The Native Flowers of New Zealand

It has often been said that New Zealand native vegetation lacks colour; is just a mixture of many shades of green with no distinctive flowers, but although there might not be so many of the large, showy flowers of the tropical rainforests, there is a large variety of delicate, colourful and interesting flowers which extend from the coastal plains up to the extensive alpine regions of both islands.  Over 80% of our natives plants are endemic, which means they are unique to these islands. Many of New Zealand native flowers are white, catering to the numerous night-flying moths which are among the main pollinators. New Zealand only has around 15 butterfly species, but over 1500 species of moth!

In this photographic essay I highlight a few of the unique and beautiful flowers found in the various environments of this isolated land.

Kowhai ngutu-kaka, or kaka beak; kowhai & rewarewa

Perhaps New Zealand's most showy flower is the rare, at least in the wild, kowhai ngutu-kaka, or kaka beak (Clianthus puniceus) which is classified as critically endangered by the Department of Conservation. Fortunately this plant grows well in a controlled habitat and is popular in gardens. The yellow-flowering kowhai (Sophora tetraptera) is distinctive throughout New Zealand when it flowers in the spring. This small tree is semi-deciduous and the yellow flowers - kowhai is the Maori word for yellow - is regarded as New Zealand's national flower.  One of the more unusual, and frequently overlooked flowers of the New Zealand bush is that of the rewarewa (Knightia excelsa). This tree can grow up to 30 metres in height and although sometimes called the New Zealand honeysuckle, it is actually a protea, and is the first of the larger trees to reappear with the bush regenerates.

Puriri, kiekie and kamahi flowers

Found only in the North Island, the Puriri (Vitex lucens) tree is a hardwood related to teak. The showy flowers can be found on the tree all year round, a popular food-source for the nectar-feeding  tui, and the berries are popular with the kereru, or native pigeon. The climbing kiekie (Freycinetia banksii) is a member of the tropical pandanus family and can be seen clambering over larger trees throughout the country. The leaves were used by the Maori for weaving and the large flowers of the male kiekie consists of beige-coloured stamens, surrounded by white bracts, a delicacy to the pre-European Maori. The prolific, candle-like flowers of the kamahi tree (Weinmannia racemosa) produces excellent honey.

Taurepo; toropapa & kotukutuku (tree fuchsia) flowers

Some of the lesser known flowers of the New Zealand forest include the attractive red flowers of the taurepo (Rhabdothamnus solandri) shrub, also known as the New Zealand gloxinia, found only in the North Island. Like the puriri, the taurepo can flower for much a the year and its main pollinators are the nectar-feeding native birds.  The long tubular flowers of the toropapa (Alseuosmia macrophylla) emit a strong sweet very distinctive perfume noticeable in the forests in late spring, early summer. Particularly common in the forests of South and Stewart Islands is the kotukutuku, or tree fuchsia (Fuchsia excorticata). This tree is the largest of the fuchsia family and is one of the very few New Zealand trees which are totally deciduous. Flowers are small and can be hard to see, unlike their more showy South American counterparts. The fruit produced, known to the Maori as konini, is sweet and certainly not unpleasant, if you can get to them before the native pigeons!

Greenhood orchids, veined sun orchid & spider orchids

New Zealand also has an interesting array of small orchids, not always easily identifiable. One of the most common is the tutukiwi, or greenhood orchid (Pterostylis banksii) which can be found alongside forest tracks throughout the country. This veined sun orchid ( Thelymitra venosa) looking rather like a pixie was photographed on Stewart Island, as were these ground-hugging spider orchids (Corybas macranthus).

Mt Cook lily, or giant buttercup, giant spaniards, New Zealand eyebrights

The Alpine regions of New Zealand have many showy flowers but perhaps the best known is the so-called Mt Cook lily which is really a giant buttercup (Ranunculus lyalli). This large-leafed plant flowers prolifically in Mt Cook National Park and in other alpine areas of the Southern Alps and Fiordland. The giant spaniard (Aciphylla scott-thomsonii) is a speargrass and is actually a member of the carrot family. There are many species of speargrass found throughout all islands of New Zealand.  The New Zealand eyebright (Euphrasia cuneata) is another showy flower found  alongside tracks and stream beds in both lowland and alpine regions, particularly in the North Island.

Poor Knights lily & tecomanthe flowers

Two of New Zealand's rarest flowers, although both now found in gardens, are the Poor Knights lily (Xeronema callistemon) which originally grew only on the Poor Knights Islands & Hen Island off the coast of Northland, and the spectacular climber Tecomanthe speciosa, one of the world's rarest pants, which is known from just a single specimen, discovered in 1945, growing on Great Island in the Three Kings group off the tip of Northland.

The spectacular red mistletoe growing on a southern beech at Lake Ohau

To finish this photographic essay I feature the endangered (popular food for possums) red mistletoe (Peraxilla tetrapetala). Like its northern hemisphere counterpart, it flowers spectacularly in limited locations in the weeks leading up to Christmas.
© Neil Rawlins  text & photography

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