Flora of New Zealand Series

H. dentata Forst. f. Prodr. 1786, 71.

Zanthoxylum novae-zelandiae A. Rich. Essai Fl. N.Z. 1832, 291, t. 33.

Porokaiwhiri, Pigeonwood.

Tree up to 12 m. tall; trunk up to 5 dm. diam.; bark dark; branchlets pubescent at tips. Lvs coriac., glab. except on midrib and main veins and petioles, which are up to 2 cm. long; lamina of two main forms, occ. found on the same tree: (a) 5-12 × 2.5-5 cm., elliptic-obovate, cuneately narrowed to base, obtuse to subacute, distantly serrate or odd lvs subentire; (b) 6·5-12.5 × 2-3 cm., oblanceolate to lanceolate, distantly toothed or odd lvs subentire, acute (rarely obtuse). Infl. of branched racemes; peduncles and pedicels slender, pubescent. ♂ with per. c. 1 cm. diam., pubescent, stamens ∞, anthers sessile. ♀ with per. c. 6 mm. diam.; carpels up to 20; drupes up to 10, stipitate, ± 1·5 cm. long, ovoid; bright red when fresh.

DIST.: Three Kings, N., S. Lowland to montane forest, reaching to Banks Peninsula on east and throughout on west of S.

FL. 9-12. FT. 10-2.

No localities are mentioned by the Forsters. H. scabra A. Cunn. in Ann. nat. Hist. 1, 1838, 216 is described as a tree 30 ft. tall with scabrid branchlets, elliptic-ovate to ovate-lanceolate lvs, scabrid on both surfaces; corymbs strigose-pilose. Type locality: "Keri-Keri river, Bay of Islands". Type: A. Cunningham, 1826, probably at BM but not seen by me.

Shade forms on the Poor Knights have broad-elliptic to broad-obovate lvs, somewhat sinnuate, distantly bluntly toothed, lamina 11-17 × 7·5-9·5 cm. Exposed lvs, 9 × 4 cm. Oliver (Rec. Auck. Inst. Mus. 3, 1948, 222) records the largest If seen on Three Kings as 14·5 × 7·6 cm. Sucker shoots on mainland plants may have lvs up to 12 × 6 cm.