I've found germination of both of these to be a bit sparse and variable. I suspect this is because they take a long time to ripen so it can be tempting to collect them before they're quite ready. Best results are achieved by waiting till they are very easily falling off the seed head before collecting and check the seed is completely brown. They mature quite late in the season so collections can be made up until May and June with March being about the earliest.
Propagate Pre treatment: sow fresh or dry store and sow Germination: about 5 months (not much data) Pricking out: 7 - 12 months after sowing Tips: avoid overwatering |
Given their disappearance from much of lowland Wellington and other areas of the country, it’s a shame Gahnia species are not more widely planted. Not only for the beauty of their bold reddish seed heads with bright coloured shiny seeds, but also considering their important association with the now rare Dodonidia helmsii (Forest ringlet) our only forest dwelling butterfly that relies on plants like Gahnia and Chionochloa for food. Sadly they are rather uncooperative in cultivation, not so much due to poor germination, but to extreme intolerance of root disturbance so don’t tease out the roots as you might usually when transplanting.
Gahnia are easy to spot due to the curious mechanism they employ for displaying their bright seeds, known as nuts. The filaments of the anthers remain attached to the base of the nut as it ripens and gradually lengthen and twist together with filaments from other flowers. Once the seed is released from its scale it dangles from the entwined filaments. The seeds have a long ripening period so should be left as long as possible before collection and some suggest, dried further (up to 6 months) before sowing.
Propagate Pre treatment: CMS 1 month Germination: 3 - 4 months Pricking out: variable from 9 - 20 months or more after sowing Tips: very temperamental |
The high tannin content of the bark was traditionally used for dyes and its usage by early European tanners resulted in a drastic reduction of kamahi numbers in the Auckland region. It was also used in chest medicines and wound healing.
This is a stunning tree with Hebe-like flowers and pods that produce very tiny seeds. The seeds are quickly dropped once the pods split so they need to be collected just before that point. By the time they are totally brown like the ones in this picture they're likely all gone so collect a few pods at various stages of ripeness. The seeds have variable germination, will continue to send up seedlings over a long period of time and grow slowly from there on. Kamahi seedlings can be extremely temperamental after pricking out and it's still a bit of a mystery but the best results I've had is leaving the seedlings till they're at least 2 or 3cm tall before pricking out, do so when the weather is warm and keep nice and evenly damp and sheltered. Once they get past the vulnerable stage they're tough as old boots!
Propagate Pre treatment: CMS 2 - 3 months Germination: ~ 4 months Pricking out: ~ 7 months after sowing Tips: prone to damping off |
The bright, light, yellow-green leaves with three leaflets make wharangi quite distinctive and when in fruit is even easier to identify. The fruit has four compartments and as the pods ripen the shiny black seeds gradually emerge to sit atop the dried pods before finally falling.
Like M. simplex it is slow to germinate and grow in the early stages so consider it a two year crop.
There are 100 odd species in this genus concentrated in Australia, South America and New Zealand with about 20 species occurring here. They're a successful group with several New Zealand species making it to invasive plant lists in North America, not surprising considering many have barbed seeds that are spread widely as they easily attach to feathers and fur.
Like the Asteraceae family (Olearia, Brachyglottis, Ozothamnus, Raoulia), they self-seed readily but are extremely variable when attempting to raise a crop from seed so by far the easiest option is cuttings. Cuttings are clones of the parent plant so when genetic diversity is important make sure to collect from as many plants as possible. See the Propagation page for notes on taking cuttings. Veronicas can be susceptible to fungal and mould issues in humid conditions so maximum air flow is essential.
Olearia is a genus of about 130 species found mainly in Australia, New Guinea and New Zealand. There are 40 odd species here and almost half of them are trees growing 5 - 8 meters tall though some, like Olearia traversiorum from the Chatham Islands, can reach 18 meters ! This makes them unique within their genus and even their family, Asteraceae, which is one of the largest in the world but mostly comprised of small herbaceous plants. More than half of our Olearia species are declining or endangered and many are uncommon. The only local natives common in Wellington are O. paniculata and O. solandri.

The fruits (borne on female vines) are a favourite bird food and will also be devoured by any possums, rats and mice in the area. The oil extracted from the seeds had various traditional uses including medicinal salves for treating persistent skin sores. Seed oil from several Passiflora species is still promoted as a healing and nourishing ingredient in skin products. The oil was even used by settlers for oiling watches and other fine metal work.

The adult leaves with their thick rolled over edges and large domatia are easy to spot on the ground in the bush if you're wondering what the canopy trees are. Also easily spotted earlier in the year are the fallen cream flowers with their dainty, finely toothed edges. The resemblance to Aristotelia flowers illustrates their family ties.
Elaeocarpus (referring to the olive-like fruit) is a large genus of about 350 species that are almost entirely tropical, the two southernmost species occurring here. The fruit have a mealy texture and were used by Maori to make a heavy loaf, komeke hinau, steamed for hours in an umu then preserved by wrapping and submerging in water for up to a year or more.
Propagate Pre treatment: CMS 2 - 3 months Germination: 2 - 6 weeks Pricking out: 2 - 6 months after sowing Tips: prone to damping off when young |
Coprosma are related to coffee plants (genus Coffea) and during the world wars C. robusta seeds were roasted and used as a coffee substitute. In fact William Colenso (the first British botanist to describe many New Zealand plants) named this species Coprosma coffaeoides due to the similarities.
The large leaves of this plant were often used for weaving mats and baskets once the sharp serrated edges were removed. Along with the two Carex species mentioned earlier, Cyperus makes an excellent large, fast growing filler. These three will compete well with the growth of exotic grasses in your wet site restoration areas.
Kunzea is a genus of almost entirely Australian species and belongs to the Myrtaceae family. In New Zealand this family includes rata, pohutakawa, manuka, kanuka and Lophomyrtus (ramarama) among others. The most topical issue for this family at present is Mrytle rust, a serious fungal disease that has recently arrived here from Australia. It severely attacks and even kills the plant and in Australia, has now become problematic for over 200 different species. Check out MPI website for more information.
Like manuka, kanuka is also a pioneer species colonising open ground in more fertile and well drained sites than manuka. Though it grows fast and large (up to 20 meters or more) the seedlings won't establish in the shade of maturing stands so eventually they are replaced by more shade tolerant forest species.
The medicinal properties of kanuka and manuka are also similar, both species are called tea trees and almost every part of these plants, and the honeys derived from them, are imbued with multiple health benefits. See manuka in November post for notes on telling these two apart.
Propagate Pre treatment: sow fresh Germination: 4 - 8 weeks Pricking out: 3 - 6 months after sowing Tips: prone to damping off |
European settlers gave both species the common name 'flax' due to the similarity of its fibres to the plant that gives us linen and linseed oil, Linum. Our native flaxes are in fact a type of lily quite closely related to day lilies (Hemerocallis). The flowers are not only loved by our native honey eaters, tui, bellbird, kokako, saddleback, but also by bats and geckos.
If you're in any doubt about the difference between wharariki (mountain flax, P. cookianum) and harakeke, the latter has upwards pointing seed heads that follow red flowers, and stiff, upright leaves on much larger plants. Wharariki has smaller yellow flowers followed by pendulous seed heads and drooping yellowish green leaves.
Flowers are few and far between right now but Olearia paniculata (Akiraho, golden akeake) (below) is just finishing at the end of April and there are still a few flushes of Metrosideros fulgens (rata) (bottom) dotted around.