are of the Yucca form. Some are frequently
cultivated in European gardens, but others still more handsome are
unknown there. Aciphiflla Colensoi, var. conspicua, derives its varietal
name from the broad band of orange down the centre of each leaf-
segment, which renders it an especially striking plant. Aciphytta
Monroi, growing a few inches high out of a face of rock, looks not
unlike a pigmy palm. A. Dobsoni has leaves of the most intense
rigidity.

The eyebrights (Euplirasia] are real alpine gems. EupJirasia
Monroi has rather big flowers, considering the size of the plant, white
with a yellow eye (fig. 40) ; E. Cockai/niana is yellow. The mountain

90

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

. 8

J,Y \ i \i m» Vv. • BB» V •^^yitf.'.'ds

4 *f Su'^' ' . & '^'$ &ylli£$

" v \ ^* y^'^k^M^^''-

l?l^ mHifel^

o

.2. 3
c •

CC

cc

fcC

X

X

if.

a

a>

Q
en

THE MEADOWS.

91

variety of E, cuncata, its large flower white with a yellow throat and
marked with purple lines, is a most beautiful feature of Mount Egmont
and other North Island mountains. Other pretty plants of this genus
are E. Cheesemanii and E. zealandica. The eyebrights are in part
parasites, living attached to the roots of grasses. This habit renders
them exceedingly difficult to cultivate.

To Ourisia, a genus belonging exclusively to South America, New
Zealand, and Tasmania, belong perhaps the most charming of our

FIG. 40. — Euphraxift Mourn!, growing in bed of Punch-bowl Creek, near where
the Arthur's Pass Tunnel is being constructed, surrounded by Raoulia tenui-
caulis. [Photo, L. Cockayne.

plants. Ourisia macrophyUa of the North Island, and 0. macrocarpa
of the South, are the tallest of the New Zealand species, and exceed-
ingly handsome plants. 0. Cockayniana looks rather like a stunted
form of the latter, and forms large patches on the wetter mountains
of Canterbury and Westland. 0. caespitosa, creeping over stony
ground, is in early summer a sheet of lovely blossoms. Also very
beautiful are 0. sessili flora, 0. glandulosa. and 0. }>r<>repens.

\)'2 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

' Eyes blue as the blue forget-me-not," sings Tennyson, and the
more prosaic modiste calls a certain silk " forget-me-not : blue. And
yet New Zealand's forget-me-nots behave with antipodean topsy-
turviness, and frequently produce not blue but yellow flowers !*
Some of the yellow forget-me-nots that have their home in dim river-
gorges or on wet shady rocks are of large size, and one (Myosotis

FIG. 41. - - Veronica linifoUa towards centre, Raoulia tenuicaulis on riglit, and
ono plant of Angelica Gingidium growing on the latter. Mountain above
Arthur's Pass. [Photo, L. Cockayne.

macrantha) is bronze-coloured rather than yellow. In similar situa-
tions may grow the pretty little Veronica linijolia (fig. 41).

Of all the plants the buttercups most deserve mention. Of these
there are quite a number, and they are far and away the finest butter-

* Mifosotis australl*, ^[. Tr<ir< r*ii. M. dlbo-sericea, M. Monroi. Some have
white flowers (M. Cheesemanii, M. explat/ata), or white with a yellow eye (J/.
Goyeni, M. petiolata).

THE MEADOWS.

93

cups on earth. The mountain-lily (Ranunculus Li/aUii) is their queen.
This world-famed plant raises great leaves from its very thick root-
stock, each with a blade shaped like a saucer, sometimes more than
9 in. in diameter, and a stout stalk a foot or more in height, inserted
in the middle of the blade, and lifting it high from the ground.

FIG. 42. — The Mountain-lily (Ranunculus Li/allii), growing on
stony ground near source of River Rakaia.

[Photo, M. C. Gudex.

Excepting in the smaller R. Baurii, of South Africa, such leaf-form is
unknown in the buttercup family. In late November, December,
and early January, 7?. Lyallii puts forth a very tall stem, bearing
numbers of blossoms of snowy whiteness, there being frequently more
than thirty on one stalk, each as big as a five-shilling-piece (fig. 42).

94

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

To behold this noble plant, an acre at a time in full bloom, is the sight
of a lifetime to a lover of the beautiful. Ranunculus Godleyanus, a
yellow buttercup found near the source of the Rakaia and its tribu-
taries, is nearly as striking, and so also is the more northern R. insignis.
The white 7?. Buchanani of the Otago mountains is splendid also ;
and mention must be made of the more recently named R. Matthewsii.
which worthily bears the name of its energetic discoverer. The
Mount Egmont buttercup (R. nivicola) is one of the features of that
mountain, and is very plentiful also on the upper slopes of Tongariro.

FIG. 43. — Cehnixia spectabilis.

[Photo, W. C. Davirs.

R. lobulatus, a plant of easy culture and of large size, is confined to the
Kaikoura Mountains.

Generic names are frequently hideous, but in Cchnisia we have one
dainty enough to take a foremost place among those feminine floral
appellations now so popular. And well does a race of plants so beau-
tiful deserve a fitting title. On every mountain-side at all seasons
it is the celmisias (figs. 43 and 44) that give the characteristic stamp
to the meadows, filling the air with aromatic fragrance, and delighting
the eye with their beauty of form or abundance of flowers. With one

THE MEADOW*.

95

exception, all are true New-Zealanders, and are probably a remnant
of the long-vanished meadow plants of sunken southern lands. Two
special classes occur — those with fine upright rosettes, and those
which trail over a considerable area, forming round mats. Some,
again, have quite small rosettes, and form dense, silvery cushions, such
as Celmisia sessili flora and C. argentea (fig. 45). The most handsome
of the celmisias is perhaps C. coriacea, a plant with large, stiff, silvery
leaves, and flower-heads several inches in diameter.

FIG. 44. — Subalpine Meadow, Arthur's Pass, with colony oiCebni*'nt Ann*fn»tyii.
In background, tussocks of the grass Danthonia Raoulii. In centre, mat of
Celmisia discolor var. petiolata.

[Photo, L. Cockayne.

Senecio scorzonerioides, notwithstanding its being burdened with its
second name, is one of the most showy of New Zealand plants. The
author will never forget the meadows near the source of the River
Poulter, gleaming like snowfields with the multitudes of its pure
blossoms.

Frequently the meadow is dotted with veronicas and other shrubs.
Large breadths of an alpine Astelia are often present, also tall tussock-
grasses such as Danthonia RaouUi and D. flavescens.

96

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS,

g'Zaiism w^sfwSs^Ksat

', /iik k»,»^aKt/***Fa§s&*aL

C — i

I

x

•

THK MEADOWS. (.)7

SHINGLE-SLIP VEGETATIOX.

The rocks of the alpine summits weathering away, and the rain
not being sufficient to bear all the debris into the valleys, an enormous
quantity of angular stones collects on the mountain-sides in many
places, which may form steep slopes for thousands of feet. As the
traveller wearily ascends these ' shingle-slips," as they are called,
the stones constantly slip beneath his tread, and slide down the slope.
Numerous large grasshoppers, grey as the shingle, leap from beneath
his feet, an occasional black butterfly flits through the air or rests
upon a rock, while overhead may fly screaming that famous bird the
kea. All is a scene of utter desolation : it is, in truth, an alpine desert.
Yet many of the meadows must have begun their career as shingle-
slips, and all transitions may be noted from the one to the other.

To the shingle-slip proper belongs a most peculiar series of plants.
They have several characteristics in common. All have long roots
and are low- growing. Many are succulent. Most are of a colour
similar to the shingle. Some have leaves of rather an indiarubber-
like texture, and one, at any rate, is covered with an exceedingly
woolly mass of hairs. These shingle-slips become burning hot in the
sunshine, and yet in the evening of the same day may be icy cold.
At some distance below the surface the stones are wet. Here are a
few of the plants to be found in such situations : A stiff-leaved grass
(Poa sderophijUa) ; a buttercup (Ranunculus Haastii] ; a plant of the
carrot family (Aciphytla camosida) ; a daisy, jet black, and with
stamens like golden pin-heads (Cot id a atrata] ; one of the pink family
(SteUaria Roughii) ; the curious and sweet-scented penwiper plant
(Notoihlaspi rosulatum] (fig. 46); and a fleshy - leaved lobelia
(L. Roughii). A piripiri, too (Acaena ylabra), is almost confined to this
peculiar station. These plants do not grow closely side by side. They
are few and far between, and without close observation the slopes
look quite bare. Occasionally a trailing - veronica (V. epacridea]
sprawls over the stones, and is frequently accompanied by a smaller
species of the whipcord form, V. tetrasticha.

On the shingle-slips the wonderful vegetable-sheep are encountered.
These grow not on the shingle, but on the rocks which the
stones have nearly buried. Large examples form great hummocks,
6 ft. long by 3 ft. across, or even more. Really they are shrubs
of the daisy family, and are provided with a thick, stout, woody
main stem and strong roots, which pass far into the rock-crevices.

98

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

Above, the stems branch again and again, and towards their
extremities are covered with small woolly leaves, packed as tightly
as possible. Finally, stems, leaves, and all are pressed into a dense,
hard, convex mass, making an excellent and appropriate seat for a
wearied botanist (figs. 47 and 48). Within the plant is a peat made
of rotting leaves and branches, which holds water like a sponge,
and into which the final branchlets send roots. Thus the plant lives

«"N«t»

+ &

*% ' v **»., '* *V

**»*,?» • r

v- ^>^WfiK

ki ¥ ^Lv

A W

FIG. 40. — The Penwiper Plant (Xotothlaspi rosidatum), growing on shingle-slip
of a river-terrace. Castle Hill, Canterbury.

[Photo, L. Cockayne.

in great measure on its own decay, and the woody main root serves
chiefly as an anchor. The vegetable-sheep are not inaptly named,
for at a distance a shepherd might be misled. The two principal
"sheep" are Haastia pulvinaris and linoulia eximia ; but there are
other smaller ones — e.g., R. bryoides and /»*. (Jot/cni, this latter of the
Stewart Island mountain-summits.

THE MEADOWS.

99

Closely related to the shingle-slips, so far as the conditions for
plant-life go, are the scoria-slopes of the volcanoes of the central
plateau of the North Island. But on these the plant-life is still more
scanty. Except Claytonia australasica, which, strange to say, is also
a plant found in shallow running water, all the South Island shingle-
slip plants are wanting. In their place is a true alpine gem, Veronica
spatlndata, which possesses a root of enormous length, small succulent
leaves close to the cinders, and in summer is altogether covered with
multitudes of snow-white flowers, which quite hide the foliage (fig. 49).

& '• >->iJ<<>fe*'' -C* • v *^' ?!^T --

FIG. 47. — The Vegetable-sheep (RaouUa eximia), a rather small example, growing
on rock rising from shingle-slip. Mount Torlesse, Canterbury.

[Photo, L. Cockayne.

Another veronica forms large mats, chiefly in the shelter of rocks
(V. Hooker iana). It also is very pretty with its lilac flowers raised
on moderate-si/ed stalks above the foliage. But the plant par
excellence of the scoria deserts of the region in question — and
they are deserts in all truth — is a species of Dracophyllum (D. re-
curvum), with stiff recurved leaves at the end of prostrate rigid naked
branches. The shrub as a whole is of a reddish, colour, and gives a
characteristic stamp to the dreary landscape.

100

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

Finally, the New Zealand edelweiss must be mentioned, of
which there are two species, Helichrysum grandiceps and H. Leon-
topodium. Both are exquisite, and surpass their celebrated Swiss
namesake, Leontopodium alpinum. Perhaps H. Leontopodium (fig. 50).
when in. full bloom, as it may be seen in late January on the Tararua
and Ruahine Mountains, is the most beautiful plant in New Zealand.
A near relation, but much more common, is H. bellidioides (fig. 51).

FIG. 48. — Bringing Vegetable-sheep from 5,000 ft. on Mount Torlessc for the

Christ church Exhibition of 1906-7.

[Photo, L. Cockayne.

ADAPTATIONS OF THE ALPINE PLANTS.

High mountain plants live under conditions considerably different
from those of the lower country. The climate is much colder, many
are buried beneath a great depth of snow for several months, and all
are subjected to frost at any period of the year. The atmosphere is
more rarified than at lower levels, and this leads to stronger and
more active sunlight, and to a more rapid loss of water from the leaves
of the plants. Although the mountain climate is a wet one, yet
when the sun is shining and the sky clear the plants are exposed to
danger of damage from a too rapid loss of water. Nor are several

THE MEADOWS,

101

102

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

FIG. 50. — The North Island Edelweiss (HelicJirysum Leonto podium).

[Photo, W. C. Da vies.

•' >\ .'• •! &•&&?*$£&''''• 4tf»a

FIG. 51. — Helicliri/Hinii fxllidioidex, showing the white bracts of the flower-heads,
which look like petals. Stony ground near Arthur's Pass.

[Photo, L. Cockayne.

THE MEADOWS. 103

days of sunshine in succession unknown even on the wet western
mountains. In harmony with this danger of drought, with the cold
of winter, with the heat of summer, and with the fierce wind-storms.

' ' *

the plants have developed, or preserved, special contrivances, or
peculiar habits of growth, some serving frequently more than one
purpose. Thus many plants are of most lowly growth. The genus
Dacrydium, to which belong several lofty forest-trees, amongst others
the rimu, is represented in the New Zealand mountains by a creeping-
plant which grows at times so densely as to form an actual turf or a
cushion (fig. 52). Many plants have the form of cushions, and very
beautiful are the rounded green cushions of Phyllachne Colensoi and
Don((tid novae-zelandiae, especially when gemmed with multitudes
of small white flowers.

Roots of an extraordinary length form an excellent provision for
obtaining an abundant water-supply at all seasons, and these are very
frequent amongst the alpine plants. But, above all things, the leaf,
in structure and form, shows drought-resisting contrivances. The
most common of all is a mat of hairs on the under-surface of the leaf,
so characteristic of the celmisias (fig. 43). Some, again, such as the
Aciphyllas* (spear-grasses), have extremely rigid, vertical leaves, which
both resist the wind and can never receive the direct rays of the sun.

Perhaps the most interesting feature of the New Zealand alpine
plants, and one which is not so well marked in the alpine plants of
Europe, but is seen in those of the Andes, is the capability of one
portion of the living plant to turn into peat, while its remaining part
grows vigorously, and even uses its own dead self as food material.
This habit is not specially in harmony with an alpine climate, but
rather with absence of sunlight and prevalence of rain and mist — just
such a climate as exists in the subantarctic islands to-day. Most
of the celmisias are surrounded at the bases of their leaves bv

*/

quite a thickness of rotting leaves, and the same may be seen in
a very large percentage of the New Zealand alpine plants. Such an
adaptation perhaps indicates that our alpine flora originated not on
the high mountains at all, but in the sunless and wet regions of the
south.

* In this book the plants .generally referred to Lirjusticnm are included in
Aci'phylla. In this sentence only Aci/thi/Ha in the more restricted sense is in-
tended.

8— Plants.

104

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

& F&&

f *. .'* tit ^

EM

S&&A %?-"•

•*.*'» 4 ? . , V » •
* » * *•

.

' •

y£i& .>..

C >

o

o
o

X

tc

^-»

?

-- S

H e ° a

,-S - -e

~ s 3

58

PLANTS OF FRESH WATER, SWAMPS, AXD BOOS. 105

CHAPTER VII.

PLANTS OF FRESH WATER, SWAMPS, AND BOGS.

Scarcity of aquatic plants in New Zealand — Water-ferns — The red Azolla — The

pond-weeds - - The water -milfoils - - Fresh-water algae - - Vegetation of hot

springs — Effect of plants on changing the land-surface — Swamp vegetation

— The niggerhead — Economic importance of swamps — New Zealand hemp

-Bogs and bog-plants — Sphagnum and its peculiarities — Flesh-eating plants

—A vegetable trap.

IT has already been shown that in her forests, meadows, shores, and
shrubberies New Zealand possesses plants which do not yield in beauty
or interest to those of any other land. With her seaweeds, too, she is
well able to hold her own. But when it comes to the fresh- water
plants she must take a lower place. Rivers and lakes there are in
plenty which offer first-class inducements for occupation by aquatic
plants, but none of the more beautiful kinds have accepted the offer ;
in vain we look for water-lilies like those of the sister continent. Still,
for all that, our waters are not without plant-life, some of which, from
the biological standpoint, is interesting enough.

THE WATER-FERNS.

Take the case of the floating water-fern, Azolla rubra. The red
masses of this curious plant, covering still pools so thickly that one
might think them dry land, must be known to all. The outer surface
of the leaves is covered with minute excrescences, so that they cannot
be wetted, and, in consequence, drops of water frequently begem
them, glittering in the sunlight like diamonds. An individual plant
is quite small, and consists of a thin, much-branched stem, putting
down roots into the water from its under-surface, and bearing over-
lapping leaves. Each leaf consists of two lobes, which, except on
close examination, look like separate leaves. Each lobe is adapted
for a totally different condition of life, so there is a distinct division
of labour in the one leaf. The upper lobes are comparatively thick,
provided with leaf-green, and are therefore food-producers, and they
are never submerged. Each contains a large cavity full of slime,

106 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

and inhabited by a fresh-water alga, which, however, does its host
no damage, but, like a respectable lodger, probably pays for its accom-
modation. The lower lobe is partly submerged, and quite thin, so that
it can absorb water. Moreover, the close arrangement of the leaves
as a whole furnishes cavities where air can lodge, and so provides
the necessary buoyancy for the floating plant.

To see other aquatic ferns the town-dweller must go much farther
afield, visiting those solitary lakelets far in the mountainous region
of the South Island that are traces of the ice-plough of ancient glaciers.
On the gravelly beds of such cool waters lives the alpine quillwort
(Isoetes alpinus), looking more like a tiny rush than a fern; and here,
too, but in the deeper water and on a more muddy bottom, is the
home of Pillularia novae-zealandiae, which also niiuht easilv be mis-

tl

taken for a small rush. Some of the lakes in the Waikato and in the
Taupo districts also contain another species of quillwort (7. Kirkii).
Indeed, it is highly probable these plants are commoner than is gene-
rally supposed.

THE POND-WEEDS AND WATER-MILFOILS.

In most parts of New Zealand one may see, floating on the surface
of slow-flowing rivers or calm sheets of water, the oval brown leaves
of some species or other of pond-weed (Potamogeton), the commonest
of which is P. Cheesemannii. Besides the above leaves there are
others which live always submerged, and which differ considerably
from the floating ones. These submerged leaves are very thin, erect,
more or less ribbon-shaped, and are also extremely numerous. Since
there can be no danger of want of water, such leaves are entiiely
without any protection on that score ; on the contrary, they are so
constructed as to be able to absorb water over their whole surf ad-
just like the filmy ferns of Chapter III, and thereby secure at the
same time the oxygen which it contains. Their ribbon-like shape is

*/ t? — -

well adapted to withstand damage from the currents of water, while
sufficient extent of leaf-surface is provided by increase in number of
leaves. It is also an interesting fact that these submerged leaves are
similar to the early seedling ones of the pond- weed, and that this par-
ticular shape of leaf is common even amongst the land members of
that great division of plants to which Potamogeton belongs. Some
of the pond-weeds also never produce floating leaves — e.g.. Potamogeton
ochreatus and P. pectinatus.*

* Found frequently in slightly brackish \\ater.

PLANTS OF FRESH WATER, SWAMPS, AND BOGS. 107

The water-milfoils (M//n'opJi;/llu)n) differ from the pond-weeds in
that they have no floating leaves, but boldly raise their upper portions
above the water-surface. They agree, however, in the fact that the
aerial leaves differ from the submerged ones. This is the more in-
teresting because no line of demarcation on the erect stem separates
the two except the water-surface — that is to say, the same tissue can
change its leaf-form according to change of outer circumstances.
The water-milfoils are graceful, feathery - looking plants, with the
leaves frequently given off, four or more, from the same height round
the stem. The submerged leaves are cut into fine segments, a very
common occurrence in many water-plants, whereas the aerial leaves
are broader and much less cut. Some of the water-milfoils are bog-
plants rather than aquatics — e.g., M. Votschii*

It is highly probable that all seed-bearing aquatic plants are
descended from land plants, which took to the water through competi-
tion with rivals better suited than they to their original stations.
This is no place to discuss this question, but it may be pointed out
that some plants can live equally well on land and in water, and even
do not mind being submerged. The water-starworts (Callitriche) are
examples.

In many streams the native aquatic vegetation has been ousted
by the introduced watercress or the American water-weed (Elodea
canadensis). It is interesting to note how much the former varies
in both leaf and flower when growing on dry ground by the sides of
ditches. Both plants are noxious weeds, and it costs the country
much money annually to keep open the watercourses where they
flourish.

FRESH-WATER ALGAE.

Rivers, ponds, lakes, stagnant pools, moist soil, and many other
stations are the homes of the fresh-water algae, or the pond-scums, as
one section may be popularly called. They very frequently form
green, slimy masses on the surface of the water. Common forms
consist of what look like very fine, long, green hairs. Under a fairly
strong power of the miscroscope these are seen to consist of long
tubes, divided by thin walls into compartments, which contain plant-
green, sometimes in the form of bands.

The fresh-water algae are a very large family, and. although

* M. pedunculatum (in part) of Cheeseman's Flora, p. 152.

108 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

occupying a low position in the plant-world, their structure is at times
fairly complicated, and their methods of reproduction are quite
elaborate. To this family belong the diatoms, the stoneworts (Chara,
Nitetta), and many others. In the hot springs of the North Island
are some peculiar forms, belonging to the blue-green algae, which
are able to exist in water of a very high temperature. These were
recently studied by Professor Setchell, of the University of California,
and in a letter to the author he states that none of the New Zealand
forms can endure a temperature greater than 167° Fahr., which seems
a bath quite hot enough in all truth !

These hot-water algae are sometimes cited to show how living
organisms could exist in the early days of the earth when cold water
would be unknown, and how such organisms may have persisted
since those distant ages, and they or their congeners be the ancestors
of our present plant-life.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LAKES AND MEADOWS.

Between lakes, swamps, bogs, and meadows there is a close con-
nection. Sedges, raupo, rushes, and rush-like plants growing in the
shallow water near the margin of a small lake may in time, through
their decay, turn that part into dry ground, and advance farther and
farther until a water-surface is no longer visible, the whole having
become a raupo or phormium swamp. From this, the transition to
meadow land is, in many cases, only a matter of time.

The blocking of watercourses with aquatic plants can soon convert
a meadow into a swamp. Even on shingly river-beds, swamps at
various stages of growth may be observed, and toetoe grass, palm-
lilies, and phormium break the monotony of the scene.

Sinking of the land may bring about great changes in the plant
societies, and remains of plant-life in bogs can teach much as to recent
changes in the land-surface.

In the swamps in the neighbourhood of Christchurch large numbers
of fallen trees are found, the remains evidently of a large coastal forest,
which must have been replaced by swamp during a sinking of the
land. So, too, on that narrow peninsula to the far north of Auck-
land is much kauri-gum to be mot with in the bogs, a sure sign that
the land stood considerably higher at the time it was occupied by the
kauii forest, since that plant is most rare in swamps.

1'LAXTS OF FRESH WATER, SWAMPS, AND BCHIS. 109

SWAMP VEGETATION.

A journey on any of the New Zealand main lines shows the traveller
that swramps are a very common feature of the landscape, for they
can be recognised at a glance by the dense growth of phormium or
raupo (Typha angusti/olia) and by those most curious plants, the
niggerheads (Carex secta). Formerly, too, the scene was enlivened
by that fine bird, the pukeko (Porphyrio melanotus), gay with red legs
and bill and blue breast. Before the days of settlement these swamps
were much more extensive, but some of those reported as being un-
drainable by the early surveyors now bear rich crops of grain or

" roots.'

Besides the New Zealand flax (Phormium tenax) and the raupo
(Typha angustifolia) many other plants occur in swamps. The manuka
has been mentioned in an earlier article. Other arborescent growths
are the palm-lily (Cordyline australis) and Coprosma propinqua. Very
characteristic is the niggerhead (Carex secta}, a species of sedge which
builds for itself tall and stout ' trunks ' ' out of its dead roots and
root-stocks, from the summit of which, like shock-heads of hair, the
long leaves droop. In such a position the plant is raised high above the
water of the swamp, having thus made for itself a dry position very
much better for its well-being. On the ' trunk ' of the sedge, the
fern Blechnum capense finds a congenial home, as well as some small
native plants — e.g., the marsh - pennyworts, species of Hydrocotyle.
Swamps are rich in several species of willow-herb, of which the beauti-
ful Epilobium paUidiflorum and the very tall E. erectum need mention.
Two buttercups, Ranunculus macropus and E. rivularis, are common,
the latter being easily distinguished by its finely cut floating leaves.
Here is also the home of the sedge family, to which the so-called
' cutty-grasses ' belong.

Swamps are of considerable economic importance in New Zealand.
The manufacture of fibre from phormium- ' New Zealand hemp,"
as it is now called — has become one of the staple industries of the Do-
minion. At present P. tenax is not cultivated, except for ornamental
purposes, the wild supply being sufficient. But this will not last for
ever. As the swamps are drained, the supply of flax diminishes. The
old Maoris were experts in its manufacture, and recognised varieties
much more suitable for their mats, &c., than the rank and file of the
flax-plants. To such they gave special names. Now what the unin-
structed Maori did could be performed much more thoroughly bv

110 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

modern science. We live in the age of scientific plant-breeding.
Day by day its importance is realised. Scientists are only now for
the first time delving deeply into the mysteries of hybridisation.
By scientific breeding, the sugar-beet has had its sugar-content in-
creased more than 10 per cent. ; and there seems no reason why the
fibre-content of phormium, both as to quantity and especially as to
quality, should not be augmented, and pedigree breeds of our " flax '
come into cultivation.

BOGS AND SOME OF THEIR PLANTS.

According as water varies in regard to the chemicals it holds in solu-
tion, so does it offer different stations for plant-life. Certain waters
are rich in lime ; in others this is wanting to a great extent, and acids
are present instead. Therefore the presence of lime-rich or acid-
rich water sharply separates water-soaked ground into the two classes,
swamps and bogs. Of course, transitions exist between these. In
addition, the water of a bog is coffee-coloured, and contains a large
quantity of organic matter. Those small plants called bacteria,
which play such an important role in adding the all-important nitrogen-
compounds (nitrates) to the soil, are also scarce in bogs.

At a glance, bog-vegetation can be distinguished from that of
swamps. The bog - moss (species of Sphagnum) is nearly always
present in the former, and forms rounded cushions and hillocks of a
whitish colour, on which many of the bog-plants make their home.
For some unexplained reason bogs are physiologically dry, and con-
sequently many of their plants must be protected against drought.
It is with these unfortunates, indeed, a case of ' water everywhere
and not a drop to drink." Many bog-plants, owing to these adapta-
tions, can exist excellently well in dry places. Phyllachne Colaistn.
<'.<]., a beautiful green cushion-plant of most dense habit of growth,
thrives equally well in subalpine bogs and at the heads of alpine
shingle-slips.

Bogs occur both in the lowlands and mountains. They are com-
mon on the narrow peninsula of the far North, and also occupy much
ground in Stewart Island, the same brownish wiry-stemmed rush-
like plant (Hypolaena lateriflora) being common in both localities.
Many identical species occur in both lowland and alpine bogs, and
those of Stewart Island at almost sea-level bear a close relationship
to those of the Southern Alps.

PLANTS OF FRESH WATEK, SWASH'S, AND HOGS. HI

Sphagnum possesses some characteristics which distinguish it from
most other mosses. Its stems at their periphery are provided with
thin-walled capillary cells, stiffened by fibrous thickenings, and com-
municating with one another and with the exterior by round open-
ino-s. Thus water is rapidly sucked in by the plant and stored up,
while, by the capillaries formed by the cells it can be conducted down-
wards to all parts of the plant. Although the surface on which the
sphagnum grows mav be extremely wet, but little water comes from

_L O O «•• *

below, and then only for a very short distance. Thus a sphagnum
bog is altogether dependent on the rainfall, and can only exist where
this is abundant, an excessive precipitation allowing the plant to
occupy even a rock-surface. As the upper portion of a sphagnum
cushion grows, its lower part dies, and is converted into peat, great
masses of which frequently accumulate. Such peat is used for fuel
in many parts of the world, and at Waipahi, in Southland, is cut
for that purpose to some extent, though such New Zealand peat
is generally formed by many other plants in addition to sphagnum,
or this latter may be altogether wanting. The upper surface of a
sphagnum bog continues to rise in height, and any plants growing
thereon must, like dune vegetation, be able to grow upwards faster
than they are buried. The small pine, Dacrt/dium BidwiUii, com-
mon on subalpine bogs, is frequently buried by the too rapid growth
of the moss, and may be observed in all stages of burial. On the
sphagnum cushions themselves many plants will grow, owing to the
absorption of pure water, which cannot live on sour peat itself.

Where a mountain-stream on flattish ground is unable to take
away all the water, an excess accumulates, and a bog is formed. In
such places shallow pools are frequent, between which are the sphagnum
hummocks. Here is the home of another cushion-plant, much re-
sembling Phyttachne, Donatia novae-zealandice, and a sedge of similar
habit, with leaves arranged like a comb, Oreobolus pectinatus. Other
plants occur in plenty — e.g., a small celmisia (C. lonyifotia var. alpitift),
another with broader leaves (C. glandulosa}, the slender grass
Deijeuxia seti/olia, certain plants belonging to the rather rare family
Restionaceae, Gaimardia cili<it<i (fig. 53), G. setacea, and G. pallida, all
cushion-plants, and looking like mosses. Here, too, will be a dense
turf formed by a woody plant, Dacrt/dium lajri folium, that smallest
species in the world of the pine-tree family.

112

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

Bogs occur even on the scoria of the central plateau of the North
Island, if water oozes out of the ground in sufficient quantity. An
interesting plant of these bogs is a member of the gentian family
(Liparophyllum Gunnii), which has a very thick creeping stem and
profusion of tiny white star-like blossoms. It may be pointed out
that this plant is the sole species of the genus, which is found only in
this countrv and Tasmania.

* •

"mm :

miL •.-'•' 'f-v?- ' :

FIG. 53. — Cushion of Gaimardia ciliata, growing on a bog in Stewart Island.
Lands Department.] [Photo, L. Cockayne.

Very characteristic of bogs are the sundews (Drosera), and they
deserve, at any rate, a passing word. As shown above, the bog-
water lacks available nitrogen. The small, spoonlike leaves of the
sundews are provided with glandular hairs, at the end of which a
shining drop of fluid may usually be seen. This contains a substance
which has the power of acting on animal matter in much the same
manner as the gastric juice. Should a small insect alight on a drosera

PLANTS OF FRESH WATER, SWAMPS, AND KOi.S. 113

leaf, it becomes entangled in the sticky fluid, and at the same time
the hairs bend over and pin the victim fast. Thus does this tiny
but bloodthirsty plant procure some of its nitrogenous food. All
this family do not dwell in bogs ; D. auriculata is a plant of the heath,
and climbs over grass-stems, &c. D. pygmaea has a remarkable dis-
tribution, having so far been found only at the two extremes of New
Zealand — viz., on the Bluff Hill and in the far north of the North
Island. It is a tiny plant, no bigger than one's little-finger nail, and
so mav be easilv overlooked.

*/ «/

Species of the genus Gunnera are frequent in lowland bogs. Those
near Invercargill contain abundance of G. prorepens. The New Zea-
land species are quite small — mere pygmies, indeed, in comparison
with their huge-leaved Chilian relation (G. chilensis). But, notwith-
standing this, both equally afford house-room to a species of Nostoc,
a fresh-water alga, somewhat after the manner of Azolla before de-
scribed. Perhaps the prettiest denizen of the bogs is the pale-blue
liliaceous Herpolirion novae-zealandiae, which, wThen not in flower, may
be mistaken for a grass. A companion plant is Oreostylidium subu-
latum.

The bog umbrella - fern (Gleichenia dicarpa) frequently occupies
large areas of boggy ground, its pale-green leaves and brown stems
rendering it very conspicuous. A creeping club-moss (Lt/copodium
ramulosum) is frequent in Stewart Island and on the west of the
South Island, and farther north the somewhat similar L. laterale is
encountered.

Before leaving the bogs, another flesh-eater must be mentioned,
the bladderwort (Utricularia monanthos), a plant with small, showy,
purple flowers. The bladderworts are quite without true roots, meta-
morphosed leaves functioning as such. In some instances the leaves
develop in another abnormal way : they construct themselves into small
bladders, which are furnished with a lid, which can open only from
without inwards. This leads to an arrangement like that of certain
mouse-traps, so that a minute aquatic animal may easily enter the
bladder, whence it cannot escape, and so is digested in due course
by the plant.

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

CHAPTER VIII.

THE PLANTS OF THE OUTLYING ISLANDS.

A goblin forest — The ancient forest of Antarctica — A seashore cushion-plant-
Finest floral display outside the tvopics — Giant tussocks — Young albatroses
— Macquarie Island — The Snares — Disappointment Island — Beetles, spiders,
and amphipods of the Bounties — Peculiar trees of the Chathams — A lovely
shrub — The tree-groundsel — The great forget-me-not — The Kermadec Islands
-Tropical plants on the Kermadecs.

THE SUBANTARCTIC VEGETATION.

LANDS of mist and sleet and hail, of fierce squalls born in the icy
south ; cruel, rock-bound coasts, scenes of brave men's death, or of
fierce struggles with the angry sea ; lands of brown hills, enclosed
by thick woods, weird and grotesque — in very truth goblin forests,
patrolled and sentinelled by uncouth monsters of the deep : such
impression may our far-off subantarctic islands give at first.

A closer view, and scenes more pleasing greet the traveller. De-
spite the ever-present gales, fields of magnificent flowers clothe the
hills in summer-time. Within the forest, beneath the thick entangle-
ment of gnarled and twisted branches of the trees, multitudes of ferns
spread out their feathery fronds into the dim light. The knotted
trunks, the fallen trees, the uneven ground, all are thickly covered
with a mantle most delicate of translucent filmy ferns. Mounds
of exquisite liverworts of many species adorn both forest-floor and
boles of trees. Thickets of shrubs abound. All is one close mass
of vegetation, save where long, bare paths of dark peat lead from the
dim recesses of the forest, along which a startled sea-lion may glide,
fearful of the intruder, or one at bay greet him with angry roar and
open jaws.

It is in the Auckland Islands alone of these lonely lands that any
true forests are to be found. In Campbell Island trees are altogether
absent ; densely growing shrubs clothe the lower slopes and fill the
uullies. In Antipodes a few lines or patches of shrubs show as dark
spots amongst the all-prevailing tussock, while on Macquarie Island
woody plants are quite wanting.

PLANTS OF THE OUTLYING ISLANDS.

115

116 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

The forest of the Auckland Islands consists for the most part
of the southern rata (Metrosideros lucida). The other associated
trees and shrubs are the haumakoroa (Nothopanax simplex), the evil-
smelling karaniu (Coprosma foetidissima), the inaka (Dracophyllum
longifolium), Coprosma ciliata, C. parviflora, Suttonia divaricata, and.
where the forest changes into scrub, Cassinia Vauvilliersii. The
extraordinary manner of growth of this society ; the close, even
foliage of its roof ; the twisted, far-reaching branches, semi-prostrate
and arching trunks, and consequent lowness of the trees, are plainly
the expressions of the tempestuous climate — rigorous enough in many
ways, but never really cold (fig. 54). Within the shelter of the forest
quite other conditions exist, so here flourish those plants that love an
atmosphere saturated with moisture. As for the affinities of the forest,
they are subtropical and not subantarctic. Here, of all places, where
a beech (Nothofagus) forest might be expected, it is absent.

In some few parts of these subantarctic islands — namely, on Ewing
Island of the Auckland Group, to a limited extent on the north of
Auckland Island itself, and especially on the Snares — are small woods
of another character. These are composed of the truly magnificent
daisy-tree (Olearia Lyallii), found only in these islands, but closely
related to 0. Colensoi of Stewart Island, the New Zealand Alps, and
the North Island mountains. 0. Lyallii has great leathery leaves,
which are green on the upper surface but pure white beneath, thus
affording a delightful contrast when they are stirred by the wind.
Probably this society is a modified remnant of the ancient forest of
that latitude and farther south, which during the great expansion south-
wards of New Zealand in later Tertiary times was driven into its
present narrow limits by the invading and more vigorous rata forest
of the north. The meadows of herbaceous plants, too, are possibly
to be similarly accounted for — that is to say, they are a remnant of
the subantarctic meadows of long ago.

On the Snares, mixed with 0. Lyallii, is the rare and beautiful
small tree, one of the shrubby groundsels (Senecio Stewartiae). Strange
to say, though this plant also occurs farther to the north, it has not
been found on Stewart Island proper, but only on some of the small
islands in its vicinity.

Some of the seashore plants are very wonderful. Here, almost
to high-water mark, comes a splendid tussock-grass, Poa foliosa, with
broad green leaves. On the rocks, almost where the sea washes,

PLANTS OF THE OUTLYING ISLANDS. 117

are large green cushions of Colobanthus muscoides, hard as those of the
vegetable sheep ; and near by will be frequently seen the shining green
rosettes of a species of plantain (Plantago carnosa ?}. Close by, where
the kelp heaves on the restless waters, swims, quite fearless of man,
as it has done for ages, the little flightless duck. From the cliffs droop
green draperies of a most strange pale-green, soft-leaved grass (Poa
rdmosissima], while their summits are crowned with the sweet-scented
Veronica ettiptica. On the flat rocks beneath stands, sentinel-like,
the Auckland Island shag, conspicuous with its glistening black back,
spotless white breast, and flesh-coloured feet ; and accompanying it is
the pretty little mackerel-gull, with dove-coloured back, white head
and breast, and brilliant red legs and beak.

The herbaceous plants are the special glory of the islands. Sir
Joseph Hooker has declared that outside the tropics no such floral
display is to be seen in any area of the same size. The monarch of
all is a majestic plant of the daisy family (Pleurophylhun speciosum},
the genus being purely subantarctic, though related to the asters of
gardens. The leaves are of great size, and all are corrugated. In colour
and general appearance they somewhat resemble pale-green velvet or
plush, and they are so arranged at times as to look like shallow
goblets. These are striking enough ; but when the beautiful purple
flower-heads are raised high above the leaves, dozens at a time, side
by side, the spectacle is magnificent. There are perhaps three other
species of the same family. One (P. Hooker i], with silvery leaves just
tinged with green, dotting the upland meadows as far as the eye can
reach, is a charming-enough sight. But how intensified is the beauty
when there are present in large numbers, and also in full bloom, a
fine yellow buttercup (Ranunculus pinyuis) ; gentians pink, violet, and
crimson (Gentiana cerina) ; the blue Veronica Benthami : the gorgeous
orange-coloured liliaceous plant Bulbinella Rossii ; the prince of forget-
me-nots, its blossoms ultramarine (Myosotis ca pit at a] ; and mats of the
stiff rosettes of Celmisia vernicosa, the leaves like polished greenstone,
and bearing many fine flower-heads with purple centres and white
rays. Other magnificent plants are two of the carrot family, with great
masses of close-growing purple blossom (Aciphylla lati folia and A.
antipoda), the former writh leaves reaching to the middle of one's
thigh ; and a close ally Stilbocarpa polaris, whose massive creeping
stem afforded a valuable food for the unfortunate castaways of the
" Dundonald."

118 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

The tussocks rank with the forest and the meadow as an
astonishing feature of these islands. Their habit is that of the
niggerhead described in Chapter VII. On Antipodes Island, and in
some parts of the Auckland Group, they are in many places quite
4 ft. tall, and grow so closely that to make any progress at all one
is compelled to walk upon their tops (see frontispiece). On Anti-
podes Island these tussocks take the place of arborescent growth, and
it is curious to see the little parrakeet peculiar to the island perched
and swaying on the drooping grass-leaves. Where the tussocks are
lower, the albatros rears its young, bringing daily the supply of food.
Here, too, the baby birds, clad in downy robes of snowy whiteness, each
seated on its cheese-shaped nest, brave for months the piercing
antarctic blasts, until their time shall come to seek the white-topped
waves and follow in the wake of the great ships.

Although Macquarie Island belongs to Tasmania, biology derides
the claims of nations, and emphatically declares it to be three-fourths
New Zealand and the rest Fuegian. This latter claim is specially
emphasized by the immense cushions of Azorella SeJago, the Fuegian
rival of our vegetable-sheep.

The Snares, the nearest to Stewart Island of the subantarctic
group, do not contain nearly so many peculiar plants, though they
have an Aciphylla and a species of Stilbocarpa not found elsewhere.
They form, as might be expected, a connecting-link with Stewart Island.

Disappointment Island, in the Auckland Group, the scene of the
terrible ' ' Dundonald ' wreck, is the home of countless mollymawks.
Cast your eye over the dreary landscape, and you will see brown
meadow dotted with white birds, and here and there patches of vivid
green. This last arises from the presence of the antarctic burr (Acttant
Sanguisorbae, var. antarctica}. As the tussock, with its accompanying
plants, is slowly but surely destroyed by the many generations of
birds, this burr takes complete possession of the bare ground, thanks to
its colonising-power, for the barbed fruits adhere to the feathers of the
young birds, and so are spread broadcast. The burr is really quite a
rare plant in the tussock meadow, and so we have a remarkable example
of a plant originally of little importance becoming, in a virgin vegeta-
tion, virtually a weed. But tussock will again predominate, and
gradual alternate destruction and rejuvenation of the vegetation will
always be in progress — a natural rotation of crops indeed, thanks to
the presence of mollymawks.

PLANTS OF THE OUTLYINC ISLANDS.

119

c c
5 ~

'C o

— -*-

5 2

. El

I g

^-H

•s I

_C

O

ce

o

o

DQ
X

O

—

S o
ft •£

9— Plants.

120 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

There yet remain for mention the Bounty Islands. So far as
plant-life goes, their description is easy. A few seaweeds are on the
rocks, while, where the sea cannot reach, the glitter of their monu-
mental granite is dimmed only here and there by the green stain
of an alga, their sole land plant. • During part of the year these deso-
late rocks are a scene of busy life. Penguins in countless hosts
stand in close array from base to summit of the islands (fig. 55).* Fur-
seals bask on the warm rock, which everywhere by them and by the
feet of former penguins is polished smooth as glass. Here, too, the
mollymawk makes its curious nest of penguin-quills and guano, and
beneath the stones in this latter is teeming life of beetles, amphipods,
and spiders.

THE CHATHAM ISLANDS AND THEIR PLANTS.

At a distance of about five hundred miles from the coast of New
Zealand, and almost due east from Lyttelton, lie the Chathams. This
group has a flora quite as interesting as its subaiitarctic sisters, but,
owing in part perhaps to the milder climate and more northerly situ-
ation, of a different character. Subalpine meadows, fields of herbaceous
plants, rata forests — all these are absent. A forest of another cha-
racter flourishes, distinct, too, from any other of New Zealand. The
trees have a very familiar appearance ; they look old friends, but are
somewhat different. Surely this is the well-known koromiko ; but
never did one see that as a tree 50 ft. in height. Here is the lancewood,
but where is the well-known juvenile form ? Here, too, is the korokia
of the north, yet its leaves seem larger and its yellow fruits bigger.
The truth is that long isolation from the mainland has, in some way
or another, led to slight differences between many Chatham Island
and New Zealand plants. They have certainly come from a parent
stock — perhaps one or the other is the actual parent; but now,
although closely related, they are for the most part distinct species.
The lancewood is neither Pseudopanax crassi/oUum nor P. ferox — it
is P. chathamica ; the koromiko is not Veronica salicifolia — it is V.
(/if/anted : while the korokia is named Corokia macrocarpa, and in
its larger fruit and broader leaves is distinct from C. buddleoides of
the North Island.

* The photo, represents a penguin colony on the Snares, not on the Bounties;
but the general effect is similar.

PLANTS OF THE OUTLYING ISLANDS.

121

The commonest of the forest-trees is the karaka, here called kopi
rt/Hocarpus laevigata), whose smooth bark was frequently adorned
with a figure of a three-fingered man by the Moriori artists (fig. 56).
Then come the matipo (Suttoniachathamica), the mahoe (Hymenanthera
chathamica], an indigenous daisy-tree (Olearia Traversii. akeake),
the tree-karamu (Coprosma chathamica) , the lancewood (Pseudopanax
ch/tthamica), the ribbon wood (Plagianthus chathamicus), the nikau
(Rkopalostylis sapida). There are two distinct classes of forests on
the island, that on the higher ground containing fewer species, and,
having the large heath, Dracophyllum arboreum, as its dominant tree.

^"A

V,

vT *

FIG. 56. — Moriori Figure cut in Bark of Kopi-tree (Corynocarpus luvriyata).

Forest of Chatham Island.

[Photo, L. Cockayne.

The forest on the limestone formation near the great lagoon, the
Whanga, is also somewhat different, since there alone is the kowhui
to be found.

There is no shrubby undergrowth in the forest, but tree-ferns and
ferns of all kinds are very abundant. The only lianes are the supple-
jack, the climbing-convolvulus (Calysteyia tuguriorum), and Muehlen-
beckia australis. Many most characteristic New Zealand forest-trees

122

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

are quite absent — e.g., all the taxads. the beeches, the palm-lilies, and
the pittosporums.

The despair of the settler and the delight of the flower-lover are the
very numerous bogs of the Chatham Islands. These are frequently
occupied by a close growth of the Chatham Island aster (Olearia
semidentata}, a truly lovely shrub in every respect (fig. 57). Covered
in the summer-time with flower-heads of the most intense purple,
these olearia shrubberies are an entrancing spectacle. Olearia

. 57. — Olearia semidentata in foreground ; Dracophyttum paludosum in back-
ground. Bog, Chatham Island.

[Photo. L. Cockayne.

chathamica is not so common, but occurs in quantity on the summits
of those precipitous cliffs forming the south coast of Chatham Island :
its flowers are white. Growing in company with 0. semidentata is
Dracophyttum paludosum, a needle-leaved shrub 3 ft. or 4 ft. tall, but
which, when growing on sphagnum, sometimes blooms when only an
inch or two high.

In the neighbourhood of these olearia bogs the margin of the
forest often consists entirely of the rautini (Senecio Huntii], a mag-

PLANTS OF THE OUTLYING ISLANDS.

123

uificent tree-groundsel, which produces immense bunches of yellow
flower-heads, and has aromatic pale-green leaves in semi-rosettes
at the ends of its stiff, bare, brittle twigs. For many hundreds of
vards at a time this belt extends, forming, when covered with its uolden

9J C7

blossoms, a gorgeous mass of colour.

On the dry open ground a heath society occurs, in which the
rounded bushes of Styphelia robusta (fig. 58), covered in the autumn
with white or red " berries," are conspicuous. Here, too, is the Aus-

FIG. 58. — Styphelia robusta.

[Photo, J. Crosby Smith.

tralian Styphelia Richei, which has recently been discovered also in
New Zealand proper.

The most famous of all the Chatham Island plants is the giant
forget-me-not (Myosotidium nobile) (fig. 1), frequently called by the
absurd name of Chatham Island lily, or, what is worse, Macquarie
cabbage ! This wonderful plant, found nowhere else in the world,
is now almost extinct. Formerly it extended almost round the main
island, forming a broad belt on the sea-shore, just above where the dry

124 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

seaweed marks the high-tide limit. The massive, shining, broad,
green leaf-blades, a foot or more in length, raised high from the ground
on stout leaf-stalks, and the numerous blue flowers, each half an inch
or so in diameter, render this plant a most conspicuous object. The
seeds germinate rapidly if fresh, and seedlings are raised with the
greatest ease. The writer has long thought this noble plant might
easily be naturalised on our northern sea-shores — for instance, on the
Little Barrier and on Kapiti. Surely some effort could be made to
fence a piece of the Chatham Island shore from sheep and pigs, so that
this rare and interesting plant could once more reassert itself in its
natural station.

Other interesting Chatham Island plants are the mutton-bird plant
(Cotula Feather stonii), which grows only near the holes of the petrels ;
the shrubby speedwells, Veronica Dieffenbachii, V. Barkeri, and
V. chathamica, this latter a charming little plant, of which there are
many distinct forms, which creeps over rocks close to the sea ; the
great sowthistle (Sonchus grandifolius), which grows on sand-covered
ledges of rock near the sea, or at times on the dunes ; the bog-grass.
Poa chathamica, an important fodder plant ; the Chatham Island
cranesbill (Geranium Traversii), of which there are white and pink
varieties ; the swamp- matipo, Suttonia Coxii, with its pretty mauve
fruits ; the gentian, Gentiana chathamica ; and two spear-grasses,
Aciphylla Dieffenbachii and A. Traversii.

Settlement has in many places quite changed the face of the
country. In some places are fine grass paddocks, in others the
bracken-fern and the piripiri (Acaena novae-zealandiae) have become
weeds. Phormium tenax was originally very common, but is now a
thing of the past in most cases. The Chatham Island variety differs
from any in New Zealand proper in its broad and rather drooping
leaves and their weak fibre.

THE KERMADECS.

Science is especially indebted to Mr. T. F. Cheeseman. F.L.S..*
for a knowledge of the most northern members of the New Zealand
biological region, the Kermadec Islands. As the writer has not had

* Recently, Mr. W. R. B. Oliver, of Christchurch, spent, with some com-
panions, nearly a year on the island, and has in Trans. X.X. Inst., Vol. xlii, a full
account of the plant-covering.

PLANTS OF THE OUTLYING ISLANDS. 125

the pleasure of visiting this group, the following account is based, on
Mr. Cheeseman's admirable paper on the subject published in 1888.

From the subantarctic islands to the subtropical Kermadecs is a
long step, and yet the dominant tree in the latter is also a Metrosideros
(M. riUosa), a relation, however, of the pohutukawa and not of the
southern rata. But with this the similarity between the two regions
ends, except that both are of volcanic origin ; and there is no more
outward resemblance between the plant-forms than there is between
the climates.

As seen from the sea. there is nothing in the appearance of the
plant-covering of the Kermadecs to recall the tropics. No feathery
cocoanut-palms fringe the shore. On the contrary, the rather dull
hue of the New Zealand foliage, as seen from a distance, is everywhere
manifest.

Sunday Island, the largest of the group, is forest-clad, while
Macauley Island is almost entirely without arborescent growth. The
whole group is of volcanic origin, as stated above, and the small Curtis
Island is still in the solfatara state.

A certain number of tropical plants have reached the Kermadecs.
but nothing like what might be expected. Amongst these are—
Ipomaea pes-caprae (which forms the well-known plant society on so
many tropical shores). Canavalia obtusi folia (a climbing leguminous
plant). Ageratum conyxioides (which bears the name of cherry-pie, or
wild heliotrope), Aleurites moluccana* (the candlenut of the Polynesian
Islands), and also some grasses and one or two ferns.

Certain plants are peculiar to the group. Amongst these are two
coprosmas, C. petiolata and C. acuti folia, the former closely related
to C. chathamica, of Chatham Island ; Suttonia kermadecensis. related
to a Norfolk Island plant ; Homalanthus polyandrus, a tree of the
spurge family ; and two fine tree-ferns, Cyathea Milnei and one dis-
covered bv Oliver and named bv him C. kermadecensis.

*j \j

But the rank and file of the plants are such as would be met with
in the North Island — for example, the karaka, ngaio, wharangi (Meli-
cope ternata). mahoe, tutu, ivy-tree (Notkopanax arboreum}. &c. In
fact, about four-fifths of the flora f consists of ordinary New Zealand
plants.

•'• According to Oliver this is not indigenous.

f According to Oliver there are 114 species, which belong to 88 genera and
42 families.

126 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

CHAPTER IX.

THE NATURALISED PLANTS.

Plant colonists — Origin of the naturalised plants — Method of arrival — Statistics
-Distribution — Definition of term " weed ' —Origin of weeds — Bracken,
manuka, and piripiri as weeds — Weeds and human beings — The horned
poppy and marram-grass — History of a pasture — Microscopic weeds — A
Chatham Island orchard — The struggle between native and introduced plants
-Equipment of aggressive species — •Origin of a gum forest — Plant-sanc-
tuaries— Esthetic value of acclimatised plants — Hedgerow plants — Likeli-
hood of new weeds — Eradication of native species.

Ix the preceding' chapters only the native plants, the true New Zea-
land aborigines, have been considered. But, besides these, a host of
foreigners — of colonists, if you will — have overrun the land. These
have not merely settled down side by side with their antipodean
relatives, but in not a few instances have driven them from the soil.
That characteristic stamp which the native vegetation gives to the
New Zealand landscape has frequently disappeared, and another-
almost English in appearance — has come in its stead. Newcomers
from the Motherland look in vain near most of the cities for any sign
of a foreign land, and. judging from the plant- covering alone, might
well believe themselves back in Britain. A full account of this plant
colonisation and of the bitter struggle between the invaders and indi-
genous species would be an important contribution to science ; but it
can never be written, since records as to the arrival of most of the
plants or their wanderings in their new home are wanting. Here only
certain general principles can be touched upon and a few illustrative
details cited-

Already so widely spread and so abundant are many of the species
that a beginner in the study of the New Zealand flora could not pos-
sibly tell amongst the specimens he might collect which were indigenous
and which introduced. Even experts cannot agree as to the nativity
of certain species, and discussions have taken place, as in the case of
the wireweed (Polygonum avicularc}.

The naturalised plants have come from many lands, but by far
the greater part are, as in the analogous case of the human colonists,

THE NATURALISED PLANTS. 127

natives of Great Britain and Ireland.* There are also Australians,
North and South Americans, Africans, and Asiatics. Unlike the
ancestors of the indigenous species, the aliens were not borne hither
by winds or birds, or over ancient land-extensions now submerged :
but the ships that conveyed the human immigrants or their goods
brought the plants also. Some were purposely introduced for their
economic (grasses, leguminous plants, vegetables, trees, &c.) or orna-
mental value ; others came unbidden as impurities in agricultural or
garden seeds, in ballast of ships.f in the hay or straw packing of
goods, and in other ways. So thoroughly has the acclimatisation of
these plants succeeded that there are now more or less firmly esta-
blished about 530 species, some being abundant from the North Cape
to Stewart Island, and quite at home even on the highest mountains.

Moreover, the species here under discussion, leaving out of con-
sideration for the present the non-flowering plants, are a most varied
assemblage, since they belong to no fewTer than sixty-six families and
287 genera. Certain of these families are not represented in the
indigenous flora — e.g., the poppy family (Pa paver aceae), the mig-
nonette family (Resedaceae) , the valerian family (Valerianaceae). the
teasel family (Dipsaceae), and some others. Most numerous of all, as
might perhaps be expected, are the grasses (eighty-one species), which
surpass in number even the great composite family (seventy species).
Then come the pea family (Leguminosae, forty-nine species) and the
cress family (Cruciferae, thirty-six species). Other fairly large families
are those of the pink (Caryopht/Uaceae, twenty-six species), sage (Labi-
fttae, twenty species), dock (Polygonaceae, fourteen species), buttercup
(Ranunculaceae, thirteen species), rose (Rosaceae, fifteen species), potato
(Solanaceae, thirteen species), carrot (Umbellif&rae, twelve species),
tigwort (Scrophularinaceae, eighteen species), poppy (Papaveraceae, ten
species), and borage (Boraginaceae, ten species). On the other hand,
some families are represented by only one species — e.g., the gentian
(Gentianaceae),pii-miosQ(Primulaceae), and periwinkle (Apocynaceae).

Proceeding through New Zealand from north to south, we find
that the acclimatised plants slowly decrease in numbers. Some

* Such species are not confined to the British Isles, but are natives of northern
and central Europe as well, many being also foimd in Europe generally, and ex-
tending into Asia.

t Mr. T. Kirk gives a list of 104 plants introduced in this manner, of which
20 per cent, were new to New Zealand, some being South American.

128 XEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

which are conspicuous in the Auckland Province — the pokeweed
(Phytolacca octandra), for instance — are absent farther south. Alti-
tude also thins the ranks, and at 3,000 ft. elevation, or less, indigenous
and foreign species meet on equal terms. On the sheep pastures of
the Southern Alps the beautiful alpine plants are still in abundance.
A condition of fair stability has come about, and new plant societies
have been formed in which the foreign invaders just hold their
own. But change the condition of affairs by fencing a portion of
land from the sheep, and the indigenous plants will at once increase.
At 2,500 ft. on the mountains of southern Nelson, Canterbury, and
(Jtago the gorse (Ulex europaeus) does not spread far and wide, as in
the lowlands, nor does it assume any remarkable dimensions.

Amongst the introduced plants the most notorious are those known
by the opprobious term of ' weed." We all must know, though at
the present time it is difficult to conceive such a state of affairs, that
before the advent of the white man, and even for some considerable
time afterwards, there were no weeds in New Zealand. Mr. T. W.
Adams tells me how his land on the Canterbury Plain was at first
weedless.* A little further thought, and it is plain that in any virgin
vegetation weeds must be unknown, for what is a weed but merely some
plant growing where it is not wanted ? The mere presence of man in
a new land, then, creates weeds. There is no occasion for a plant to
be in itself useless to man to constitute it a weed. The best of plants,
such as potatoes, if growing unbidden in a flower - garden may
become weeds for the time being. Even in a New Zealand taxad
forest all the trees not required for milling purposes are weeds, or a
forest occupying ground intended for grazing is a distinct weed
association.

Such well-known weeds as the sorrels, docks, fat-hens, and thistles
would in the original primeval world each have its proper place in the
primitive plant association to which it might belong, and would be
present in no abnormal numbers. It was the changes brought about
by cultivation, fires, and the close grazing of domestic animals which
upset the balance of nature. Then those plants whose structure
and habits were most in harmony with the changed conditions would
become more numerous at the expense of the less well-equipped, and
as the conditions antagonistic to the plant association as a whole

* Of course, there would be plenty of introduced plants, but be meant those
kinds which overrun the land, and so become a nuisance.

THE NATURALISED PLANTS. 129

increased, so would the best-suited species increase. All this is to
say that many plants are potential weeds, ready to become active
ones as soon as suitable conditions arise. Thus, through the long
centuries of cultivation in Europe, aided by the ever-expanding inter-
course with other lands, the great army of now almost cosmopolitan
weeds has been gathered together — the very pick of the vegetable
world for thriving under the artificial conditions imposed by man
in temperate regions. It is the old story that when one interferes
with nature she exacts remorselessly her tribute.

It is only in a virgin vegetation that we can actually witness the
evolution of a weed. Our own flora has furnished some rather striking
examples. The common bracken-fern (Pteridium csculentum) is a
case in point. This plant can be transported over great distances
by means of its tiny spores, which, light as the finest dust, are carried
for many miles by the wind. It has a stout far-creeping underground
stem full of nutritious starch. Consequently, when the farmer burns
its leaves and the grasses and other plants in its neighbourhood, the
stem remains unhurt beneath the ground, and from its store of food
can soon construct fresh leaves. Owing to their form and internal
structure, these are capable of enduring considerable drought, so
that the plant need not be at all concerned about its water-supply ;
consequently, all things considered, the bracken is a fair example of
a potential weed. Nor does it belie this expectation, for at the present
time this fern, worthless from the farmers' point of view, is far more
abundant than in primeval New Zealand.

So, too, with the manuka (Leptospermum scopanum)., thanks to
its abundant and quickly germinating seeds, its hard seed-capsules
that are not easily destroyed by fire, the early blooming of the seed-
lings, its leaf-form and structure, its toleration of most varieties of
soil, and its extreme plasticity with regard to changes of environment.
Miles of manuka now exist where originally forest or a mixed shrubbery
flourished.

Several species of piripiri (Acaena Sanguisorbae various varieties,
A. novae-zealandiae) have become troublesome weeds. In their case
the barbed 'seeds"* are easily carried by domestic animals, espe-
cially sheep and dogs. On bare ground they readily germinate,

* Really a dry fruit which contains one seed, and does not split open at
maturity. The calyx, which is furnished with several barbed bristles, remains
attached to and encloses the fruit proper.

130 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

the plant growing rapidly, and extending its prostrate stems over a
considerable area. Even on parts of the subantarctic islands the
piripiri of that New Zealand plant province (Acaena Sanguisorbae
var. antarctica], as was shown in Chapter VIII, becomes abnormally
abundant on ground trodden bare by the multitudes of albatroses,
the young of which on their way to the sea assist in spreading the
" seeds " which have become attached to their feathers.

Other native plants, though not actually aggressive, hold their
own on grazed land owing to certain qualities they possess — e.g.,
species of Geranium (low growth, long roots) ; Oxalis corniculata
(low growth, spreading habit, quick germination) ; species of Cotula
(low, turf-forming habit and far creeping and rooting stems) ; Senecio
bellidioides (rosettes close to ground, wind-borne " seed," deep roots) ;
Coriaria ruscifolia* (poisonous, much - spreading underground stem
which puts forth shoots when the plant above ground is destroyed
by fire).

The term ' weed ' is evidently merely relative, and depends
upon the plant in its relation to man. If we leave the human element
out of the question, a weed is simply a living organism, like any other
plant or animal, and its habits and structure are entirely for its own
benefit, just as are the organs of all animate beings. In itself there
is nothing noxious at all, nor in an undisturbed plant society would
it react upon its neighbours more than any other plant.

The flourishing ' ' weed ' of civilisation, so far as the plants with
which it comes into contact are concerned, is much the same as is
civilised man in relation to the savage. In an environment of wild
nature, as a hunter with rude weapons of stone, bone, or wood, and
inured to cold and hunger, the latter is in a far better position than
the European under like circumstances. But should the civilised
man, armed with the arts and under the surroundings of civilisation,
come in contact with the savage, the latter is rapidly displaced.

Nor is the colonisation by introduced plants very different from
human colonisation. Some plants, through their special favourable
qualities and adaptability — in other words, through their power to
make the best possible use of their circumstances — outdistance their
fellows, and establish themselves far and wide, living in great security,
and growing with a luxuriance not attainable in their mother-land.

: This becomes ao't-Tessive in certain localities.

THE NATURALISED PLANTS. 131

Others flourish, it is true, but, lacking adaptability, are narrowly
restricted to a definite and well-defined station out of which they
cannot go. On the shores of Cook Strait the horned poppy (Glau-
cium ftavum) is confined to gravelly and stony beaches. On the
clavev hillside near Lvall Bay is a fine colony of this striking plant,

J J !/ «/ V

with its silvery foliage and delicate yellow flowers ; but it is strictly
limited to a spot where a quantity of gravel and coarse sand has col-
lected. The well-known marram-grass (Ammophila arenaria) can
grow only where there is drifting sand. Cut off the supply, and the
green leaves quickly assume a sickly yellow hue, and, if no more sand
comes, the plant will eventually die. Certain species may become
established in a few places, but can spread no farther. Especially
is this the case with the plants of old gardens, which may linger for
years, but, failing to reproduce their kind, finally die out. Lastly,
many species thrive well for a time, but are eventually eradicated
by more vigorous competitors.

Nowhere can this last example be better seen than in pasture
land. At first the newly laid-down grass may consist of valuable
rye-grasses (Lolium perenne, L. italicum] and clovers. In time, owing
to its perennial habit, the first-named will overcome the annual species,
which is unable to reproduce itself freely from seed on the closely
occupied ground. The adult plant, too, dies at the end of the year.
Next, through the action of cattle, sheep, and horses, the perennial
rye-grass is eaten to the ground, while those grasses worthless for
feed which have crept in, such as the soft brome-grass (Bromus Jior-
deaceus) and Yorkshire fog (Holcus lanatus), increase at a great rate,
their flowers being untouched and their reproduction not hindered.
Finally, the pasture deteriorates so much that it must be broken up
and laid down afresh.

Before leaving the question of weeds, those minute organisms
must be mentioned which, settling down upon other plants and
living as parasites, damage and not infrequently kill the host. To
this category belongs that vast assortment of non-flowering plants
commonly termed " blights." Many of these are members of the great
family of fungi. For the most part they are more or less invisible
without the aid of the microscope, but their presence is often writ
large on the unfortunate host-plant. The rusts and smuts, the so-called
Irish potato-disease, the organism causing "damping off" in seedlings,
and many and diverse causers of plant-diseases belong to the " blights."

132 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

Right at the north-east corner of Chatham Island is an old orchard
planted before the middle of the last century. At the time of my
visit, some years ago, I was astonished to learn that blights of all
kinds were quite unknown there, the extreme isolation of the orchard
having proved its salvation. And so, too, it was with New Zealand
orchards in the early days, before the coming of the microscopic weeds.
Many of the ills which afflict humanity are due to the presence
of extremely minute introduced plants known as bacteria, the
" microbes " of the journalist, and so various diseases now common
in New Zealand wrere absolutely unknown to the Maori.

From the plant-geographical standpoint, of particular interest
are any facts bearing on the struggle between the introduced and
indigenous species. The primary point to insist on is that so long
as the surface of the soil is left intact — that is, if the primitive plant-
covering be quite undisturbed — it is very hard indeed for the world's
selected weeds — even those best equipped for aggression — to gain
a foothold, and it is almost impossible for them to spread. On the
Snowcup Range, in Canterbury, there is a clear line of demarcation
between the meadows which are virgin and those where sheep are
pastured and burning is periodical. On the latter are introduced
plants in abundance, side by side with tussock-grasses, gentians, and
Spaniards ; but on the former there are merely the celmisias, butter-
cups, groundsels, and other mountain plants, the foreign invaders
being altogether absent. And yet the native dandelion, which is
closely related to the introduced species, is in abundance in many
places, and the violent westerly winds must be charged at times with
the seeds of certain weeds.

Ruapehu, the upper portions of Egmont, and the mountains of
Stewart Island and elsewhere, especially on the west of the South
Island, are weedless. So, too, are the virgin forests. Disturb the
ground, however, and at once a seed-bed is ready, and the foreigners
pour in. Burning makes more space, and they spread and
increase, the native plants decreasing in proportion, and going to
the wall. Grazing animals assist in the destruction. The native
plants having come into being in the absence of such animals,
the moa excepted, are little protected against their attacks. At the
same time, the special equipment of the more aggressive introduced
species of plants makes these formidable. Many are annuals — a great
advantage for rapid dispersal — whereas almost all the indigenous species

THE NATURALISED PLANTS. 133

are perennials. Rapid vegetative increase . by means of creeping and
perhaps rooting stems, the formation of a dense turf, rapidity in
termination of seeds, enormous seed-production, special contrivances
for seed-dissemination by the wind, tolerance of extreme changes
of soil and climate, leaves pressed closely against the ground, deeply
descending roots, immunity against attacks of animals afforded by a
woolly covering, unpleasant taste, &c., conspicuous flowers for insect
fertilisation — all these and other beneficial characters are frequent
amongst the acclimatised species.

A plant may remain quite isolated for years and, be apparently
incapable of spreading, but an unlooked-for change of conditions
may give it just what it requires. Dr. Truby King pointed out to
me a most interesting case. At Waitati, on the land belonging to the
Mental Hospital, stands a fine example of the stringy-bark (Euca-
lyptus numerosa) more than fifty years of age. Originally the vegeta-
tion of the place was mixed forest, but this has been replaced by a
close growth of manuka heath. Some ten years ago this was burned
in the neighbourhood of the tree, and a young forest of gums several
acres in extent has sprung up (fig. 59). the new ground and the potash
from the fire being eminently suitable for the germination of the gum-
tree seeds. At the present time the gum-saplings grow extremely
closely. Their height is from 40 ft. to 50 ft. Some are half a foot
in diameter, while others are extremely slender. Thousands of manuka
seedlings sprang up along with those of the gum ; and it must not be
forgotten that manuka, far more than most of the indigenous plants,
can reproduce itself again and again after burning, and, can exclude
almost all other vegetation. But in this case the greater rapidity
of growth gave the gums the victory, and now only a little manuka
remains near the margin of this remarkable and quite natural forest-
growth. Nor is the above merely interesting biologically : it is equally
important from the point of view of cheap afforestation of unproduc-
tive areas covered with manuka heath.

The replacement of the native species by aliens has wrought a
remarkable alteration in the appearance of New Zealand. Gone from
vast areas is the magnificent tropical forest ; vanishing in many places
are even the alpine plants. Fortunately, some time ago the Govern-
ment took the matter in hand seriously, recognising that as the
indigenous vegetation is one of the great attractions of the Dominion,
it should be, in certain places, kept inviolate. And so many small

134

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

reserves have been proclaimed, and various extensive national parks
and special sanctuaries have been set aside. This has been an ad-
mirable national work, but it is needful to see that typical examples
of the various plant societies are preserved. A plant society, as
shown in an earlier chapter, is something distinct in itself, and it is
the special combination of plants rather than the individual species
which dominate the scenery of New Zealand, giving it its peculiar
character. Were the protection of the species themselves all that

. 59. — Spontaneous growth of an Australian Gum (Eucalyptus n
which has taken the place of -Manuka heath by help of fire. Waitati.

'[Photo, L. Cockayne.

Otago.

was desired, then they might well be collected in botanic gardens,
and the whole length and breadth of the land turned over to flocks
and herds and fires, becoming on barren ground hot-beds of weeds,
unprofitable for farming. How this can happen is to be seen only
too well on our river-beds, where gorse, broom, and sweet-briar reign :
or on unused bush-clearings, where the California!! thistle alone
flourishes.

THE NATURALISED PLANTS. 135

From what has gone before it must not be inferred that the accli-
matised vegetation has no esthetic value. Highly cultivated lands,
with their green meadows, waving grain, and stately plantations of
foreign trees, are delightful. The gorse, noxious weed though it may
be proclaimed, is a glory when its sheets of gold dazzle the eye. The
green lines of self -planted willows on many a river-bank ; the yellow
lupin of the dunes ; blue periwinkles by the roadside ; white arum
lilies on wet ground in the north ; stately mulleins on montane river-
beds— these and many more are well worthy of admiration.

A rather curious fact that seems to need explanation is the absence
of those hedgerow plants that make delightful the lanes of England.
It is not that the prettiest of the flowers of the Mother-land are absent,
though many appear to think this is the case. Some perhaps are to
be seen only in our gardens — e.g., the wood-anemone, the wild hyacinth,
the lily of the valley, primroses, cowslips, the bluebell of Scotland or
harebell, and the daffodil. But the germander speedwell, the herb-
robert, deadnettles white and pink, daisies, buttercups, the ragged-
robin, the stonecrop, wild roses, blackberries, the honeysuckle, the
forget-me-not, the toadflax, the bird's-foot trefoil, the dog-daisy, the
bugloss. and the foxglove, to mention only a few British plants,
are now wild in various places. The fact is, our hedges are frequently
of gorse, a plant which smothers out most herbs with which it comes
in contact. Introduced grasses also grow with a vigour unknown in
Europe, and will not permit such plants as the primrose to become
established. Cattle, too, graze by the roadside. In short, the con-
ditions are quite different from those afforded by the mixed hedges
of the Old Land.

No further details can be given regarding individual acclimatised
plants. A full list is given in Cheeseman's excellent Flora (pp. 1063
to 1093), and descriptions of most may be found in any British Flora.
For those living in settled parts of the Dominion, where the indigenous
plants are scarce, the introduced species will afford much material
for profitable study, the purpose of which should be not to find their
names merely, but to continue such observations as this and previous
chapters may have suggested.

It mav be asked whether there mav not be introduced some dav

*/ J »/

other plants which might become dangerous pests. So far as animals
are concerned, the experience of New Zealand towards acclimatisa-
tion has not been encouraging, and it is wise to consider long and care-

10— Plants.

136 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

fully, and get the best advice available, before turning any animal
loose. Doubtless the same reasoning applies to plants; but, unfortu-
nately, they do not wait to be set free. Probably all the worst weeds
of the earth have already arrived, and we cannot expect newcomers
that would rival the couch-grass (Agropyron repens), the sorrel (Rumex
Acetosella), or the so-called " California!! thistle"* (Cnicus arvensix).
At the same time, any farmer who sees a new plant on his farm should
look at it askance, obtain what information he can get respecting it.
and eradicate it at once if he has any reason to suspect it of having
the weed-assuming characteristics.

Finally, there comes in the question whether any of the native
plants are liable to extinction. Personally, I should answer this in
the negative. There is nearly always some haven of refuge, and,

O *^ *•*

though many species will eventually become much -more rare, it is
most unlikely that anv will be entirely eradicated.

* This plant is a native of the British Islands, Europe generally, north Africa.
and northern to western Asia. It is only naturalised in the United States, where,
however, it is called the " Canada thistle." In England it is known as the " corn-
thistle " and " creeping thistle," and is a weed of either cultivated or waste
ground.

THE STOKY OF SOME COMMON PLANTS. 137

CHAPTER X.

THE STORY OF SOME COMMON PLANTS.

Relationships of the cabbage-tree — How gravity affects direction of growth-
Fertilisation and seed-dispersal — Distribution of the cabbage-tree — Use of
the tree in Maori times — The species of Phormium — The diverse stations of
Phormium — Fertilisation by birds — The leaves of New Zealand flax — Use of
flax by the Maoris — Garden varieties of Phormium — Diseases.

Ix the previous chapters a general account of the vegetation has
been given rather than details as to special plants. In this and the
chapter following a few of the commonest plants are dealt with, and
something is told of their story, which, however, as yet is far from
being a complete one.

THE CABBAGE-TREE.

The cabbage-tree (Cordyline australis] is a most familiar feature
in almost any New Zealand landscape, while it is also a favourite
adornment of gardens, supplying there a special beauty of form gene-
rally lacking in the temperate vegetation.

But. although the plant in question is known so well, it may yet be
news to some that it is no relative of the wholesome vegetable whose

O

name it bears. It. on the contrary, belongs to the same family as tin-
Madonna lily, the hyacinth, and the tulip ; or. if we must seek its
relations below stairs, then to the onion, the garlic, and the shalot.
whilst amongst its first cousins it boasts such useful members of society

•/

as aloes, squills, and sarsaparilla. Now, it is the structure of the
flowers which places it in this most distinguished company, the outer
floral leaves being united at the base,* but divided above into six
segments, the stamens also six in number ; while the central portion
of the flower, which finally contains the seeds, is three-chambered.
At the same time, it differs from most of its kith and kin in its posses-
sion of a tall, erect trunk, being, in fact, a tree- or palm-lily, this latter

* The coloured leaves of the flower in the lily family are in two series, and
in certain of the aenera are not united below into a tube.

138

XK\V ZEALAND PLANTS.

designation having been bestowed on account of its tropical-looking

habit, for it is not really
a palm.

The trunk plays a
most important part in
the domestic economy of
the tree, sending down
deep into the ground
what is popularly sup-
posed to be a root. This,
however, is nothing of
the kind, but a deeply
descending underground
stem, which has the
cm ions property for a
stem of growing down-
wards while the aerial
portion of the same trunk
grows upwards, as should
that of any well-regu-
lated tree (fig. 60). Such
growing upwards and
downwards of stems and
roots is regulated by that
force we call gravity,
which sets in motion the
intricate and powerful
k>' machinery ' of the
plant, just as a pressure
of the hand lets loose
that power which causes
the mighty locomotive to
move backwards or for-
wards, as the case may
be. The descending stem
penetrates the soil for a
distance of several feet.
giving oft' on either side

FIG. 60.— Underground stem of Cabbage-tree, long cord - like roots,
with numerous roots. which, passing outwards

[Photo, L. Cockayne.

THE STOHY OF SOME COMMON PLANTS. 139

and downwards, anchor the tree firmly, so keeping it erect. But
underground stem, besides functioning as a natural prop for the tree,
plays a further and more important part, since there is stored up within
its tissues the surplus food, manufactured within its green leaves from
the carbon-dioxide of the air by the aid of sunlight. On this hoard
the tree draws yearly, and the material is lent from which the huge
mass of flowers is constructed. Should too much of the starchy food
be used, or not enough have accumulated owing to an adverse season,
there will be few or no flowers the succeeding year. A sufficient
balance must be kept at its bankeis, as it were, or its life work will
remain undone.

The dead leaves of the cabbage-tree are scrupulously removed
every year by the tidy but too-zealous gardener, and a long, naked
stem results. Nature, however, loves not nakedness in any form-
the bare rock she clothes with lichens, and the fallen giant of the
forest with moss ; so, too, she hides the upper portion of our tree's
trunk with a not inelegant covering of brown dead leaves. Nor is she
mindful of beauty alone in so doing, for these leaves become saturated
with moisture when the welcome rain falls, the trunk on its part
putting forth many shoit but active roots, which must assist the leaves
materially to the all-important water-supply in dry weather. As for
the leaves themselves, they are provided with a strong, fibrous skeleton,
which enables them to defy the frequent gales ; also, they are more or
less erect, and thus escape the full force of the sun's rays — a decided
benefit in the long, hot summer days : and. finally, their minute
structure is such as to guard them against excessive loss of moisture
in times of drought.

The cabbage-tree blooms during November and December ; the
flower-stems are much-branched, and crowded with small whitish
flowers. These have a most powerful, though rather sickly, odour,
which attracts crowds of insect visitors, who in return for the gift of
sweet honey assist in bringing the dust-like pollen of the stamens
to the stigma, and thus fertilising the egg, which in due course will
then grow into a seed — that is, into a small body containing within ir
a tiny cabbage-tree. The seeds are black in colour, and angular, nine
or less being enclosed in the succulent, three-chambered, milky-white
berries. These latter are greedily eaten by birds, who thus assist in
sowing the seeds far from the parent tree. Not only do the native
birds engage in this work, but the introduced ones have learnt also to

140

NEW ZKALAXD PLANTS.

THE STORY OF SOME COMMON PLANTS. 141

play their part, and so there is little fear but that the cabbage-
tree will always remain with us as a truly wild plant ; in fact, in
some parts of New Zealand it is on the increase, as in the swampy
ground of northern Auckland, where, when the close-ranked kahi-
katea forest is felled, stately files of this graceful tree rise up in
its stead.

The genus Cordyline is somewhat widespread, its species being
found wild in southern Asia, the Malay Archipelago, the Pacific-
islands, Australia, New Zealand, and South America. The special
species we are considering, C. australis, is confined to New Zealand ;
but, though it is extremely abundant in the two main Islands, and its
fruits are readily spread by birds, it is found in only one locality in
Stewart Island, and does not occur at all in either the subantarctic
islands or the Chatham Islands.

There are four other species of Cordyline in New Zealand, one of
which, the toi (C. indivisa) (fig. 61), is a magnificent object, with its
broad, arching leaves furnished with a conspicuous orange-coloured
midrib. It is common at rather high levels in the North Island, but
descends to sea-level in the South at the Otago Sounds. On the east
of the South Island are a few plants on Banks Peninsula. Where the
service road to the Main Trunk line has been made along the base of
ice-capped Ruapehu, and the forest has been cleared, are splendid
natural plantations of this beautiful tree, which grows in some places,
indeed, by the thousand.

The common cabbage-tree is easy of cultivation. It will grow
in almost any kind of soil, and may be readily raised from seed, this
being the best method to secure a stock of plants. When a tree is cut
down level with the ground it does not die, but will usually put forth
new shoots from the underground stem. Even at an early age it is
very ornamental, and young specimens, whose trunks are not yet
developed, are eminently suitable for small gardens. There is a
purplish-leaved variety, and also one with variegated foliage. More-
over, the cabbage-tree is a variable species, and many foims distinct
for garden purposes may be met with in the wild state.

In a land where the natural vegetable products were not of much
economic value, the most unlikely plants were pressed into the service
of the aborigines, and any possessing the slightest beneficial property
\vere made use of. The cabbage-tree, or, as the Maoris designated it,

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

the ti, tikauka, or tiiahau, served several purposes. The underground
stem, since it contained a large supply of starch, supplied a nutritious
if not an especially palatable kind of food, and the leaves were plaited
into flat or round ropes. In the north, however, C. pumilio was much
more prized for food. Cordyline indivisa was still more esteemed
for its fibre, which, according to Colenso, was woven into a durable
mat called toii, which was dyed black.

In Europe the cabbage-tree is much prized for horticultural pui-
poses, though it is hardy only in the warmer parts. In the Scilly Isles
it is used for hedges, making wind-screens to the fields of daffodils,
there grown so extensively for the London market. Strange to say,
many New Zealand plants, the cabbage-tree amongst the number,
OTOW luxuriantly in the Isle of Arran, Scotland, which are only half-
hardy farther south : a fact which recalls Stewart Island, where in
certain parts trees peculiar to northern Auckland are cultivated
with success, but which cannot endure the climate of the Canterbury
coast.

THE NEW ZEALAND FLAX.

Still more common than the tree just dealt with, and equally
well known to all, is the New Zealand flax. This is another misnomer,
as popular names usually are, since the species in question is no flax
at all, but another member of the lily family, consequently a near
relative of the cabbage-tree, the true native flax being a pretty white-
flowered herb (Linum monocjynum} common along the sea-coast.
Although still extremely abundant, the flax has much diminished in
numbers since the advent of the European, for the simple reason that
it occupied the very ground most suitable for agriculture. Where the
golden grain waves in the breeze, and where the lamb, unconscious of
its doom, crops the lush grass, were formerly vast swamps, closely
filled with the gigantic sword-like leaves of the plant, beneath whose
friendly shelter countless red-legged pukeko sought their food, safe
from their dreaded enemy the hawk.

The genus Phormium, to which the New Zealand flax belongs, is
found only in Norfolk Island and New Zealand, and consists of but
two species, P. tcnax and P. Cookianum, this latter formerly known
as P. Colcnsoi. These are readily distinguished by their ' pods,"
those of the former species pointing upwards and not twisted, while
the latter' s droop downwards and are twisted. Further research may

THE STORY OF SOME COMMON PLANTS?. 143

perhaps show that these species are made up of a large number of
varieties which produce themselves " true ' from seed.

New Zealand flax grows in most diverse stations, and the structure
of its leaves probably varies much according to environment. Faces
of dry cliffs, clayey hillsides, swamps, and sandhills are some distinct
spots where P. tenax flourishes. Nor is it fastidious as to climate.
The warm valleys of northern Auckland, the wind-swept shores of
south AVestland, the bleak moorlands near Inveicargill. the quaking-
bogs of the Chatham Islands, all afford it a suitable home. This
Chatham Island form is distinct from the typical variety, its leaves
being thinner, broader, and drooping, and its fibre comparatively
weak, but very fine. There is also a small amount of flax on the
Auckland and Campbell Islands ; but it is not indigenous, having
been planted there by the Maori sealers many years ago.

The flowers of the flax are not verv showv. being of a lurid red in

«/ »/ •* o

P. tenax and yellow in P. CooJcianum. The pollen is usually ripe before
the stigma of the same flower is ready to receive it. a fact which points
to cross-fertilisation as a possible cause of the great variation of the
species. The abundance of honey contained in the flowers attracts
the tui and other native birds, who assist in the work of fertilisation,
playing the part performed in many plants by insects.

The leaves spring from a short but stout creeping stem, and this
latter, spreading over the ground, helps to increase the spread of
the plant. It grows readily from seed also ; and from the seed-
lings, if raised in a sufficient quantity, new varieties might be
expected.

The leaves are stout and thick, and stand erect, thus avoiding the
direct rays of the sun — a contrivance against loss of water, as shown
before. That a swamp plant should require protection against drought
seems absurd, but this special drought-combating structure it is which
permits the plant to inhabit rocks, dunes, and other excessively dry
stations mentioned above. Nor does it seem unlikely that the flax
has been driven into the swamps by its competitors, and lives there
not from choice, but from necessity, though its drought-resisting
structure is no longer an advantage, unless the water of the swamp
be acid.*

* See remarks on physiological dryness in Chapters V and VII.

144 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

The harakeke, as the Maoris call the flax, was their most important
plant, for on it their supply of clothing almost entirely depended.
Dress mats of great variety were made from its fibre at an infinite
expenditure of patience and labour. Some of these were dyed various
colours, and were provided with elaborate borders. It also played its
part in the Maori pharmacopoeia, being prepared in various ways for
external application chiefly. From the dry flower-stalks, the koiari.
the Morioris of the Chathams built their fragile canoes.

Like the cabbage-tree, the flax is an admirable garden plant, and
there are a number of very distinct varieties. Of these the principal
are various variegated forms belonging to both species. Some, if not
absolutely " true " to seed, certainly yield a large percentage of varie-
gated plants ; others, again, will put forth green leaves, and finally
revert to the type, as did an especially fine specimen the author col-
lected a number of years ago on the flanks of Mount Sherwood, in
southern Maiiborough. There is also a showy purple-leaved variety,
especially striking when young, and a pleasing form with rather bronzy
drooping leaves, marked with a dark line on the margin. Beyond the
borders of New Zealand the flax is cultivated for ornament in all civi-
lised lands.

The Maoris, too, cultivated the plant to some extent, and gave
names to the different varieties. Hector's work, published in 187±
enumerates no fewer than fifty-six. But doubtless many of these are
identical, wThile it is probable that the same name was used by different
tribes for distinct varieties ; consequently, the Maori names are of
little moment. Yet it must be noted that some of the Maori varieties
contain a much better class of fibre than that of the average swamp
plant.

Botanic-airy, Phormium tenax is a most variable plant. The colour
of the leaf -margin and midrib, the length of leaf-butt, its interior
colour and gum-content, the stiffness of leaf, the breadth of leaf,
the form and colour of flower, and the shape, size, and direction
of growth of the pod — all these and other characters differ in different
individuals. Indeed, it needs a close examination of any specimen
and a long experience with flax - variation before one is able to
select different varieties from the heterogeneous mass of a phormium
swamp.

THK STOHY UK SOME COMMON 1'LAXTS. 145

Phormium tenux, although an indigenous plant, is not immune
from " pests '" of various kinds, some of which are vegetable and some
animal. Circular black spots formed by a microscopic fungus (Clndios-
l><>n' tun) cause not only tho premature death of the leaf, but also
render the fibre discoloured for milling purposes. Leaf-spot is a
worse disease still, red disc derations being formed on the surface
of the blade. Perhaps the worst enemy of the plant, and certainly of
the flax-miller, is an indigenous slug which eats out patches on the
under-surface of the leaf. Strange to say, according to the researches
of T. W. Kirk and A. H. Cockayne, " these gouged-out portions of the
leaves are frequently attacked by a fungus (Rhizopus nigricans), but
this fungus never seems to attack healthy plants." The leaf-
margin is the point of attack of various caterpillars, who cause jagged
wounds.

146 XEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

CHAPTER XL

THE STORY OF SOME COMMON PLANTS— CONTINUED.

Abundance of manuka — Tea-tree or ti-tree ? — Various stations of manuka — The
different species and forms of L&ptosp&rmum — Uses — The fuchsia as a de-
ciduous tree — Object of leaf-fall — The species of Fuchsia — Construction of
the flower — Contrivances for cross-fertilisation — The wood and its properties.

THE MANUKA.

THE manuka of the Maori, the tea-tree of the colonist, and Leptosper-
mum scoparium of the scientist, should also be well known to every
reader. Unlike the plants already dealt with, it has not suffered
loss at the hands of the white man, but, on the contrary, has become

J ?

aggressive, and at the present moment occupies more territory than
in the pre-European days. This is owring to its power of thriving on
any kind of soil, wet or dry, to the great fertility and number of its
seeds, and to its habit of blooming at an abnormally early age for a
shrub. The blossoms are distinctly showy — a manuka heath in due
season being a sheet of snowy whiteness.

The flowers have a five-lobed calyx, the tube of which is attached
to the ovary. There are five spreading petals and a great number of
stamens. The fruit is a woody capsule containing many seeds, most of
which are unfertile.

This structure of the flower shows the shrub to belong to the same
family as the myrtle and rata in New Zealand, while abroad it has
relatives in the gum-trees of Australia and the clove and allspice of
the tropics.

Its leaves are small and stiff, and, like those of the familv in general,

*/ c^

extremely aromatic. This property has led to their use as a substitute
for tea by the enterprising pioneers, who would probably cloak the
unpleasant taste by means of no small allowance of sugar. From this
use the English name ' tea-tree ' h;is arisen, and through corrupt
spelling the spurious Maori " ti-tree ' has followed, a term beloved of
journalists. Worse than this is the usage in South Otago, where,
' plain for all eyes to see," is the legend ' Ti-Tri " on a certain wayside
station.

THE STORY OF SOME CO}]}] OX PLANTS. 147

Like the flax and cabbage-tree, the manuka grows equally well on
faces of rocks, in swamps, and on dunes, while in the Hot-lakes District
it occupies a more inhospitable station still — the ground charged
with chemicals near the boiling pools ; in fact, few plants can so
adapt themselves to varying circumstances — an important matter
when one is concerned with the origin of species. As an example,
it may be mentioned that on the central mountains of Stewart Island,
where the wind blows with an almost incredible velocity, the manuka
has changed its habit altogether, and, instead of being an upright shrub,
lies prostrate upon the ground, as a far-spreading mat, its branches
even near their apices putting out roots and fastening it to the soil.
So different is this from the usual habit of the plant that one could
hardly believe it to belong to the same species, were it not for the f act-
that all kinds of intermediate wind-shorn stages exist within a few
feet of one another (fig. 62).

Besides L. scoparium, there are at least two other species in New
Zealand — one, the tree-manuka or kanuka, a common plant enough ;
and the other, L. Sindairii, only recorded hitherto from the Three
Kings and the Great Barrier Island. The tree-manuka is distinguished
from the commoner species by its larger size and its smaller stalked
flowers, which are crowded together in great profusion, while the latter
has larger, unstalked, solitary flowers. Both are very variable ; but
the most interesting varieties are those of the common manuka, which
exhibit more or less red in their petals. Some are actually bright
crimson, at least four such having been found, according to the author's
knowledge, in the wild state.

These crimson varieties make beautiful garden plants. One.
called by gardeners L. Chapmani, has been in cultivation for many
years. Another, also with a garden name (L. NicJioUsii), of more vivid
crimson, is still handsomer. This, although introduced only a year
or two ago, has already become established in a few English gardens,
and is perhaps better known there than in its native land.

None of these red varieties seem to come absolutely " true ' from
seed, so they must be grown from cuttings, which unfortunately do
not root readily. The red colour is present not only in the flowers,
but extends to the leaves, which in all these races of manuka are more
or less of a purple hue.

148

NEW ZEALAND PLANT*.

. *»- ^/

:"^5 -^

t

' •' ""'.

-

»

Jk>

Kt;

if.-ffl^

«' *•

^*J

• * •!

».

^.-'" "• - •C'>^'i: ^
•;'-^' = ' *^t\CJ

•" >^r ^^.^!^^fr-*3Sg^ ^

. % • "^ - , : \

i

. ~ .

-::V

<-*^*%*3s?.}^.' •• '"•'•if.i^^

"»-!*f ^ •'

L".J5*i-

M

0
C

>>

p

5b

t

-I-3 C

o «

as ?

THE STORY OF SOME COMMON PLANT*. 149

There is also a form of manuka with double white flowers which
was discovered a few years ago by Mr. E. Phillips Turner, Inspector
of Scenic Reserves, but it has hardly got into cultivation as yet.

The common species of manuka are not nearly so much cultivated
in gardens as they deserve. Not only are they extremely beautiful
when in flower, but they will grow well in any kind of soil. Young
plants may be procured from any heath in abundance, or raised from
seed, which germinates readily.

One of the mistletoes is very frequently parasitic on Leptospermum
scoparium. It is a very small shrub with curious jointed stems, but
no leaves. It rejoices, or perhaps the contrary rather, in the name,
much bigger than itself, of Korthalsella salicornioides. When this
parasite becomes too abundant, the drain on the " life-blood ' of its
host becomes too great, and the branch supporting the mistletoe,
or even the shrub as a whole, will die.

The common manuka (L. scoparium) has not usually a trunk
stout enough to be of much use commercially, but it affords excellent
firewood. It is also frequently used for brush fences, for the walls
of whares, and for brooms, while the long straight poles are valuable
for various purposes in gardens.

The colour of the wood differs in the two species. This has led
to L. scoparium being called " red" and L. ericoides " white " tea-tree.
As the leaves of both species are distinctly aromatic, a fragrant oil,
which might possess medicinal properties, could be distilled from
them.

The timber of the white tea-tree (L. ericoides) is of greater value
than is that of its smaller relative. It has been used for wheelwrights'
work, house-blocks, piles for small jetties, and fencing purposes. It
also is highly valued for firewood.

The genus Leptospermum is made up of about thirty species, ex-
tending from New Zealand in the south to the Malay Archipelago
in the north, by way of Australia and Newr Caledonia. By far the
greatest number of species are Australian.

THE NATIVE FUCHSIA.

There is hardly a forest in New Zealand, either primeval or almost
obliterated, where the native fuchsia, the kotukutiiku of the Maoris,
with its thick irregular trunk and hanging strips of brown and papery

150 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

bark, may not be seen. Should the time be winter, then will the tree
be leafless ; but if summer, then there will be abundance of soft, thin
leaves, green above, but beneath pale and silvery.

The deciduous habit is very rare amongst New Zealand plants,
being confined to two or three, for naked boughs in winter are in
harmony with a cold and frozen soil, since roots cannot suck up water
if it be too cold, and the presence of leaves under these circum-
stances would be worse than useless. But where the climate is mild
and equable, as in this country, then there is no need for leaves to fall,
since they can do their complex work more or less efficiently all the
year round. The fall of the fuchsia's leaf was not unnoticed by those
keen nature-students, the ancient Maoris. Where wast thou at the
fall of the kotukutuku ? " would be demanded of the laggard who had
been absent when his presence was urgently needed during that special
season of labour, the planting of the kumara.

The genus Fuchsia derives its name from a German botanist,
Leonhard Fuchs (Anglice, Fox), who lived during the early half of the
sixteenth century. It contains more than fifty species, which, with
the exception of three New-Zealanders, are all South Americans.
From certain of these latter have been raised by the gardener's skill
the large-flowered and brilliantly coloured varieties so popular in
gardens.

The New Zealand species consist of the tree mentioned above
(F. excorticata) ; a shrub, or at times a scrambling-liane (F. Colensoi) ;
and a rather rare trailing or partly climbing sea-shore plant, found
only in the north of Auckland, but not uncommon as an ornamental
pot-plant (F. procumbens). The last is distinguished from the other
two by its erect flowers and its very large and extremely handsome red
berries.

The flowers of Fuchsia excorticata are produced very early in the
year, and some even before the tree is in leaf. The calyx, green and
unattractive in most flowers, forms here the conspicuous part of the
blossom. Below, it is attached to the ovary ; then it is constricted, and
finally expanded into a funnel-shaped tube, which is divided at its
margin into four acute segments. The colour is green and purple,
but it soon fades into a dull red. The petals, four in number, are
inconspicuous : they are inserted at the throat of the calyx. There
are eight stamens. The style is slender and elongated, and terminates
in a little knob, the stigma. The pollen is of a blue colour, and adds

THE STORY OF SOME COMMON PLANTS. 151

to the attractiveness of the flower. It is also extremely viscid. Both
stamens and style are very variable in length ; and thereby hangs a
tale, which as yet can be only half told.

This variability in length of style and stamens leads to there being
three forms of flowers, which may be distinguished as — (a] the long-
styled, where the stigma projects far beyond the mouth of the funnel,
within which the stamens lie hidden ; (b) the short-styled, where the
filaments are long, and almost equal the quite short and but slightly
projecting style ; and (c) the mid-styled, which is a form intermediate
between the other two.

These different forms of flower are not without an object. Experi-
mentally it has been found that in many cases it is advantageous
for a flower to be fertilised with pollen other than its own, and ample
provision is made in nature for such cross-fertilisation,* as it is called.
In the case of F. excorticata the pollen of the long-styled form is usually
immature or wanting — in other words, the flower is a female one.
On the contrary, the short- and mid-styled flowers produce an abund-
ance of serviceable pollen. The transmission of the pollen from one
flower to another, so frequently the work of insects or the wind, is
here performed by birds, especially the bell-bird and tui, whose heads
become dyed blue with the sticky pollen as they pass from blossom
to blossom in their greedy eagerness for the honey therein contained.
The birds' work in time becomes manifest, through the long-styled
flowers producing berries ; whereas the short- and mid-styled flowers
appear to be incapable of fertilisation from their own pollen, and
bear but few berries. The above are the general details as stated in
the ' : Forest Flora " ; but the whole matter requires fresh investiga-
tion, and especially experiments conducted regarding the powers of
self-fertilisation of the short- and mid-styled flowers.

The fruits of the fuchsia are a favourite food of the pigeon and
kaka, and the seeds are distributed far and wide by these birds. They
are insipid, but not unpleasing, especially to a youthful palate. To
the Maori thev were a welcome change of diet in a countrv devoid

*/ d? »/

of luscious fruits, and a special name, ' konini," was applied to
them.

The timber of the fuchsia is almost indestructible. It is extremely
strong and tough, but the gnarled trunk is of little value commercially.

* See also Chapter III, re fertilisation of flowers.
11— Plants.

152 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

It is, however, an ornamental wood, and can be used for inlaying and
turnery. As a firewood its badness is almost incredible, and truly
none but the newest of chums would dream of using it when camped
in the forest. ' Bucket-of-water wood," it has been termed ; and the
rather tall story goes how a trunk, which had been used for a back log
to a fire for a whole year, upon being finally cast into the open ail as
worthless, put forth green shoots, and grew again into a tree !

As a garden plant F. excorticata is not unpleasing ; but for a small
garden F. Colensoi is more to be recommended. Neither species will
tolerate much frost, although F. excorticata is abundant in the cold
mountain districts of the South Island. There is a distinctly hand-
some form with purple leaves ; but this is rare, and only in cultivation
in the gardens of one or two enthusiasts.

THE CLASSIFICATION OF THE PLANTS. 153

CHAPTER XII.

THE CLASSIFICATION OF THE PLANTS.

Popular plant-names and their defects — Advantage and meaning of scientific
names — Explanation of terms " genus " and 'k species ': —Principal divisions
of the plant kingdom — Rapid glance at the families and genera of New
Zealand flowering plants — Ferns, mosses, fungi, and algae — The slime fungi
partly animal, partly plant.

POPULAR NAMES.

CERTAIN New Zealand plants possess two kinds of names — popular
and scientific. The former are either English or Maori. The English
names are for the most part those which have been given by the early
settlers, partly from some likeness, real or fancied, to the plants of their
native land, and partly from some peculiar characteristic of the species
in question. To this latter category belong such names as lacebark,
ribbonwood, spiderwood, milk-tree, pincushion-plant ; and to the
former, birch, ash, honeysuckle. Some names have been bestowed
for jocular reasons — e.g., lawyer, wild-irishman, Spaniard, and nigger-
head. Finally, a few are the work of botanists who have sought,
vainly for the most part, to bring into use a nomenclature that should
have a more correct English equivalent for the scientific name — e.g.,
speedwell for Veronica, groundsel for Senecio, palm-lily instead of
cabbage-tree, beech instead of birch, &c. Some English names are
corruptions of Maori ones, as biddy-biddy for piripiri, cracker for
karaka, maple for mapou. This origin of names is quite an interesting-
study in recent word-making, and is well worth investigating.

The Maoris, living as they did in constant touch with nature,
possessed much more knowledge of the vegetable products of New
Zealand than do most of their more enlightened, but in some respects
degenerate, white brethren. For all the more common trees and
shrubs the Maoris have names. But both Maori and English names
are used loosely, some being applied to more than one species, or having
a different signification in different districts. Akeake is applied to
Dodonea viscosa, Olearia Traversii and 0. avicenniaefolia ; koromiko

154 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

is the name for several species of Veronica ; toetoe is the name for a
large number of grasslike plants, and totara for the lofty taxad
equally with the dwarf heath Styphelia Fraseri. Other instances
could be given, but these will suffice. Further, many plants have
neither a Maori nor an English name. From the above it may be seen
that the popular names are of no use when we wish to make an accurate
list of even the seed-plants of any locality, and that names having a
definite application must be used. For this reason the scientific
names have been designed.

SCIENTIFIC NAMES OF PLANTS.

The scientific names are in Latin. The use of Latin among learned
men dates, of course, from the time of the Romans ; but its applica-
tion to plants, as we now know them, began in the sixteenth century,
when modern botany was born. Latin was then the universal written
language of the learned, and the early botanical works \vere all written
in that tongue. This usage of Latin has proved very convenient in
practice, for it would lead to endless confusion did the plants bear the
popular names of their respective countries alone. As it is, a definite
scientific name is applied to one particular species, and to that only,
and such names are recognised by scientists, no matter what their
nationality.

^

Each scientific name consists of two words, the first denoting what
the genus is, and the second the species to which the plant belongs.

MEANING OF TERMS " SPECIES ' AND " GENUS."

To write down the. word " species ' is much easier than to define
what a species really is. In fact, when it comes to fixing the limits
of a species, scarcely two classifiers can agree. Elementary species,
as defined by De Vries (see Chapter I), are the units of the plant
kingdom. Such are those groups of plants which differ from all
others in certain distinct characteristics, and reproduce themselves
" true ' from seed. But this experimental method of separating
species is not yet in vogue, nor does it seem altogether practicable.

The species, then, of the classifiers are founded by the comparative
study of large numbers of individuals, and if a group of such has
some distinguishing characteristics which separate it from all
other groups of individuals, it is classed as a species. Such a group
of individuals may form a true species, which will reproduce its kind,

THE CLASSIFICATION OF THE PLANTS. 155

or it may be made up of a number of elementary species. Thus the
species of the botanist are by no means equal in value. In practice,
however, if a number of plants resemble one another almost exactly,
they may at once be concluded as belonging to the same species.

If a number of species agree in certain particulars so that we may
conclude they have descended from some common ancestor, they are
said to belong to the same genus, and we have the next wider group
of plants. Suppose we find a number of plants which, although they
differ much in stature, shape of leaves, habit of growth, size and colour
of flowers, and in other particulars, yet have all four petals, eight
stamens, the calyx-tube attached to the ovary, and produce after
flowering a narrow, elongated, 4-angled capsule, which splits open
from the apex downwards into four sections, revealing a large number
of seeds, each provided with a tuft of hairs at the apex, then all those
plants will belong to the genus Epilobium (fig. 63). These plants, again,
will vary much amongst themselves ; but groups having distinguishing
marks for each group can be found, and such groups will each repre-
sent a species. There are in New Zealand between thirty and forty
species of Epilobium, which are distinguished from one another by
distinctive marks, and each bears a name — e.g., Epilobium glabellum,
E. Hector i, E. y,ubens, &c.

Originally the second name had a meaning which was supposed
to be appropriate to the plant, but the number of specific names has
so increased during the past hundred years that it is no longer possible
always to find an appropriate appellation. So modern botany has
decreed that a specific name once given must stand for ever, even
where the name is quite inappropriate. This means that a name is
now considered merely as a name and nothing more, and need have no
meaning whatsoever.

Another matter which must be remembered is that generic differ-
ences generally depend on the structure of the flowers, and not on the
leaves. That a plant has leaves like a willow does not constitute it
a willow ; similar plant-form, as has been already shown in this
book, occurs amongst plants quite unrelated. Leaves, however,
amongst other characters, are made use of as marks of specific
differences.

Finally, before leaving this matter of names, it must be pointed
out that the naming of plants is merely a preliminary, though neces-
sary, study of the flora of a country. A man might easily know the

156

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

names of thousands of plants and be able to recognise the species at a
glance, but he would be no more a botanist than would another man be
an engineer who knew only the names of different kinds of engines
and their parts, but who was quite ignorant of their construction and

FIG. 63. — Epilobium chloraefolium.

[Photo, L. Cockayne.

management.

On the other hand, a man might know the names of
hardly a dozen plants and be a botanist of note.

Classification goes still further. A number of related genera make
a family, and so on, until such fundamental divisions of the plant

THE CLASSIFICATION OF THE IT. ANTS. 157

kingdom are reached as — slime-fungi, algae, fungi, liverworts, mosses,
ferns, conifers, seed-plants with one seed-leaf in the seedling, and seed-
plants with two seed-leaves in the seedling.

The families are now most frequently arranged according to the
manner in which they are supposed by some to have originated, the
more simple coming first and the more complex last. Thus, amongst
seed-plants the pine-tree family begins the list, and the daisy family
completes it.

Considering the seed-plants alone, New Zealand has between
fourteen and fifteen hundred species, about three-fourths of which
are found nowhere else, the number varying according to the com-
puter's conception of a species. Cheeseman gives 1,415 as the
number, but the writer's estimate is same what higher.

It would be out of place to go at any detail into the families and
genera, so only a few of the more interesting are mentioned. Neither
can any attempt be made to define the families, &c., in popular
language — a task of extreme difficulty, and, when accomplished, harder
for the beginner to understand than would be his learning the necessary
technical terms, which have a definite meaning and can be used with
precision.

THE FAMILIES AND GENERA.

The daisy family (Compositae) is the largest of our families. What
is popularly called the flower is not so, but is really a collection of
small flowers placed closely side by side upon the expanded summit
of the flower-stalk, and forming a " head." The cotton-plants, or
mountain-daisies (Celmisia), the groundsels (Senecio), the vegetable-
sheep and its relatives (Raoulia), the cotulas and the helichrysums
belong to this order. Many are amongst the most striking of our
plants, both in form and flower.

The bluebell family (Campanulaceae} has not many representatives
with us. It contains the New Zealand bluebell (Wahlenbcrgia saxicola),
whose white or bluish flowers are so conspicuous a feature of the upland
meadow, and the pretty white pratias which are related to the well-
known lobelia of gardens.

The madder family (Rubiaceae) contains the large genus Coprosma,
which is closely related to the coffee-plant. Coprosmas can always be
recognised by the male and female flowers being on different plants,
and bv the berrv-like fruit containing two plano-convex stones.

*/ «/ -L

158 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

C. grandifolia has very large leaves and reddish-orange drupes,
and is common in North Island forests, and extends south as far
as Grevmouth and Kaikoura. C. Petriei forms a close turf in the

«/

drier South Island mountains, and has large port-wine-coloured
drupes, which occasionally are white and translucent. Many co-
prosmas are shrubs of a dense habit of growth, with slender inter-
lacing branches.

The ngwort family (Scrophuhrinaceae) contains the very large
genus Veronica and other genera of showy plants (Ourisia, Mimulus,
Euphrasia, &c.).

The convolvulus family (Convolvulaceae] contains the beautiful
climbing-convolvulus (Calystegia tuguriorum) and the lovely purple
Ipomaea palmata of the shores of northern Auckland.

The borage family (Boraginaceae) comprises the forget-me-nots.

A little lower down the scale come the gentians (Gentidnaceae) .
Owing to the bitter principle in their roots, these plants are not
relished by stock. Possibly the root could be used as a tonic, like
that of the European Gentiana lutea.

There is only one plant of the primrose family (Primulaceae) ,
Samolus re-pens, a prostrate, white-flowered plant forming broad
patches in salt meadows.

The heath family (Ericaceae and Epacridaceae] is important, as it
contains many common shrubby plants. Dracophyllum, with needle-
like leaves, and GauItJieria, with lily-of-the-valley-like flowers, are the
most important genera.

The carrot family (Umbelliferae) is well represented, and contains
one of the most remarkable genera of the flora, Aciphylla.

The willowherb family (Onagraceae] is represented by the large
genus Epilobium. The species are not yet well known, and they are
difficult for a beginner to determine. Some are distinctly pretty-
e.g., E. pallidiflorum, E. macropus, E. vernicosum. Others become
terrible weeds in an alpine garden — e.g., E. nummulari folium. E.
linnaeoides. The fuchsias belong to this same family. Other related
plants, though belonging to a different family, are the myrtles and
ratas, both of which include some beautiful species — e.g., Myrtus
bullata and Metrosideros lucida (Myrtaceae).

The mallow is a very showy family (Malvaceae], and contains some
small trees most valuable for garden purposes, as the lacebarks and
ribhonwoods.

THE CLASSIFICATION OF TMF PLANTS.

159

r>* > '

i r

*»•'••

••

v

^:r*

i

r

7 ,
V ' »

N - -

> -;

r*

•x

\r

i ?

--.

^ -| r \

,

I
0:>

& vlif

-*».

= =

^ rl

C: —

^ •-

^ -

^- ~

00

f *».

•S

*^— -v*

x^ -»

V. P-

-

•<

5

160 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

To the Elaeocarpaceae belongs the native currant (AristoteUa race-
mosa), one of the " fire weeds" of New Zealand — i.e., a plant which
comes up abundantly after a forest is burned. Here also comes that
fine tree the hinau (Elaeocarpus dentatus) and the pokaka (E. Hookcri-
anus), with its distinct juvenile and adult forms.

The New Zealand geraniums belong to the family Geraniaceae.
They are generally rather insignificant, though their first cousins the
pelargoniums of gardens, incorrectly termed geraniums, are amongst
the most showy of plants.

To the pea family (Leguminosae) belong the New Zealand brooms
(Carmichaelia) (fig. 64), of which there are nineteen species, all of
which have remarkable contrivances against drought. Here also
comes the yellow kowhai (Sophora micropJu/lla and its allies), and
a rare mountain - plant, Swainsona novae-zelandiae, of Australian
affinities. Then there is the parrotbill (Clianthus puniceus), which is
related to Sturt's desert-pea of central Australia.

The rose family (Rosaceae) lacks in New Zealand the true roses,
but is represented by the genera Eubus (five species or more), to
which belongs the bush-lawyer ; Geum (six species, all but one
mountain-plants) ; Potentitta (one species) ; and Acaena, to which
belong the species of piripiri — plants very unlike roses.

The pitchy-seed family (Pittosporaceae) is common in all our forests.
The genus can be recognised by the large capsules, which, when they
open, contain black seeds imbedded in very sticky matter. P. toud-
jolium, so largely used as a hedge plant, is wrongly called matipo by
the gardeners, which is the name for various species of Suttonia.

Saxifrages (Saxifragaceae), plants so essentially alpine, are wanting
in New Zealand ; but we have some forest-trees belonging to the
family — e.g., the putaputaweta (Carpodetus serratus}. Weinmanma
racemosa, called red-birch in Westland, is very common, and belongs
to the Cunoniaceae, a most closely related family.

The sundews (Drosera) belong to the family Droseraceae. There
are six New Zealand species in the genus.

The magnificent magnolias of America and Asia (Magnoliaceae] are
absent from our forests, their representatives being shrubs with rather
insignificant flowers, the pepper-tree (Drimt/s nxillaris, D. coloratn^
D. Traversii), a relation of the well-known Winter's bark of South
America.

THE CLASSIFICATION OF THE PLANTS.

161

The buttercup family (Ranunculaceae) contains, besides the butter-
cups, of which there are about forty New Zealand species, the charm-
ing clematises (fig. 65), and an alpine genus (('(tltha) containing two
species, which have a most curiously lobed leaf.

•

FIG. 65. — Clematis afoliata.

m

[Plioto, J. Collins.

The mustard or cabbage family (Cruciferae) are mostly plants
with rather insignificant flowers. Lepidium is the most important

162 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

New Zealand genus, and L. oleraceum, Cook's scurvy-grass, the most
celebrated plant.

To Loranthaceae belong the mistletoes.

The nettle family (Urticaceae) is distinguished by the appropriately
named shrubby nettle, Urtica ferox.

The beeches (Fagaceae) have been noted when dealing with the
beech forests in Chapter III.

To the pepper family (Piperaceae) belong the kawakawa (Macro-
piper excelsum) and the succulent herb Peperomia Endlicheri.

Among the seed-plants which have only one seed-leaf in the seed-
ling comes the important family of orchids (Orchidaceae), of which we
have between fifty and sixty species, some few of which live upon
trees and have aerial roots.

To the iris family (Iridaceae) belong the pretty and easily culti-
vated libertias.

The lily family contains the palm-lilies (Cordyline, cabbage-tree),
and the New Zealand flax, of which there are two species, P. tenax
and P. Cookianum, as ahead v noted.

«/

The palm family (Palmae) has two representatives — the nikau
(Rhopalostylis sapida), and one found only on the Kermadec Islands,
in the New Zealand region, but extending to Norfolk Island, R. Bauer i
by name.

The rush family (Juncaceae) is an extensive one, consisting of the
alpine or subantarctic Rostkovia, the true rushes (Juncus), and the
wood-rushes (Luzula).

The sedge family (Cyperaceae) contains many genera, some of
which are frequently mistaken for rushes and others for grasses.
Rushes, however, have flowers with small but distinct outer leaves ;
grasses have hollow jointed stems and leaves with split sheaths; and
sedges, &c., have solid stems, frequently angular, and the leaf-sheaths
not split.

The grasses (Gramineae) are almost the most important natural
order, for their economic value cannot be overestimated. Some of
the species are of extraordinary size — e.g., Arundo conspicua, Dau-
thonia Cunninyhfunii, and D. ant<urtiea, this latter belonging to the
subantarctic islands. Others are extremely minute, as Agrostis
muscosa, which forms small cushions on bare, wet ground in the
subalpine and montane regions, and even occurs at sea -level in some
places.

THE CLASSIFICATION OF THE PLANTS. 163

The pine-trees, belonging to two families (Pinaceae and Taxaceae),
conclude the seed-plants, and differ from all treated of above in that
the ovules are naked and not enclosed in a closed chamber (ovary).
The most curious of our taxads is PhijUocladus, whose "leaves' are
really flattened stems, which in appearance exactly resemble leaves.
True leaves, however, are to be seen on seedling plants.

THE LOWER PLANTS.

The seed-plants do not by any means comprise the whole of the
New Zealand flora. There are, for example, more than a hundred
and fifty species of ferns and their allies, including one genus, Loxsoma,
peculiar to New Zealand.

Ferns differ greatly in their form and the texture of their leaves.
Some possess two different kinds of leaves — namely, those which bear
spores and those which do not, the latter having generally a larger
area of surface. The genus Blechnum is especially distinguished by
its two forms of leaves. Generally the leaf-surface is more or less
vertical ; but in Gleichenia it is horizontal, whence the species of that
genus get the name of ''umbrella-ferns'1 (fig. 66). To the genera
H ymenophyUum and Trichomanes belong the beautiful filmy ferns.
The leaves of these ferns are generally much divided, but those of the
kidney-fern (Trichomanes reniforme) are entiie. This fern, notwith-
standing its thin leaves,* often grows in remarkably dry stations, as on
Rangitoto Island, near Auckland City.

The mosses and liverworts embrace hundreds of species living
under all kinds of conditions, and varying in size from the giant
Dawsonia superba, 2 ft. or more tall, to tiny species of liverworts
(Frulania, &c.) clinging to the bark of trees. Very interesting is the
way in which both mosses and liverworts build up great cushions in
stations where the air is almost constantly saturated with moisture.
In the forests of Stewart Island, but chiefly in the south and west, the

*/

cushions look just like moss-covered boulders (fig. 67). f

Low down in the scale of plant-life come those most wonderful
plants, the fungi, whose life-histories are as marvellous as any fairy
tale, and of which little or nothing was known fifty years ago. Now

* It has thicker leaves than the other filmy ferns.

"|" Moss-cushions are frequent in the subalpine zone on the west of the South
Island. On Mount Rochfort. near Westport, the moss-cushions are magnificent

164

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

their study is of the highest economic importance, and plant patho-
logists are employed by 'all progressive countries. One example of a
New Zealand fungus must suffice. In the Nothofagus forests the boles
of the larger tiees are covered in many instances with a thick coating
of a coal-black hue, which gives the trunks the appearance of having
been plastered thickly with soot, and tends to enhance the gloomy
character of the interior of these forests. This coating consists of a
fungus, Antennaria by name, which is especially interesting from the
manner in which it gets its food-supply. Antennaria belongs to the

' x

VST' S. *™

•r.^.V

v^:r#

^ -'rS

I

•' ' ' '-/•• !

4--Y -4r , r-. % K ,
"

Q^

I * "V'.i ' - • '^ - -,- * J*-

. 6f5. — The Umbrella -fern (Gleichenia Cunninghamii).

Lands Department.]

[Photo, L. Cockayne.

group of " honey-dew fungi," so named because, they utilise as food
the exudation excreted by certain insects. If a, piece of the plant be
examined carefully, there will be found imbedded in its interior
numerous reddish insects somewhat resembling tiny wood-lice, sur-
rounded with white fluffy material like cotton-wool. These are scale-
insects related to the well-known Coccus cacti, from which the colour-
ing-matter cochineal is made. This beech-coccus exudes considerable
quantities of a sweet sticky fluid, on which the black fungus feeds;

THE CLASSIFICATION OF THE PLANTS.

165

• o

~z ~

i- C

— _

+^

-g

(— '
i-H

^5
cS

on

o

*-^
o

,^ i -I

go

•3

166 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

while at the same time the scale-insect lives warm and snug under
the protection of its sooty covering. Antennaria can also exist
without its animal lodger and the rent which it pays in kind, but
in this case I have been informed that the fungus changes its
habit of growth somewhat in accordance with its altered circum-
stances.

After the fungi come the algae, salt water and fresh. Macrocystis,
a brown seaweed, attains an enormous size, and lengths of many
hundreds of feet are not unknown ; indeed, this plant may be the
famous "sea-serpent."

Then we have the bacteria — the " microbes " of the newspapers — all
innnitesimally minute plants ; some the greatest of benefactors, and
others the deadly enemies of mankind. And finally come the slime-
fungi (Myxomycetes), which may be seen as masses of jelly on rotten
wood, and which, moreover, are at one period of their existence animals,
and at another plants !

THE CULTIVATION OF THE PLANTS. 167

CHAPTER XIII.

THE CULTIVATION OF THE PLANTS.

Indigenous giants suitable for school-grounds — Difficulty of growing native plants
much exaggerated — Methods of collecting and propagating — Plants suitable
for growing from cuttings or from seeds — The school-garden — List of native
plants suitable for schools — Cultivation of alpine plants — List of easily grown
alpines.

THAT the plants of New Zealand afford rich material of a most varied
kind for nature-study in our schools should be fairly manifest to
readers of the previous chapters. Many facts, of course, can be best
learnt in the field ; but most of the centres of population are far from
the virgin vegetation, while the plants of the neighbourhood will
generally be interlopers from abroad. In order, therefore, to become
really familiar with the indigenous plants, and to watch them at
various stages of growth and at all seasons, they must be cultivated ;
and almost every school in the Dominion might have, at any rate, one
bed, even if quite a small one, of the native plants. The gums, oaks,
" macrocarpas," and other foreign trees now grown for shade or orna-
ment in the school-grounds may be seen everywhere, and each school
throughout the land might gradually replace or supplement them by
those New Zealand trees best suited to the particular locality. Thus
would the schools as a whole become sanctuaries where the native
plants, one of the peculiar features and special glories of the land,
would be safe for all time.

But it may be urged that such planting would not be feasible, since
every one knows "the native plants are particularly difficult to grow,
and when removed from their home in the forests or elsewhere will
die." Such an opinion, although widespread, is quite erroneous.
It is the rough treatment so frequently accorded to the specimens,
first on their being collected, and afterwards when planted, that causes
failure, and not any special difficulty in their cultivation ; indeed,
many are quite as easy to grow as the rank and file of garden plants.

There is no reason why, for instance, the kowhai, manuka, lace-
bark, ribbonwood. lancewood, totara, large clematis, Coprosma robusta,

19 — Plnnt.c

168 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

kauri, pittosporums, and various other forest-plants, as well as almost
all the members of the subalpine scrub, should not be cultivated
almost anywhere. The mistake so frequently made is to attempt
the impossible — i.e.., trying to grow a plant in a climate quite unsuit-
able. It is unreasonable, for example, to expect that the majority
of lowland North Island trees can be grown in Canterbury, Otago,
and Southland, just as it is hardly wise to try to cultivate
plants of alpine and subantarctic meadows in the hottest or driest
localities.

For the successful cultivation of many of our plants no particular
soil or situation is required. Perhaps, on the wrhole, a slightly shady
position is best. It is well, too, to have some shelter against high
winds, especially at first. Such shelter can be supplied by certain
indigenous trees — e.g., species of Pittosporutn, Olearia Traversii, Senecio
rotundifolius, Coprosma Baueri (not hardy everywhere), Coprosma
robusta, and Veronica elliptica. Of course, an accurate knowledge as
to the situation in which a plant grows naturally is of extreme value,
and the method of studying the plant societies adopted in this book is
of moment in this respect. But this is not all. It must have been
seen by the reader that one particular species may grow in most diverse
stations, and that another may grow in a wet place which is physio-
logically dry. For instance, because a plant grows in a sphagnum
bog, it would not necessarily be wise to plant it in a very wet part of a
garden. To attempt to grow the lovely Olearia semidentata of the
Chathams in such a place would be to court disaster ; it must be
grown in well-drained ground where there is good shelter. Nor because
the great forget-me-not of the same group is a sea-shore plant need one
despair to cultivate it inland. In short, an acquaintance with natural
conditions combined with experimental planting is a necessity for a
full knowledge as to the cultural requirements of our plants.

METHODS OF PROPAGATION AND COLLECTING.

Quite a number of New Zealand plants can now be procured
cheaply at some of the nurseries, and from such many will obtain
what they may require. However, there will always be some who
prefer to collect what takes their fancy in the forest, on the hillsides,
or elsewhere. This, as well as being a healthy and delightful occupa-
tion, will stock a garden with mementos of many ;i happy hour, and
will recall scenes of beauty.

THE CULTIVATION OF THE PLANTS. 169

As to the digging-implement, something light, strong, and easily
carried is required. For many years the writer has used a shingling-
hammer with the head beaten out into a small pick-axe, a tool first
designed by the late Mr. H. J. Matthews. By means of this the
strong-rooted plants of an alpine meadow may be attacked, large
stones cleared away, and so on. Within the forest, small seedling
trees and shrubs are in plenty. But, rather than secure those of the
forest-shade, procure those of the outskirts, which are exposed to
more sun and wind ; and in such a situation the majority of the forest
trees and shrubs, from the lordly kauri to the wiry-twigged coprosmas,
may be found, while the smaller the plants are the better. These,
when dug up, should be quite freed from soil, nothing being gained by
taking up great pieces of earth. The roots should next be closely
wrapped round with wet moss, using bog-moss for preference. Alpine
plants, too, can be mossed similarly. Finally, to save room and
conserve moisture, a number of such plants can be tied into one
bundle, the mossed roots being all together. It is astonishing
how long plants will remain in good condition if treated in this
manner.

These collected plants, upon being brought home, should be planted
in boxes or potted, or put into nursery-beds in a shady part of the
garden. Of course, if there is a greenhouse, frame, or, better still, a
shade-house or plant-protector fitted with a blind, into one or other
of these the boxes or pots should go. Some species, difficult to grow
from seed or to strike from cuttings, are best collected in their habitats
— e.g., many alpine herbaceous plants and subshrubs, various species
of Dracophf/Uum, orchids of all kinds, Gunnera, Dacrydium laxi folium,
the various beeches, and the species of GauUheria. Cuttings in many
instances will serve as well as if not better than young plants. The
following may be propagated in this manner : Veronica, Olearia, Sene-
cio, Cassinia, Aristotelia, Myrtus, Griselinia, Eubus, Podocarpus totara,
P. nivalis, Gaya. Cuttings are best taken in the autumn, and should
be struck in coarse sand in a shady place. If placed in pots or pans,
those pieces pressed against the edge of the pot have the best chance.
They can be struck also in a shady, some even in quite a sunny place
in the open. The ground should be kept damp, but not sodden with
water.

Most New Zealand plants suitable for gardens can be raised from
seed. This should be as fresh as possible. Species of the following

170 ^UW ZEALAND PLANTS.

genera usually germinate with great ease : Sophora, Carmichaelia,
Veronica, Epilobium, Pittosporum, Melicytus, Pennantia, Hohcrin.
Celmisia, Hymenanthera, Gaya. Plagianthus, Fuchsia, Muehlenbeekia,
Calystegia, Notospartimn, Acaena, Rubus, Clematis, Leptospermum, and
Coprosma. Small seeds should be covered with very little soil. Seeds
are much better sown in boxes or pots than in the soil of the open
border. The soil in which they are sown should consist of 50 per
cent, or more of coarse sand.

So far as a school-garden is concerned, it is quite out of the question
to draw up any general scheme. Everything depends upon the situa-
tion of the school, the enthusiasm of the master, and, above all, on
the interest of the scholars. Perhaps one rather narrow bed alongside
a fence, and out of the way of damage during the play-hour, would
in many instances meet the case. In other places certain corners
here and there would possess special advantages. The ground should
be dug deeply and the drainage be good. Every plant should be
labelled distinctly but not obtrusively. As wrell as the name, the
place where the plant was collected should be noted. Labels may be
made of some durable wood (totara, for instance), zinc,* or iron. As
for the plants to be cultivated, that also will depend upon teachers
and pupils. At any rate, it is better to grow a few well than to have
many neglected.

The following plants are easy of cultivation and not difficult to
procure :—

TREES. — Sophora grandiftora, S. microphylla (kowhai) ; Plagianthus
betulinus (ribbonwoocl) ; Gaya Lyallii, G. ribi folia (mountain-ribbon-
wood) ; Hoheria (any of the species), (lacebark) ; Griselinia littoralis
(broadleaf), G. lucida, where hardy ; Pseudopanax crassifolium, P.
chathamica (lancewood) ; PhyUocladus trichomanoides (tanekaha, celery-
top pine) ; Nothopanax arboreum (ivy-tree) ; Meryta Sindairii (puka).
where hardy ; Metrosideros tomentosa (pohutukawa). where hard}' :
Agathis australis (kauri) ; Cory nocar pus laevigata (karaka), where
hardy ; Vitex lucens (puriri), where hardy ; Pennantia corymbosa
(kaikomako) ; Pittosporum Ralphii, P. cugenioides (tarata), P. tcnui-
jolhim (tawhiri), P. crassifolium; Brachy<ilottix reparul<i (rangiora),
where hardy ; Phebalium nudum ; Leptospermum ericoides (tree-
manuka) ; Myoporum laetum (ngaio). where hardy ; Olcaria Trarersii

* Zinc labels can be easily written upon, using as ink a solution of sulphate
of copper.

THE CULTIVATION OF THE PLANTS. 171

(Chatham Island akeake) ; ( 'ordt/line australis (palm-lily) ; Xolhufayus
fusca, N. cliffortioides, N. Solandri (native beeches).

SHRUBS. — A selection of distinct veronicas — e.g., V. Trarcr.sii, V.
Dieffenbachvi, V. buxifolia, V. elliptica, V. anomala, V. cupressoides,
V. Lavaudiana, V. Hulkeana, V. pinguifolia, V. Hectori, V. salici folia.
V. macrocarpa, V. diosmaefolia, V. ehathamica, V. decumbens. Any
of the taller-growing veronicas, if they become too big, can be cut out
altogether and replaced by young plants grown from cuttings. There
should be a selection of olearias — e.g., 0. nitida, 0. avicenniae folia,
0. ciryata, 0. ilicifolia, 0. Solandri ; in fact, almost any can easily
be grown except 0. semidentata, 0. anyustifolia, and others of that
class, and even these grow well in south Otago, Westland, and South-
land. Most senecios are easy to cultivate, and are very showy when
in full bloom — e.g., S. compactus, S. perdicioides, 8. Greyii, S. laxifolius,
S. Monroi. Other shrubs easy of cultivation are the carmichaelias
(native brooms), Notospartium Carmichaeliae (pink broom), the cas-
sinias, many of the coprosmas, Melicope simplex, Myrtus bullata,
M. obcordata, M. pedunculata.

LIANES. — The various species of Eubus are interesting plants. R.
australis, with its great mass of white blossoms, is handsome when in
bloom ; R. schmidelioides goes through a juvenile and adult form,
the former having much thinner leaves, and occurring usually on the
forest-floor : and R. cissoides var. pauperatus makes a pretty bush,
partly owing to its yellow prickles, and has a very curious appearance,
with its leaves reduced to midribs. Then there is Senecio sciadophilus
(the climbing-groundsel), and the various species of clematis.

FERNS. — Here, again, it all depends upon the climate of the pro-
posed garden. In many parts of the North Island (the Manawatu,
Taranaki, and parts of Auckland), tree-ferns, especially the black tree-
fern (Cyaihea medullaris), thrive splendidly in the open, and a grove
of these may be made a striking feature. But in many districts the

»/ «/

most shaded positions alone must be chosen, or even a special structure
would need building for the ferns to thrive. The following are some
of the most easily grown species : Cyathea tnedullaris, C. dealbata
(silver tree-fern), Dicksonia squarrosa. D. fibrosa, Asplenium bulbi-
ferum, A. lucidum, Polystichum vestitum, P. Richardi, A<!i<nitmn
affine, Hypolepis tenui folium, Pteris incisa, P. scaberula, Blechnum
fluviatile, B. capense, B. discolor, Poly podium penniyerum, P. Bil-
lardieri, P. serpens, Xephrodium hispidum, Pellaea rotundifolia.

172 NE\V ZEALAND PLANTS.

ALPINE PLANTS.

Perhaps a formal rockery, or a special alpine garden, may seem
altogether too ambitious for a school-garden. Still, the New Zealand
mountain-plants yield such instructive material for study, and are so
beautiful or curious, that a few, at any rate, should be grown ; and
there is usually some shady corner that might be spared for these
plants. Also, a good deal can be done in the way of providing a suit-
able growing-place by the aid of a few bricks or stones, especially if
there be an abundant water-supply.

Of all forms of flower-gardening, this growing of alpine plants is
the most fascinating. During recent years the alpine garden has
become firmly established in Europe as an indispensable part of any
garden of note. In scientific establishments, too, the cultivation of
alpine plants is pursued with vigour. The new Botanic Gardens of
Berlin have a great rockery, arranged on plant-geographical prin-
ciples, to represent the different alpine floras of Europe. Some day,
when we in New Zealand have what we ought to possess, a national
botanic garden, it may there be possible to reproduce the different
plant societies of New Zealand. The Royal Botanic Gardens of
Edinburgh have the finest collection of alpine plants in Britain, and
are specially rich in New Zealand species. Many of the Continental
universities have their alpine gardens high in the Alps, where the
effect of an alpine climate on the form and structure of plants can be
studied.*

As for growing New Zealand alpine plants, the method entirely
depends upon the climate of the locality. At Invercargill, in many
parts of Dunedin and its environs, on the west coast of the South
Island, and probably at many places in the interior of the North
Island, alpine plants can be grown with the greatest ease in the ordi-
nary flower-border, any special construction, such as a, rockery, being
quite superfluous for many species. But in some parts of New Zea-
land, and in certain soils, it is quite otherwise. The grand secret of
growing New Zealand ' alpines ' is to give them perfect drainage, a,
shady but quite open position, and plenty of water. Where the drain-
age is absolutely perfect, it is hardly possible to overdo the watering

'':A garden of this kind is being established at the ('ass, in the mountains
of Canterbury, by Canterbury College 'New Zealand University).

THE CULTIVATION OF THE PLANTS,

173

174

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS^

in a dry climate. In a wet one the natural rainfall may be enough.
To procure this good drainage, in many cases a rockery is useful
(fig. 68). It is also a fact that some few plants which root deeply
love to press their roots far between the stones ; and, finally, a raised
bed is advantageous for displaying the smaller plants. As for the
rock, some kind that will crumble with the weather is the best ; but
bricks are far from being a bad substitute, although an ugly one. As
well as stone, there must be plenty of light soil. Sweet, peaty soil is
good ; a foundation of small stones is also excellent. Each individual

FIG. 69. — Viola Cunninghamii, the common New Zealand Violet.

[Photo, J. Crosby-Smitli.

plant should be allowed a fair proportion of soil. Small shrubs,
planted here and there, are effective, giving both a natural appearance
and affording shelter. In eastern Canterbury the nor'-wester is the
bane of the alpine gardener. The sou' -wester does little harm, but the
constant east wind is better blocked out.

With management, nearly all the New Zealand alpine plants can
be grown ; but some are difficult to manage, even in the most favour-
able gardens. The following are some of the easier-grown of the

THE CULTIVATION OF THK PLANTS.

175

13— Plants.

176 XEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

herbaceous plants : Ranunculus insignis, R. lobulatus, R. Enysii, Viola
Cunninghamii (fig. 69), Oxalis magellanica, Geum parviftorum, Epilo-
bium gracilipes, Myosotis australis, M. decora., Cotula pyrethrifolia
(fig. 70), Raoulia australis, R. tenuicaulis, R. subsericea, Acaena
microphylla, A. glabra, Ourisia macropkylla, Celmisia verbasci folia, C.
rigida, C. Lindsayi, C. Mackaui, C. coriacea, C. spectabilis, Angelica
Gingidium, Brachycome Sinclairii, Helickrysum beUidioides, Gnaplia-
lium trinerve. The following are small, shrubby plants : Carmichaelia
nana, C. Monroi, Veronica epacridea, V. loganioides, Rubus parvus,
Veronica Gibbsii, Coprosma repens.

Any of the taller subalpine scrub plants can be used, and can be
replaced by smaller specimens when they get too big. In fact, the
plants to be made use of will depend so much on the size and situation
of the alpine garden that hints regarding what to grow are not of
much use. Moreover, the enthusiastic collector will bring home all
sorts of plants, regardless of their capabilities, and the success of the
alpine garden will be due entirely to his own energy, and to the know-
ledge he will acquire in the school of experience.

APPENDIX

DIFFERENCES IN NOMENCLATURE OF SPECIES AS CITED IN
THIS BOOK AND IN CHEESEMAN'S "MANUAL OF THE NEW
ZEALAND FLORA."

Xame as in " New Zealand Plants and their
Story."

Name as in Cheestmian's "Manual of the Xew
Zealand Flora."

Aciphylla antipoda.

,, carnosula.

,, latifolia.
Agropyron repens.f

,, scabrum.

Ammophila arenaria.t
Asplenium adiantoides. *t
Blechnum capense.

,, discolor.

,, durum.

,, iiliforme.

,, fluviatile.

,, Fraseri.
Broraus hordeaceus.t
Cassinia albida.
Crassula moschata.
Danthonia antarctica.*t

„ tlavescens.

Dracophyllum arboreum.
Epilobium erectum.
Gaya ribifolia.
Hoheria angustifolia.

„ sexstylosa.
Lagenophora pumila.*f
Luzuriaga marginata.f
Macropiper excelsum.
Myriophyllura Votschii.
Nothofagus cliffortioides.
fusca.

Ligusticum antipodum.
,, carnosulum.

,, latit'olium.

Agropyrum repens.

,, scabrum.

Ammophila arundinacea.
Asplenium falcatum.
Lomaria capensis.
discolor.
,, dura.
,, filiformis.
,, rluviatilis.
,, Fraseri.
Bromus mollis.

Cassinia Vauvilliersii car. albida.
Tillaea moschata.
Danthonia bromoides.

,, Raoulii var. flavescens.

Dracophyllum scoparium var. major.
Epilobium junceum car. macrophyllum.
Gaya Lyallii var. ribifolia.
Hoheria populnea var. angustifolia.

,, lanceolata.

Lagenophora Forsteri.
Enargea marginata.
Piper excelsum.

Myriophyllum pedunculatum (in part}.
Fagus cliffortioides.
fusca.

* Change recognised by Cheeseman since the publication of Manual.

t Change in accordance with the International Rules of Botanical Nomenclature of 1906.

178

XEVV ZEALAND PLAXTS.

DIFFERENCES IN NOMENCLATURE — continued.

Xame as in " Xew Zealand Plants and their Xame as in Cheeseman's "Manual of the Xew
Storv." Zealand Flora."

Notkofagus Menziesii.
„ Solandri.

Kothopanax anomalum.
,, arboreum.

Olearia cymbifolia.*
Paratrophis opaca.f
Plagianthus chathamicus.
Plantago carnosa (?).
Polystichum Richard i.
„ vestitum.

Pteridium esculentum.
Ranunculus lobulatus.

,, multiscapus.

Rapanea Urvillei.
Senecio scorzoneriojd.es.
Silene anglica.|
Sophora grandiflora.
,, microphylla.
,, prostrata.
Styphelia acerosa.
,, fasciculata.
,, Richei.
,, robusta.
Tetrapathaea australis.
Veronica buxifolia car. odora.

gigantea.
,, glaucophylla.

Fagus Menziesii.

,, Solandri.
Panax anomalum.
,, arboreum.

Olearia nummularifolia rar. cymbifolia.
Paratrophis Banksii.
Plagianthus betulinus.
Plantago Brownii.
Aspidium Richardi.

,, aculeatum car. vestitum.
Pteris aquilina var. esculenta.
Ranunculus insignis var. lobulatus.

,, lappaceus i~ar. multiscapus.

Myrsine Urvillei.

Senecio Lyallii var. scorzonerioides.
Silene gallica.

Sophora tetraptera var. grandiflora.
,, microphylla.

,, prostrata.

Cyathodes acerosa.
Leucopogon fasciculata.

,, Richei.

Cyathodes robusta.
Passiflora tetrandra.
Veronica buxifolia v(tr. patens.

„ salicifolia car. gigantea.
Considered synotuimon.^ tcith Veronica
Darwiniana.

* Change recognised by Cheeseman since the publication of Manual.

| Change in accordance with the International Rules of Botanical Nomenclature of HHiti.

INDEX

A.

A<'d< iia

. . *"
97,

glabra . . ..

,, microphylla . . . .

,, uorae-zealandiae . . 124,

,, Sanguisorbae . . . .

,, „ var. antarctic a

Aciphylld .. .. 89,

leaves of . . . .

,, (intipoda . . 117,

,, carnosnla . . 97,

,, Colensoi var. conspicua . .

117,

,, Dieffenbachii . .

Dobsoni . .

bit i folia . .

,, Monroi . . . .

,, simplex . . . .

,, T racer si i . . . .

Ackama rosae folia . . . .

Adaptations of alpine plants . .

,, of Azolla . . . .

of bog-plants . .

,, of coastal plants . .

,, of heath-plants . .

,, of shingle-slip plants

of Sphagnum . .

of vegetable-sheep . .

,, of water-plants . .

of weeds . . . .

Adiantum a/fine . . . .

Agathis austral is . . 39, 43,

At/rratiim conxyioides . . . .

A'/ropi/ron re pens .. 136,

,, scab ram . . . .

Agropyrwm repens . . . .

,, scabrum . . . .

Agrostis muscosa . . . .

Aka . . . . . .

Akeake, application of name . .

,, of Chatham Island . .

Albatros .. .. ..

Aleurites moluccana . . . .

Alga, in Azolla . . . .

„ in fiuniit-ra

Page

160
176
176
129
129
118

158

103

177

177

89

59

124

89

177

89

88

124

46

100

105

110

63

54

97

Ill

98

106

8

171
170
125
177
177
177
177
1(52
30
153
170
118
125
106
113

71, 131

Algae . .
„ fresh-water

in hot springs

Alpine plants, adaptations of
cultivation of
,, Mowers of

American water weed
Ammophibi arenaria . .

,, arundinacea

Anagosperma dispermum
Ancestral forms
Animals, effect on spread of weed'

,, of guano
Aniseed
Antarctic burr
Antarctica, fossil Mora of

,, land-connection with.

Antennaria
Antipodes Island
Araucaria

., brazil ia tia

,, excelsa

1615
107
108
100
172

89
107
177
177

52

(52
132
120

80
118
7

47, 164
114, 118
43

7
7

7
Archer ia Traversii . . . . ,->9

AristoteUd fruticoxa . , . . 60

,, racemosa . . 38, 160

Arthtopodium cirrhatum . . 79

Arundo conspicua .. 54, 73, 162

Aspidium aculeatum var. rc.^titum 178

Ricliardi . . . . 17S

As pie ilium adiantoides . . 35, 177

,, bulbiferum . . . . 171

,, falcatum . . . . 177

flaccid um . . . . 177

lucid n m . . . . 171

,, obtusatum . . . . 80

Astelid, a f pi n i' . . . . . . 95

,, as epiphyte . . . . 24

79

.. 27
43
6(i
81

11(5,117
.. 74
105

,, Sola nd r t
„ iriiurria
. \tfipbx Bilbirdii ri
Atropi-^ xfrict'i . .
Auckland islands
A vicen n ia officiii -ills
Azolla rub rn

180

XE\V ZEALAND PLANTS.

B.

Bacteria

Banks, Sir Joseph

Beech

„ coccus . .
,, its distribution
„ entire-leaved
„ forest
,, mountain
,, red
,, silver
Beilschmiedia terrain'

,, tawa

Benham, Dr. W. B.
Berlin Botanic Garden . .
Biddy- biddy
Bidwill, J. T. . .
Birch

,, red, of Westland . .
Birds, fertilization by
Bladderwort
Bleclinum

,, capense
,, discolor
,, durum
,, fili forme
,, fluviatilf
,, Fraseri
Blights
Blue-bell, the New Zealand

family
Bluegrass
Blue-tussock

Bog

,, plants, adaptations of
,, Central Plateau
,, Chatham Island
„ moss

,, ,, for packing plants
„ physiological dry ness of
,, umbrella-fern
Borage family . .
Boraginaceae
Botanic garden, Berlin . .

,, Edinburgh

Bounty Islands
Brachycome Sindairii
Brachyglottis x panda
Bracken fern
Broadleaf
Brome-grass, soft
Brotmus hordeaceus

,, in oil is
Broom, New Zealand

,, pink
Buchanan, J. . .

Page

Page

Bulbinella Rossii

117

132. 166

Burning, effect of
Burr, antarctic

132
118

14

Bush-lawyer

160

5, 161

Buttercup

161

.. 164

family

161

49

49

. . 8, 47

c.

49

.. 49

A t~\

Cabbage family

1(51

49

tree . . . . 73, 137,

1(52

43, 46

„ dwarf

53

43, 46

Calceolaria

5

5

California!! thistle

136

.. 172

Caltha

161

.. 153

Calystegia Solda nella

66

22

,, tuguriorum . . 121,

158

.. 153

Campanulaceae

157

160 Canavalia obtnsi folia

125

39 Canterbury College, alpine garden of

172

.. 113

Carex Dancinii var. urolepis

6

.. 163

,, litorosa . .

81

109, 171, 177

,, pnmila . .

73

171, 177

,, secta

109

80, 177

„ trifida

6

32, 81, 177

Carmichaelia . . . . 60, 86,

160

171, 177

,, australis

55

46, 177

,, Monroi

176

.. 131

„ nana

17(5

.. 157

Carpodetus serratus . . 37,

160

. . 157 Carrot family

158

87 Cassinia albida . . 59,

177

.. 87

„ fulvida . . 51, 72

, 86

.. 110

leptophylla

72

.. 110

,, retorta

72

.. 112

„ Vaiti-iUiersii . . 51, 59, 72,

116

.. 122

var. albida . .

177

110 Gassytha panicitlata

53

.. 169 Cedar..

46

f . . 110 Celery-top pine

170

52, 113

Celmisia

94

.. 158

,, ar</< nt«i . . 95, 96

.. 158

,, Armstron</ii

95

.. 172

,, coriacea . . 95.

176

.. 172

„ dixcolor var. petiolata

95

.. 120

i/landnlosa

111

.. 176

,, Lincixai/i

17«5

.. 170

,, longifolia var. alpina

111

51

,, Mackaui

176

36, 37, 41

„ Pet n't /

88

.. 131

rii/ida . .

176

131, 177

,, XCMX Hi flora

95

.. 177

,, xpictahifi* . . 94.

176

(50. 160, 171

,, v&rbascifolia

17(5

.. 171

Central heath

53

22

Char a

108

INDEX.

181

Chatham Islands

bogs . .
,, cranesbill

kowhai

Chcvseman, T. F. 23, 83,
('ladiutn capillaceuni
,, glotneratuui
teretifolium

Clayton ia dustralasicn
Clematis

„ afoliatd
„ Colensoi
„ hexasepala
„ indivisa
„ ,, flowers of

Clianthux puniceus
Climbing-plants
Club moss
Cnicus arvensis
Coast of New Zealand . .
Coastal plants, adaptations
Coccus Cacti
Cockayne, A. H.
Colenso, Rev. W.
Colobanthus muscoides

,, quitensis

Compositae
Convolvulaceae
Convolvulus erubescent . .
family
shore
Co pros ma

,, acerosa

,, acuti folia

,, Baueri

,, ciliatrt

,, chathamica

,, fertilization of

foetidissima
„ i /rand i flora
,, parviflora

,, petiolatn
Petriei
propinqua
,, rt pens
„ rhamnoidt*

,, rob ust a

,, tenuicauli*

Cord '//line austral is 52,

,, indivisa

,, pumilio
Cor i n riii r use i folia
Corolcia macrocarpa
Coryitocarpus laevigata
Cotton-plant
Cotula

Page

.. 120

.. 122

.. 124

9

124. 157, 177
52
51
52
99

.. 171
34
34
34
34

.. 38

.. 160

.. 29

47, 52

.. 136

.. 63

of . . 63

.. 164

.. 145

19

.. 117
6

.. 157

.. 158

88

.. 158
.. 66
.. 157
.. 72
.. 125
.. 168
. . 116
.. 121
38

.. 116
.. 158
.. 116
.. 125
.. 158
.. 109
.. 176
52

.. 168
46

109, 137, 138,
162, 170

.. 141
53

('». 34, 54, 130

.. 120

4ii. 121, 170

.. 157

130

Cotlda dtratd . .
„ dioica . .
,, Featherstonii
,, pi/retlirifolid
Crape-fern . .
Crassula moschata
Cruci ferae . .

Cunningham, Allan

,, Richard

Gunoniaceae . .
Currant, native
Cushion-plants
Cutty-grass . .
Cyathea dealhatn

„ kermadecensis
,, uiednllaris
,, Mil in i
Cyathodes acerosa
,, robuxtd
Cyperaceae . .

Page
. 97
. 81
. 124
. 17<»
37

6, 177
161

. 17
. 17
. 160
. 160
. 103
. ll)!>
171
125
171
125
178
178

43.

D.

Dacrydium

Bidicillii
Colensoi
cupressinum
intermedium

Idxifolium

. . . 103

. .. Ill

. . . 41

36 41

. . 41
2, 104, 111. 169

. . 41

Daisy family . . . .

,, jet black . .

,, shrubs . . . .

Danthonia antarctica . .

,, bromoides . .

,, Cunninghamii

„ flavescens . .

,, pilosa . .

„ punt/en* . .

„ Baoulii . .

„ ,, \-ar.flavescens

,, semiannularis
Darwin . . . .

Dawsoniu -^n fieri in . .

Deciduous habit of Fuchsia
Desert pea, Sturt's . .

De Tries, Hugo . .

Deyeuxia set i folia ..

Dianella intermedia . .
Diatoms . . . .

Dicliondra rt pens . .

Dicksonin Innat-i . .

95.

Digging-implement
Disappointment Island
Discaria tountatou

97

57
177
177
162
177
s~

89, 96
95
177

. . 87
. . 10
'2. 1(53
.. 15O
. . 160
10, 154
.. Ill
. . 53
. . 108
. . 88
. . 46
. . 171
. . 169
. . 118
51, 55, 86

182

XEW

PLATsT*.

Discaria toumatou, juvenile form

,, spines of

Diseases of Phormium
Donatia novae-zelandiae . .
Dracophyllum . .

. 37,

latifolium

long i folium
paludosnin
recurrnni . .
scopariuHi var.
subidatinn
T raver si i . .
Urvillfd mi m

,, aromat^ca

,, a x ilia r is
,, color ata
„ Winteri
Drooping- spleen wort

„ auriculata

pygmded
Droseraceae

Drought, protection against
Dryness, physical

,, physiological . .
Duck, flightless
" Dundonald,'' wreck of. .
Dune, adaptations of plants

,, wandering
D'Urville, Admiral
I >' I' rrilldcd titilis
Dusky Bay, Cook's hut
Dwarf cabbage-tree
Dysoxylum spectahile

E.

Earthworms

Edelweiss, New Zealand
dentatus
Hookerianus

Page
60
73

.. 145
103, 111
59, 158
121, 177
43

5(5, 76, 116

.. 122

99

major 177
53

59, 160

52

7

7

7, 160

.. 160

7

.. 35
160
113
113
160
59
66
66
117
118
68
68

16, 68
2, 68
16
53
47

112.
53,

55,

Elodtn canadensis
MI/HI ii* drcnarius
Elytranthe ffdvida
,, tetrapetala

Ent<!«i arborescens
Entire-leaved beech
Kjtdcridaceae

Kpilobiiini

(n ft inn
t/ldhcllinit

f t

5

100

38,

1(>0

1 60

1(50

107

71

47

47

177

. .

79

t t

49

158

52

Sli,

155

Kill.

177

Epilobium y radii pes . .
„ Hector i . .

,, JIIHCPHIH var. ntacr

luni . .

,, linnaeoides . .

,, nidcropus . .

„ nummuLarifolium

opltyl-

KI9

,, pnhens

Epiphytes . .

Ericaceae . .

Eruption of Tarawera
Eri/)t(/iu)n vesiculoswm
Eucalyptus niuneroxa

,, Cheesemanii . .

,, Cockayniana

,, cnneatd . .

,, Monroi . .

,, repens . .

,, zealandica . .
Evolution, of meadow . .

,, theories of . .

„ of a weed . .

Experiments with seedlings
Eyebright . . . .

Page
176
155

177
158
158
158
158
155
35
158
54
81
133
158
91
89
91
89
23
91
86
10
129
60
52, 89

F.

Fafjaceae . .

Fayus cliffortioides
,, fuse a . .

1 .").")

Solandri . . . .

Family of plants . . . .

Ferns, climbing . . . .

,, suitable for cultivation . .

,, epiphytic . . . .

„ filmy . . . .

,, leaves of two kinds . .

„ number of . . . .

,, water . . . . . .

Fertilization of Cordylim <iti«tr<tlis

,, by birds . . . .

,, cross . . . .

,, of Fncltxia (xrorticiitti

,, work of insects in . .

Fi *tttcd rnbra . . . .

Fig wort family .. ..

Filmy ferns . . . . 27. 37.

Fireweeds . . . . . .

Flax. New Zealand .. 73. 142.

smaller New Zealand . .

,, subalpinc . . . .

Flesh-eating plants . . . .

Flightless duck .. ..

161

177

177

178

178

15(5

30

171

35

37

163

163

105

139

39

38

151

3!>

87

15S

163

160

162

76

59

113

117

INDEX.

183

Flora, origin of the New Zealan
Flowers of alpine plants
,, of Auckland Islands
„ fertilization of . .
Forest . . . .

of the Auckland Islands
„ beech . . . .

,, groundsel . .

„ kahikatea . .

,, kauri . . . .

„ mixed . . . .

„ origin of special plant-for

of . .

„ of the Snares Islands
Forget-me-nots . .

the giant

„ yellow . .

Forster, J. G. . . . .

„ J. R

Forstera Bidn-illii ..
Fossil flora of Antarctica

Freycinetia Bankxii . .

Fnildnia . . . .

FucJtxi,, . . . . 5,

,, Colensoi . .

,, excortiffitn . .

,, procumbens . .

G.

Page

2

. . 89

.. 117

. . 2

25

. . 116

8, 47

. . 34

. . 46

43

26, 46
ms

29

. . 116

92, 158

. . 123

. . 92

. . 15

15

. . 22

. . 7

30, 46

163

149, 158
. . 29
30, 150
. . 150
. . 163

,,
,,

id ci/idtd
/i/iUida
*< tiicea

Garden, alpine, in mountains
friniltherifi

,, oppositifolia . .

„ rnpestris

frdi/d Li/dllii

,, ,, var. rib if oli a

„ ribifolid

General history of the plants
Gentian family
(•'( ntidiid (•(•) inn

,, Ton-nxoi/i . .

Gentianaceae . . . .

Genus, definition of . .

Geological periods . .

Geraniaceae . . . .
Geranium microphyUum

., Traversii . .

Germander speedwell . .
Geuni

43

Ill

Ill

Ill

5

172
158

53

59

170

177

170

1

158
117
158

52

158

155

4

160

88
124

50
160

Geutn parviflorum
Giant forget-me-not

o

(rid KC in in /la mm
Gleichenia

Cunninghamii

GnaphaHum trim m

Gorse

Gramineae

Grasses

Gravity, effect on

growth

(Greater New Zealand
Grisdin id littoralis

,, lucida
Ground-orch ids
Grounded

,, shrubby
Guano, animals of
arenaria
chilen-siz
pr ore pens

Page
6, 176
.. 123
.. 131
. . 163
.. 53
.. 164
53, 113
. . 176
128, 135
. . 162
S7. 162
direction of

. . 138
5

36. 37, 41
34
53

153. 157
59

. . 120
73

.. 113
113

H.

Haast, Sir Julius von

,, jinlrinari*
Harakeke
Hard-fern, coastal
Haumakaroa
Heath

,, adaptations of plants
,, central . .
,, family . .
„ northern
,, southern
Hector, Sir James
Hedgerow plants
Heketara

Helich n/x n in bellidioides
„ corattoides . .

„ (/fandiceps . .

„ Leontopodiuin

„ pauciflorum

Hemj), New Zealand
Herpolirion mini/ -:/ Imnl i/n
Hinau
Holt< rid

,, diH/nxtifolid

55 ,5

„ sexstylow
Hole H x In ii dt u-S

22
22

98
144
80
116
51
54
53

. . 158
51
51
22

.. 135
37

100, 102, 176
88

.. 100
100, 102
88

.. 109
.. 113
38, 160
. . 170
37, 177
37
177

. . 177
37, 177
131

i xt if olid
lanceolata .

184

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

Holly, native

Hoinolanthus polyfutdru*

Honeyclew fungi

Honeysuckle . . . . 41

Hooker, Sir Joseph . . 19, 21

Sir W. J.
Horokaka

Hot springs, vegetation of
Hottentot fig . .
Hybrid
Hydrocotyle
Hymenanthera . .

Hymenophyllum . . 37

Hypolaena lateriflora
Hypolepis tenuifolin

I.

Ice-plant

Insects, fertilization by

Inuka . . 76,

Ipomaea pdlnidta

„ pes-caprae
Iridaceae
Iris family
Islands, Chatham
coastal
Kermadec

,, subantarctic
Isoetes alpinus
,, Kirkii

Ivy-tree . . 125,

Ixerba brexioides

Page

57

125

164

, 153

, 117

16

63

108

64

39

109

60

, 163
110
171

11

63

39
116
158
125
162
162
120

81
124
114
106
106
170

37

J.

Juncaceae
Juncus

., maritimus var. <ti<xtr<tliensis

novae-zelandiae . .
,, scheuzerioii/' s . .
Jurassic animals
plants

162

162

80

6

6

4

4

Juvenile forms. . 31, 33. 106. 163, 171

,, prolonged . . 60

K.

Kahakaha
Kahikatea

forest

Kaikomako

Kamahi
Karaka

.. 27
41
46

37. 170

41

46, 125, 170

Kauri

,, forest

?» »?

grass

gum

„ in bogs
Kawakawa
Kermadec Islands
Kidney-fern
Kiekie
King, Dr. Truby

reinstatement of

Kirk. Thomas

T W

,, j-. \» .

Kirk's groundsel

Knight ia excelsa

Kohekohe

Kopi

Korokio

Koromiko

Korthalsella salicornioides

Kowhai

,. distribution in Chatham
Island

,, small-leaved

yellow
Kumarahou

Page

39, 170

43, 44

39

43

41

.. 108
80, 161
.. 124
43, 163
30, 46
.. 133
23

.. 145
.. 43
7,41

29, 46, 81
.. 121
.. 120
.. 153
.. 149
5

ni-i

6t,

9

61

160

52

L.

Labels

Laburnum, the New Zealand
Lacebark . . 37, 153,

Lagenophora Forstcri
,, petiohttd

„ puinila

Lamarckian theory
Lancewood
Laurel, New Zealand
Laii >•< lid, fossil

,, norae-zelandiae
Leaves of AciphyUa

,, of coastal ferns . .
,, of Cordyline (titxlrali*
„ floating
leathery
mat of hairs on unders

face

,, of Phonninni t<iKi.r
reduction of surface
submerged

1

,, vertical position of
Leech
Leguminosat

olerurt in//

tl Illlictlllli

. . 170

.. 37

158, 170

.. 177

88

88. 177
10
170

120,

5?

41
7

7,41

103

80

139

106

59

103
143

55
106
103

83
160
161
161

66

INDEX.

185

Li pidosperma laterale

Leptocarpus simplex

Leptospermum . .

,, Chaptiiniii

ericoides
Xicholsii
sco par i ion
Sinclair ii

Lesson, M. . .

L< iicopogon fascicvlatus .

,, /•'/Y/x, / /

Rich ft
Lianes

Libocedrus BidiciUii
Lichens
Liausticum antipodum

,, carnosulunt .

„ lati folium

Lilac, New Zealand
Lily family
Lindsay, Dr. L.
Linutn monogynuin
l/iparophyttum Gunnii .
Litsata calicari*
Liverworts
Lobelia Rough it
Lolixni italicum
„ perenne
Lotnaria capensi*

„ discolor

., fli(viatili*
Loranthaccae
Loxsom't
Lupin us arboreus

,, racemosa
Luzuriaga marginat< <
Lyall
L a alii a
L >/co podium Billardieri

densum

„ fastig tat nin

,, laterale

ramulosum

Lygodium articulatum
Lvme- grass

M.

Mackerel-gull . .
Macquarie Island
Macrocystis

Dubcnii

Macro pi per excelsv ///
Madder family
Ma (/no! in

Page 1

3age

.

53 Magnoliaceae

IliO

.

80, 81 Mahoe

125

.

149 Maireire

43

147 Makamaka

46

37, 51,

149. 170 Makomako

37

147 Mallow family

15S

13, 51.

129, 146 Malvaceae

1 5S

51, 147 Mangaeo

46

.

16 Mange-mange . .

33

.

. . 178 Mangrove

74

. . 177 Manuka . . 53, 73, 109,

146

178 Marlborough, coastal cliffs of

79

.

29, 127 Marram-grass .. .. 71.

131

.

41 Marsh pennywort

109

.

27 „ salt

80

. . 177 Matai..

41

.

177 Matipo, name wrongly used

160

. . 177 Matthews, H. J.

169

80 Mazus pumilio. .

8]

m

. . 162 Meadow

84

,

22 ,, artificial

85

.. 142

,, distribution of

84

.

.. 112

,, evolution of

86

46 „ salt

80

.

163 ,, subalpine and alpine

88

97 ,, tussock

87

.

131 Mclicope simplex

171

.

131 ,, ternata

125

.

177 Milicytus rnicranthus

60

.

. . 177 Menzies, A.

16

.

177 Meryta Sinclairii

170

.

161 Me-sembrianthemum auxfrali

63

.

163 ,, edulc

64

.

71 Metros ideros alb i flora

30

,

. . 162 „ Colensoi ..

30

.

6 ,, d iff usa

30

.

(), 177

„ florida

30

,

23

„ lii/pen'cifolia

30

.

.. 23

., lurida . . 7<i. 116,

158

16

,, robtixta 37. 41. 43

. 45

.

52

scandens . . 30

, 34

.

.. 47

tomentosa . . 78,

170

.

..113 „ villow

1 25

.

.. 113 Microbe .. .. 132.

liili

,

33 Milk-tree

153

.

.. 71

Mimulus

158

rep'' »*

81

Mingimingi

51

Miro

41

Mistletoe . . . . 47. 53.

161

.

.. 117

,, on manuka

149

.

li. 123

Mixed forest

26

.

.. 166

Moist chamber. .

60

.

2, 68

Molly mawk

Ms

so. 81,

161, 177

Monro, Dr.

22

.

. . 157

Moriori figure on tree

12!

.

.. 160

Mosses

163

186

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

Moss-cushions . . . .

Mount Egmont buttercup

Mountain-beech . .

currant . .

daisy . .

lily ..

Mountains, meadow of . .

shingle-slip . .

Muehlenbeckia . . . .

australi* . .

Mustard family . .

Mutation theory . .

Myosolidium nobile . .

Jh/osotis albo-sericea . .

nustrnlis . .

capitatn . .

Checsemanii . .

decora . .

explanata . .

,, macranthd . .

Monroi ..

petiolata . .

Traversii ..

Miioporum laetum . .

M //n'o phi/Hum . . . .

pedunculatn/m

Votscliii ..

Myrtle

31 i/riu* biiUatd

„ obcorddta

,, pedunculata
Myxomycetes

N.

Names, Latin . .

,, loose usa^e of . .
„ popular
„ scientific
Natural selection
Naturalized plants

„ ,, families and genera

of ..

Nephrodium hi-spidum
XYttle family
New Zealand . .

,, changes during Ter-

tiary period

,, primeval plant-socie-

ties of . .
Xgaio
Xiggerhead
Xi kaii -palm

Page

Page

. . 163

Nitetta

HIS

94

Nomenclature, differences in 177

49 Northern heath

51

60 ,, rata . .

37, 41

.. 157

Nostoc in Gunnera

..113

92

Nothofagus

8

88

,, cliffortioides

47, 49, 87, 170

.. 97

in sea

41, 49. 170, 177

33

., Menziesii

49, 178

. . 121

,, Solandri

49, 170, 178

161 Nothopanax dnomalum

60, 178

10

,, arboreum

. . 125, 170. 178

2, 123

,, simplex

..116

92 Notospartium Carmichaeliae .. 171

92, 176 Notothlaxpi rosulatum

97, 98

117 Nuggets, Cehtiixia at

83

92

. . 176

o

92

V-' •

92

Olearid. a nun .st i folia

. . 76

92

„ Colensoi

51 >. 59, 116

92

,, Cunninfjhamii

37

92

,, '•i/inJjifoh'd

59, 178

92

,, excorticata

59

. . 170

,, furfuracea

52, 55

. . 107

,, ilicifolia

. . 57

.. 177

,, lltXIf/Kt*

79

107, 177

,, /dciutosa

59

.. 178

L i/ all 'ii

.. 116

.. 158

,, iiifidd . .

59

.. 158

,, inacrodoiitd

. . 57

158, 171

,, moschata

59

. . 171

,, nummularifolia

57

.. 171

,, ,. vai

'. a/nibifoJid 17S

.. 166

,, operina

76

,. semidentata

122, 168

„ Triinrxii

. . 121, 168, 170

Oliver. W. B. . .

..124

Olives, Xe\\ Zealand

47

153 Onagraceae

. . 158

153 Open Bay Islands

83

152, 153 Orchiddcc.ae

..162

. . 153 Orchids

. . 162

10

,, epiphytic

35

. . 126

Orcoboln* p'crihidtiix

.. Ill

3ra

Oreostylidium subulatum

.. 113

.. 127

Ourixid . .

91. 158

.. 171

cdi*/>ito$a

91

.. 161

Cockayniana

91

1

Coh nsoi

..116

er-

glandulosa

91

5

HKKTUC'Ifpa

'.11

ie-

»UI<Tt>l>hllU<l

91. 176

13

,, /iron />' >i*

91

125, 170

sessiliflora

91

. . 109

0;m/'.s' corniculata

SS. 130

si. 162

ii/di/i ••/) 'anicd

6. 176

INDEX.

187

p.

52. 102, 109, 153

Pakibis
Palm family

.. lily

,, nikait

Palmaceae
Panax an out alum

,, arbors >' in
Parasites
Parafropltis Banket i

,, opaca

Parks, national
ParrotbiH
Par«on*ia capsula/ris

,, Tieterophylla
Passi flora tetrandra
Passion-flower
Pea family
Peat

Peat -making by living plants
Pelargonium
Pellaea rotundifolia
Penguin

Pennantia corymbosa
Penwiper -plant . .
Pepcromia Urvillei
Pepper-tree
Perching-lily

,, plants
Periods, geological
Petrie, D.
Phebalnun nudum
Plwrmium swamp

„ Cookianum 59, 76, 80,

tenax 73. 124,

PhyllarJine Colensoi
Phyllocladus

ylauca

,, trichomanoides

Pig's-fa •<•

Pillularia norae-zealandiae
Pimelea arenaria
Pinaceae
Pincushion- plant
Pine-trees
Piper excel sum
Piperaceae
Piripiri
Pistil

Pitchy seed family
Pittosporaceae . .
Pittosporum

„ cornifolium

,, crassifolium

„ eugenioides . .

Kirk ii

81,
85,

51

162
170
81
162
178
178
53
178
178
133
.. 160
33

.. 33

.. 178

34

.. 160

.. Ill

.. 103

.. 160

.. 171

. . 120

37, 170

97, 98

.. 161

7. 101

34, 79

34

4

23

43, 170

.. 109

143. 162

142, 162

103, 110

.. 163

46

.. 170
63

. . 106
72

. . 163
. . 153
.. 163
.. 177
.. 161
97. 1150
38

. . 160

. . 160

. . 168

34

79, 170

. . 170

34

nhruffatuiu . .

Ralph-'/'

tenuifolium
umbellatum.
Placostylus Honyn
Plagianthus betulinu*
,, chathamicus

,, divaricatii* . .

Plank- buttress
Plant-societies
Plctntago Broirnii
,, carnosa
Plants, alpine . .
,, collecting
,, cultivation of
,, flesh-eating
„ general history of
,, of Jurassic age . .
„ the lower
PleuropJiyllum Hookeri . .

,, speciosinn

Poa caespitosa . .
,, chathamica
,. Colensoi
„ foliosa
,, ramosissima
„ sclerophylla
Pod or a rp u s dacryd io idc s-
,, ferrugin&us . .

,, nivalis

,, spicatus

,, totara

Pohutukawa
Pond-scums
Polygon u m aviculare
Poly podium Billardn ri .
,, penniynruni

,, serpens

Polystichum Richard i
,, vestition

Polytrichum dendroides
Ponmilcrris Edgerleyi

Page

19

. . 1(50
79
83

170, 178

121. 178

80

49

12

.. 178

117, 178

88, 171

. . 168

.. 167

.. 113

1

4

47,

.. 117
.. 117

87
.. 124

87

.. 116
.. 117

97
26, 41, 46

41
.. 169

41

41

78, 170
.. 107
.. 126
30. 171
.. 171
.. 171
17, 171, 178

,, pJiylicacfofia

Pond weeds
Poor Knigiits Islands
Porphyrio melanotus
Potamogeton Cheese m >/ >/ i i
ochreatus

,, pectinatus . .

Potent ill a
Primrose family
Primidacece

Prolonged juvenile forms
Pse udopanax chathamicum
,, crassifolium

49, 171. 178

2,47

52

52

O*y » v
*«, *jtj

. . 106
83

.. 109
.. 106
. . 106
.. 106
. . 160
. . 158
. . 158
60

120. 170
170

188

XEW ZEALAND PLANTS.

Page

Pseudopanax Ltssonii . . . . 17

Ptcridium esculentum .. 51, 129, 178

Pteris aquilina v&r. esculenta .. 178

„ incisa . . . . 171

,. scaberula . . . . 171

Puawhananga . . . . 38

Puheritako . . . . 76

Puka .. ..170

Pukatea . . . . . . 41

Pukeko .. .. ..109

Puriri . . 39, 170

Putaputaweta . . . . 160

K.

Rangiora
Ranuncidaceae . .
Ranunculus acaulis
„ Baurii

,, Buchanan i .

Enysii

,, Godleyanus .

., Haastii

,, hirtns

,, ins ignis

var.
„ lappaceus \

scapus

„ lobulatus

,, LyaUii

., macropus

., Matthewsii .

mult isca pus,
,, nivicola

pinyuis

,, r i vula r is

,, tenuicaulis

Raoul

brjfoidcs

,, Goyeni
., Haastii

subscricea
„ ten nicti a //.»•
Jifipanea Urvillei
Rata . .
„ climbino . .
,, northern
southern
Rautini
Red-beech
I Jed- birch of West land

I !c \varewa

Rhabdothamnus Solandri
Rhopalostylis

. . 170
.. 161

66
.. 92

94
. . 174

88, 94
86

.. 88
94, 174

lobulatus 178
ar. tnulti-

.. 178

, . 94, 174, 178
2, 23, 92
. . 109
94

88, 178
94

.. 117
. . 109
.. 86
19
86, 176
98
98, 99

• *o

. . 97
.. 176
. . 176
17, 178
43, 158

30

37

.. 116
..122

49

. . 160
.. Ill
7,41

39
162

Rhopalostylis sap Ida
Rliizopus nifjricans
Ribbonwood

,, .shrubby

Richard, A.
Rimu
River-bed
Rockery

Rolling-grass . .
Root-trunk
Roots, breathing
Rose family
Rostkovia
Rubiaceae
Rubus australis

,, jHO'VUS . .

, , xch m idelio ides
Rumex neylectus
Rush family
Rusts
Rye-grass

Page

81, 121. 162

. . 145

153, 158, 170

80

16

41

86

.. 172
70

.. 37
.. 73
.. 160
.. 162
. . 157
39, 171
.. 176
.. 171
66

.. 162

.. 131

131

S.

Salicornia australis
Salsola kali
Salt marsh

,, meadow
Sand-gunnera . .

,, plants
Sandhills
Samolus re pens
Saxifragaceae
Schimper
Schoenus brcrifolius

,, tendo

Schools as plant-sanctuaries
Scirpus frondosus

lacustris
,, mariiimus
Scoria slopes
Screw-pine, New Zealand
Scrophularinaceae
Scrub

,, mutton-bird

,, subal]iine
Scurvy-grass
Sea-spleenwort
Seaweeds
Sedu'e family
Seed ..

,, raising plants from
SeUit ni rad tr
iSV tn r in

Bid a- ill ii
cassinioides

81

64

66
80
80
73
72
68

158

160

25, 66

53

53

167
68
81
81
99
46

158
51
76
55

161
80
68

]62
38

169
81

1 30
59
59

5! I

INDEX.

189

Page

Senecio Huntii . . . . 122

Kirkii . . 34, 43

,, Li/allii var. scorzonerioides 178

Monroi

,. perdicioides

,, rotundifolius

„ sciadoplulus

., . scorzonerioides '.. 9<

,, selection for cultivation . .

,, Steivartiae
Setchell, Professor
Seymour Island
Shackleton, Sir E.
Shag, Auckland Island
Shelter, plants suitable for
Shingle-slip

, ,, adaptations of plants to

Shore^con volvulus
Shore, rocky
sandy
Shrubberies

,, u2»$ coastal
Shrubs, interlacing habit of
Silene anglica . .

,, gallica
Silver-beech

,, tree-fern
Sinclair, Dr. A.
Slender bluebell
Slime fungi
Smuts
Snail .

76,

59
15
168
171
178
171
116
108
7
7

117
168
97
97
66

. 66
66
50

. 76
60

64. 178
. 178
49

. 171
22
88

. 166
. 131
83

Snares Islands .. 116, 118

Societies of plants . . . . 12

Solander, Dr. . . . . . . 14

Sonchus f/ran-difolius . . 124

Sophora, experiments with . . 61

yrandiflom 37, 62, 170, 178

microphylki 37, 61, 160, 170, 178

., prostrata . . . . 62

„ tetra-ptera var. yrandi flora 178

„ ., ,, micropJii/Ua 178

,, ,, ., pro-strata . . 178

Southern Alps . . . . 21

,, heath . . . . 51

rata . . . . 37, 76, 116

Speargrass . . . . 59, 89, 103

Species, definition of term . . 154

,, number of, in New Zealand 154

Speedwell . . . . 153

,, shrubby . . . . 57

Sphagnum . . . . 110

Spiderwood . . . . 43, 153

Spinach, New Zealand . . . . 66

Spinifex hirsulus . . . . 70

Spore . . . . 34

Stamen 38

Stellar la Rouyhii

Stem resembling leaves . .

Stephen Island

Stilbocarpa polar I .^

Stoneworts

Struggle for existence

Start's desert pea

Styphelia acerosa

,, fasciculata

„ Frf.weri

,, Rich < i

,, robuistci
Suaeda marittina
Subalpine scrub
Succulence
Sundew

„ climbing
Supplejack
Suttonia chatftamica

,, Coxii . .

,, divaricata

,, kermadecensis . .
Sivainsona novae-zela n diae
Swamp

51
52

Page

97

163

81
117
108

7
160

, 178

, 178

52

matipo

123,

178

123,

178

, .

64

. t

55

. .

63

112,

160

B f

53

. .

32

t

121

m

124

60, 83,

116

. .

125

. .

160

, .

109

124

T.

Tanekaha

Taraire

Tarata

Tarawera, eruption of .

Tauhinu

Tawa

Tawhara

Tawhero

Tawhiri

Tawiri

Taxaceae

Taxad- Noth ofay u s forest

Taxads

Taxus

Tea-tree, red

,, white
Teteawaka
Tetragonia cxpttitxtt
Tetrapathaea australis
Three Kings Islands
Ti

Tikauka
Ti-rauriki
Tirahau

Tillaea moschata
Timbers
Toatoa
Tod a ea hymen opl>. i/llo ide*

,, superba

. 170

43, 46

. 170

54

52

46

30

46

. 170

. 37

. 163

49

46

46

. 149
. 149
. 76

34,

178

83

142

142

53

142

177

39

46

37

37

190

NEW ZEALAND PLANTS,.

Toetoe

Totara

Towai

Travers. W. T. L.

Traversia

Tree-fern, silver

Tree-ferns

,, heath

., lupin

,, manuka
Trichomanes

„ reniforme . .

Tuatara lizard
Tumatakuri
Turner, E. P. . .
Turutu
Tussock

„ subant arctic
Tutu . .
Typlia angustifolia

u.

Ulex europaeas

Umbelliferae

Umbrella-fern

bog

,, climbing . .

Urtica ferox
Urticaceae
Utricularia monanihos

V.

Vancouver, Captain
Vegetable-sheep 2, 97,

Vegetation, alpine
bog-
coastal

,, cliff and rock

,, dune

., forest

hot-spring . .
,, shingle-slip . .

,, subantarctic

swamp
„ water

Veronica Barkeri
,. Benthami
,, buxi folia var. odora

chathamica
cupre-ssoides

Dftnri iiin IKI

Page

54, 73, 153
41, 153

41
. . 22

22
43, 171

27

37

71
37, 170

37

43, 163
. . 81
. . 51
. . 149

53

..87
. . 118
54, 125
. . 109

. . 128

. . 158

1(53, 164

..52

. . 53

161

161

. . 113

16
98, 99. 100

88

.. 110

.. 63

78, 97

68

25
.. 108

97

.. 114
.. 109
.. 105
.. 124
.. 117
57, 178
.. 178
.. 124
57. 60
.. 178
124

Veronica diovmaefolia
„ elliptic a
,, epacridea
„ Gibbsii
., gigantea
„ glaucophytta

Hector i . . .

„ Hooker i ana . . .

,, Hulkeana . . .

linifplia . . .

,, loijftnioides . . .

„ monticola . .

rn pi cola . . .

,, salicifolia . . .
,, ,, var. giaantea .
,, selection for cultivation .

spathithita .

,, subalpina .

tetragona .

Page
52

6, 70, 78, 168
97, 176
. . 176
2, 120, 17-3
57, 178

,, Traverxii
,, vernicosa

Viola Cunninghamii

Vitex lucens

W.

Wahlenbergia y radii's
,, sai'icola

Waiuatua
Wallace
Watercress
Water-ferns

,, milfoil . .

„ plants . .
Watson, William
Wauwaupaku . .
Weed, definition of
Weeds

,, evolution of
Weeping- matipo
Weinmannia raccniosa

Weta

Whakcu

Wharanai

Whau

Wild-irishman

Willowherh

Wineberry

Woodrush

Yorkshire f

171
99
80
92
L76
57
88
76
178
171

99, 101
57

.. 104
97
57
57

174, 176
39, 41. 170

88

157

39

10

107

. . 106

.. m~>
80
60

. . 1 2s

.. 128

.. 129

60

27, 41, 160

.. 46

s:i

37

. . J 25

. . 79

51, 55, 60, 73

S6

. . 37
162

131

By Authority : JOHN MACKAY, Government Printer, Wellington, N.Z.— 1910.