Flora of New Zealand Series

C. parkinsoniana Col. in T.N.Z.I. 12, 1880, 359; 14, 1882, 331.

Type locality: Banks Peninsula. Type: P; portion in K. FL. 9-11. FT. 11-1.

Liane with rather stout main stems up to c. 6 cm. diam. at base, ascending to 6 m. or more; branchlets grooved, densely fulvous tomentose when young as are the unfolding lvs. Lvs 3-foliolate on rather stout pubescent-pilose petioles c. 3 cm. long. Lflts on petiolules c. 5-10 mm. long, rather dark green, subcoriac., ovate, obtuse to acute, truncate to subcordate at base, entire to sinuate or ± crenately toothed; pubescent-pilose, at length glab.; 2.5-6 × 2-4 cm. Subfloral lflts smaller; often entire or subentire. Infl. of axillary us. ample panicles; pedicels up to 4 cm. long, slender, pilose; bracts ovate, acute to acuminate, connate. Fls strongly scented. ♂ up to 2.5 cm. diam. Sepals 5-8, yellow, pubescent-pilose without, 1·5 cm. long, ovate-oblong, obtuse to subacute. Stamens ∞, filaments c. 1 cm. long; anthers 1-2 mm. long, narrow oblong. ♀ up to 1·5 cm. Sepals 5-8, c. 1 cm. long, ovate, obtuse, pubescent-pilose without, yellow. Stamens us. abortive. Achenes c. 3 mm. long, ∞, ± pubescent-pilose; styles c. 2-3 cm. long, plumose.

DIST.: N., S. Lowland forests, especially marginal, throughout.

Kirk (Stud. Fl. 1899, 4) gives the sepals as "narrow-linear." Cheeseman (Man. N.Z. Fl. 1925, 432) as "linear"; I find them as pictured and described by Raoul, "ovatis v. ovato-oblongis." Colenso's parkinsoniana was based on specimens from the "banks of the River Mangatawhainui (head of the River Manawatu) 'Forty-mile Bush,' 1878 and again 1879." The sheet in K has (a) branch 28 cm. long, with lvs and small infl. Lflts 3·5 × 2·25 cm.; entire to crenulate (b) terminal branchlets c. 35 cm. long, with small lobulate leaves (c) with fr.; styles c. 2 cm. long, achenes somewhat pilose (d) with ♂; sepals ± 1 cm. long, pilose without. Colenso emphasizes the lf-polymorphy. Heteroblasty has not been adequately studied, but the lobulate stage has trifoliolate to pinnate lvs, the lflts small, lobed or toothed.

Hooker (Fl. N.Z. 1, 1852, 7) described var.? depauperata: "foliolis anguste linearibus 1/2-uncialibus v. minimis 1-2 lin. longis, pedunculis brevibus 1-floribus. Lake Rotoatara. Colenso." He remarks "appears to be a starved state of the plant; but it is in hermaphrodite flower only, and too imperfect to pronounce upon." The material is imperfect, but probably belongs to C. quadribracteolata. In the Handbk 1864, 2, he adds a specimen from "Canterbury, Travers." This appears to be C. marata. Neither Kirk nor Cheeseman refers to either specimen.