''Laurelia novae-zelandiae'', also called pukatea, is a large

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has Leaf, foliage that remains green and functional throughout the year. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which lose their foliage completely during the winter or dry season. Consisting of many diffe ...

tree,

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to the forests of New Zealand. Pukatea has 'toothed' leaves and produces small flowers. It is a species in the

Atherospermataceae The Atherospermataceae, commonly known as the southern sassafrases, are a family (biology), family of broadleaf evergreen trees and shrubs. The family includes 14 species in seven genus, genera. The atherosperms are today mostly distributed in th ...

(formerly

Monimiaceae The Monimiaceae is a family (biology), family of flowering plants in the magnoliid Order (biology), order Laurales.Peter F. Stevens (2001 onwards). "Monimiaceae" At: Angiosperm Phylogeny Website. At: Botanical Databases At: Missouri Botanical Gar ...

) family, typical representative of

laurel forest Laurel forest, also called laurisilva or laurissilva, is a type of subtropical forest found in areas with high humidity and relatively stable, mild temperatures. The forest is characterized by broadleaf tree species with evergreen, glossy and el ...

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) is an ecological and geographic area that exists on multiple different levels, defined by type, quality, and quantity of environmental resources. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and c ...

Taxonomy and name

The taxon was first described by Allan Cunningham in 1838. The species is the only member of ''

Laurelia ''Laurelia'' is a genus of plant in the major group Angiosperms (flowering plants) in the family Atherospermataceae, or formerly Monimiaceae. It contains only two species, both endemic to the southern hemisphere, an example of Gondwanan distribu ...

'' found in New Zealand. The name pukatea is a Polynesian word applied to a great number of plants, including ''

Hernandia nymphaeifolia ''Hernandia nymphaeifolia'' is a species of plant in the Hernandiaceae family. Its common name is lantern tree. Description ''Hernandia nymphaeifolia'' is a tree with 5–22 m high. The leaves are narrowly or broadly ovate or subcircular. The 5- ...

'' and ''

Pisonia grandis ''Pisonia grandis'', the grand devil's-claws, is a species of flowering tree in the ''Bougainvillea'' family, Nyctaginaceae. Description The tree has broad, thin leaves, smooth bark and bears clusters of green sweet-smelling flowers that matur ...

''. The element ''puka'' is used to describe a wide variety of plants, including '' Meryta sinclairii''.

Distribution

Pukatea is endemic to New Zealand. It is generally found in lowland forest and grows throughout the

North Island The North Island ( , 'the fish of Māui', historically New Ulster) is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but less populous South Island by Cook Strait. With an area of , it is the List ...

of New Zealand, and the northern third of the

South Island The South Island ( , 'the waters of Pounamu, Greenstone') is the largest of the three major islands of New Zealand by surface area, the others being the smaller but more populous North Island and Stewart Island. It is bordered to the north by ...

, usually where moisture is plentiful, such as in damp, lowland forests, gullies, and on the edges of streams. Pukatea grows well in poorly drained soil, but is equally at home on hillsides. It requires a temperate to warm subtropical climate, but also a frost-free environment with only very slight winter frosts not below , and with high summer heat. Growth is best on well-drained, slightly acidic

soil Soil, also commonly referred to as earth, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, water, and organisms that together support the life of plants and soil organisms. Some scientific definitions distinguish dirt from ''soil'' by re ...

s rich in organic matter.

Description

Pukatea grows slowly to a height of , usually , and is the only New Zealand native tree developing large plank buttresses to support the tree's growth in swamp or shallow-soil areas. ''Laurelia novae-zelandiae'' has specialized respiratory root structures called

pneumatophore Aerial roots are roots growing above the ground. They are often adventitious, i.e. formed from nonroot tissue. They are found in diverse plant species, including epiphytes such as orchids (''Orchidaceae''), tropical coastal swamp trees such ...

s in certain waterlogged ground or mud. These fragrant trees are characteristic of the lower strata of the tropical rainforest. The tree has thin bark and a pale brownish-grey trunk that becomes attractively buttressed at the base. Its dark green, glossy, elliptical leaves are long and have coarsely serrated edges and paler undersides. The odorous opposite

leaves A leaf (: leaves) is a principal appendage of the stem of a vascular plant, usually borne laterally above ground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, stem, ...

have oil cells in the

parenchyma upright=1.6, Lung parenchyma showing damage due to large subpleural bullae. Parenchyma () is the bulk of functional substance in an animal organ such as the brain or lungs, or a structure such as a tumour. In zoology, it is the tissue that ...

, and brochidodromous venations. Juvenile leaves and stems can be difficult to distinguish from another native tree

hutu The Hutu (), also known as the Abahutu, are a Bantu ethnic group native to the African Great Lakes region. They mainly live in Rwanda, Burundi, and Uganda where they form one of the principal ethnic groups alongside the Tutsi and the Great L ...

, to which it is only distantly related. Pukatea is a mostly

dioecious Dioecy ( ; ; adj. dioecious, ) is a characteristic of certain species that have distinct unisexual individuals, each producing either male or female gametes, either directly (in animals) or indirectly (in seed plants). Dioecious reproduction is ...

species, male and female flowers are on separate individuals. Some specimens had a ratio as high as 100 male flowers to every female or hermaphrodite one. These results suggest that the species is not truly dioecious. The female and hermaphrodite flowers are very similar. The flowers are tiny, inconspicuous, and in small

raceme A raceme () or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate growth, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are ...

s. The star-shaped flowers are light with yellow glistening glands and scarlet anther flaps. The glands at the base of the stamens in ''Laurelia novae-zelandiae'' secrete nectar that accumulates at the base of the flower. This attracts a large number of bees, blowflies, small flightless animals, and

Bombyliidae The Bombyliidae are a family of flies, commonly known as bee flies. Some are colloquially known as bomber flies. Adults generally feed on nectar and pollen, some being important pollinators. Larvae are mostly parasitoids of other insects. Over ...

to the flowers. The nectar is visible as a colourless liquid which has a glistening appearance to the outer faces of the glands. Nectar runs down from the glands and accumulates on the floor of the flower as a result of continuing secretion. The fruit are little pear-shaped capsules which contain numerous

achene An achene (; ), also sometimes called akene and occasionally achenium or achenocarp, is a type of simple fruit, simple dry fruits, dry fruit produced by many species of flowering plants. Achenes are monocarpellate (formed from one carpel) and Dehi ...

s attached to fine feathery strands which aid their dispersal by the wind. Often, only a few seeds are viable. As ''Laurelia novae-zelandiae'' age, the trees often develop large hollows at the centre of their trunks.

Uses

The plant is used in

rongoā (or rongoā Māori) refers to the traditional medicinal practices developed among the Māori in New Zealand. Rongoā was one of the Māori cultural practices targeted by the Tohunga Suppression Act 1907, until lifted by the Maori Welfare Ac ...

(traditional Māori medicine) as an

analgesic An analgesic drug, also called simply an analgesic, antalgic, pain reliever, or painkiller, is any member of the group of drugs used for pain management. Analgesics are conceptually distinct from anesthetics, which temporarily reduce, and in s ...

, due to the presence of the

alkaloid Alkaloids are a broad class of natural product, naturally occurring organic compounds that contain at least one nitrogen atom. Some synthetic compounds of similar structure may also be termed alkaloids. Alkaloids are produced by a large varie ...

pukateine Pukateine is an alkaloid found in the bark of the New Zealand tree '' Laurelia novae-zelandiae'' ("Pukatea"), as well as some South American plants. An extract from pukatea is used in traditional Māori herbal medicine as an analgesic. Bernard ...

in the bark of the tree.Nigel Perry. 'Plant extracts', Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, updated 2-Mar-09 – use as an analgesic
/ref> The hollows at the centre of trunks were also traditionally used as burial trees. The timber was used by

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

to create figureheads for canoes, as well as for bowls, clubs and paddles. The wood was also adopted by early European settlers for boat building. It is rather soft, but very strong. It yields a pale hardwood that is difficult to split and will dent upon impact rather than break. Its wood is pale-yellowish, with

growth ring Dendrochronology (or tree-ring dating) is the scientific method of dating tree rings (also called growth rings) to the exact year they were formed in a tree. As well as dating them, this can give data for dendroclimatology, the study of climate ...

s, and is homogeneous and fine-textured. The pulp of the cambium was boiled in water and the resulting liquid used for treating

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

Gallery

Laurelia novae-zelandiae 11.JPG, Leaves of a pukatea seedling Laurelia novae-zelandiae 12.JPG, The buttressed trunk of a pukatea Laurelia novae-zelandiae 442515606.jpg, Stems of pukatea Laurelia novae-zelandiae 52393901.jpg, Pukatea trunk Laurelia novae-zelandiae 13.JPG, Pukatea in a forested area

Taxonomy and name

Distribution

Description

Uses

Gallery

References

Further reading