Category: Plants

Peperomia urvilleana

This herb grows on rocks in the northeastern forest on Puangiangi. It is in the Piperaceae family which contains the culinary peppers, and prefers warmer parts of the country, being found as far south as the Heaphy. I always get a surprise when I see it somewhere on the mainland, but it’s not regarded as threatened.

(What is this about? I’d like to get photos of all the trees, shrubs, climbers, ferns on the island and publish the photos on the website. Each species will get a page when I get enough reasonable photos.)

Dysoxylum spectabile

Kohekohe dominates the canopy in the existing forests on Puangiangi. It flowers on the trunks and branches, indicating that this is a tropical genus. The flowers are scented and in early winter strongly perfume the forest on a calm day. The fruit are large and probably need to be dispersed by big birds like kereru and weka. Seedlings are abundant in and at the edge of the existing forests and are now slowly spreading to the regenerating areas. The trees get damaged in the wind and trunks can rot out, making nesting holes for birds like kakariki. When I first saw the fruits on the ground at Otari in Wellington some years ago, I didn’t know what they were as they all would have been eaten by rats previously. It was only after some years of pest control by the Regional Council and others that the trees could flower without being chewed, set and then drop ripe fruit.

(What is this about? I’d like to get photos of all the trees, shrubs, climbers, ferns on the island and publish the photos on the website. Each species will get a page when I get enough reasonable photos.)