Tag Archives: Bush City

Jovellana sinclairii flowering in Bush City

9 December 2012 – 7.27pm

Te Papa’s Bush City is currently graced by a good display of sprays of the white, bell-like flowers of Jovellana sinclairii. If you’re visiting, you can see them beside the waterfall, on the lower track.

Jovellana sinclairii BushCity 3 reduced

Flowers of Jovellana sinclairii, in Te Papa’s Bush City. Photo Leon Perrie. © Te Papa.

Flowers of Jovellana sinclairii, in Te Papa’s Bush City. Photo Leon Perrie. © Te Papa.

Jovellana sinclairii in Te Papa’s Bush City. Photo Leon Perrie. © Te Papa.

Jovellana sinclairii BushCity 4 reduced

Inside a flower of Jovellana sinclairii, in Te Papa’s Bush City. Photo Leon Perrie. © Te Papa.

Jovellana sinclairii is not a common plant in the wild. You’re most likely to find this large herb beside streams and other wet places. But it makes a good garden plant, in damp, shaded areas.

There is one other species of Jovellana in New Zealand. The group of plants to which they belong (the Calceolariaceae) otherwise occurs in South America.

More on New Zealand Jovellana.

A recent study using DNA to investigate the relationships of these plants concluded that the ancestor of the New Zealand species had arrived from South America within the last few million years.

Abstract of the paper investigating Jovellana relationships.

More on some of the plants in Bush City.

By Leon Perrie | Posted in Biodiversity, Plants | Also tagged , | Comments (0)

Forest icing sugar – Clematis

11 October 2011 – 1.33pm

Many New Zealand forests are sprinkled with white at this time of the year.

The indigenous Clematis are flowering, and particularly striking with its large white flowers is Clematis paniculata (puawhananga, white clematis).

Close up of a male flower of Clematis paniculata. Copyright Leon Perrie.

There is a plant of Clematis paniculata flowering wonderfully at present in Te Papa’s Bush City, at the harbour-end of the upper level.

Most Clematis (variously pronounced “Clem-a-tis” or “Clee-may-tis”) are climbing vines that are rooted in the ground but whose leaves and flowers are held in the canopy. 

Rather than having female and male parts in the same flower, most New Zealand Clematis have separate female and male plants.

Indigenous Clematis shouldn’t be confused with the introduced Clematis vitalba (old man’s beard), which is from Europe and Asia.  Clematis vitalba vigorously smothers forest it invades, causing canopy collapse.  It is a pest plant targeted by many councils.  Clematis vitalba flowers during summer and autumn, and is easily distinguished by its five leaflets compared to the three leaflets of the similar, indigenous New Zealand Clematis.

By Leon Perrie | Posted in Biodiversity, Exhibitions, Plants | Also tagged , , | Comments (2)

Bush City’s residents

14 April 2011 – 6.06pm

Mamaku, Cyathea medullaris, in Te Papa's Bush City. Photo Leon Perrie, (c) Te Papa.

Want to know more about the plants in Bush City?

Bush City is Te Papa’s only living, outdoor exhibition.

Information about some of the plants in Bush City is now available from Te Papa’s Collections Online.

Let me know if you are interested in a plant in Bush City that is not included in the initial set of twelve. This will help me prioritise additional species to write about.

You can find more details on the uses of the featured plants in the cited references.  In particular, the book by Andrew Crowe, A Field Guide to the Native Edible Plants of New Zealand, should be available from public libraries (and bookstores).

By Leon Perrie | Posted in Biodiversity, Exhibitions, Plants | Also tagged , , , | Comments (5)

Pohutukawa flowering

22 December 2010 – 8.08am

Pohutukawa flowers.

Pohutukawa are presently flowering strongly in many parts of the country, including the trees planted around Te Papa.

What does this tell us about the weather? 

National Radio’s Morning Report investigates.

Because of its often spectacular summer flowering, pohutukawa (Metrosideros excelsa) is regarded as New Zealand’s own indigenous Christmas tree.  I don’t know for sure but I suspect this sentiment may be stronger in the north, with pohutukawa not occurring naturally in the wild in the south (although it is widely planted outside its native range).

By Leon Perrie | Posted in Biodiversity, Exhibitions, Plants | Also tagged , , , , , | Comments (0)

Does every spider orchid in New Zealand have its fungus gnat?

24 September 2010 – 10.09am

Te Papa’s Curator of Botany, Carlos Lehnebach, has just been awarded a Marsden Fast-Start grant for three years to answer this intriguing question.

Spider Orchids are a group of terrestrial orchids that are usually found on forest floors and road banks. Their flowers are small and dull in colour, and it has been suggested that these orchids mimic the appearance and smell of fungi to attract female fungus gnats to their flowers. The fungus gnats lay their eggs in the flowers and by doing so they inadvertently pollinate the flowers.

Flowers of the native Spider orchid Nematoceras trilobum.

Although this fascinating pollination system in New Zealand Spider Orchids was first mentioned by Thomson in 1927 it has never been studied in detail. A bit of an urban legend! (or a forest legend?).

Over 80 years later, thanks to a Marsden Fast-Start grant (Royal Society of New Zealand – Marsden Fund; http://www.marsden.royalsociety.org.nz ) we will be able to investigate the fertilisation process in these orchids. We will then relate our results to the evolution and maintenance of different flower forms and flower colour in populations of the spider orchid Nematoceras trilobum.

Follow us in our quest to untangle the relationship between these orchids and their fungus gnats!

By Carlos A. Lehnebach | Posted in Biodiversity, Exhibitions, Orchids, Plants | Also tagged , , , , | Comments (4)

Kohekohe, one of the funkiest trees in town!

8 April 2010 – 2.48pm

There are four reasons that make kohekohe (Dysoxylum spectabile) one of the funkiest trees in town    

First, unlike many other trees, Kohekohe flowers sprout from the trunk and branches. This feature is known as cauliflory and it’s believed to be an adaptation to pollination and seed dispersal by animals that can’t fly or insects living at the ground level.   

Branches of Kohekohe (Dysoxylum spectabile) with flowers. Photo by C.A. Lehnebach (c) Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa.

Branches of Kohekohe (Dysoxylum spectabile) with flowers. Photo by C.A. Lehnebach (c) Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa.

Close up to a cluster of flowers forming on the trunk of Kohekohe (Dysoxylum spectabile). Photo by C.A. Lehnebach (c) Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa.

A close up of a cluster of flowers forming on the trunk of Kohekohe (Dysoxylum spectabile) at Bush City. Photo by C.A. Lehnebach (c) Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa.

Second, Kohekohe trees do not flower every year. Blooming generally occurs during early winter and after pollination of the flowers has occurred fruits will take up to 15 months to ripen. Thus, you will not see flowers on trees that are currently fruiting or vice versa.    

Fruits of Kohekohe (Dysoxylum spectabile). Photo by C.A. Lehnebach (c) Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa.

Fruits of Kohekohe (Dysoxylum spectabile). Photo by C.A. Lehnebach (c) Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa.

Third, Kohekohe is the only representative in New Zealand of the tree genus Dysoxylum which is otherwise only found in tropical and subtropical regions of the world.    

Fourth, Kohekohe was one of the first trees collected in the country by the scientists Joseph Banks and Daniel Solander during the first trip of Captain James Cook to New Zealand in 1768. We  have this very first  sample of Kohekohe in our collection at Te Papa. This specimen is over 240 years old!      

  

You can see further details of this specimen  by visiting our collection on line!  http://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/objectdetails.aspx?oid=329062&term=Kohekohe 

 

Kohekohe trees were once common in coastal and lowland forests of New Zealand.  Nowadays, their number has been reduced due to habitat destruction and damage by possums. Fortunately you don’t need to go very far to see this interesting tree. There are several Kohekohe trees growing in Bush City and one of them is going to bloom any time soon! Don’t miss it!

By Carlos A. Lehnebach | Posted in Biodiversity, Collections Online, Exhibitions, Plants | Also tagged , , , , | Comments (0)
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