Flora of New Zealand Series

gorse

Shrub up to 2 m high; main stems erect or spreading, densely branched in younger parts but eventually bare at base; young twigs and spines somewhat glaucous; hairs usually grey. Lvs of seedlings not spinous but with 3 hairy leaflets; spines branched; terminal and lateral spines rigid, deeply furrowed, 15-30 mm long; secondary spines subtending lateral up to 12 mm long. Fls solitary; bracteoles acute to ± rounded, 1.5-3 mm wide. Calyx greenish yellow, c. ?-3/4 length of corolla, with ± patent hairs; calyx teeth connivent. Corolla clear yellow or golden yellow, 13-20 mm long; wings > keel. Pod villous, turning dark brown to black, 13-25 mm long; seeds smooth and rounded, brown or greenish brown, shiny, few per pod.

N.; S.: common to abundant throughout; St.: common in disturbed areas; Ch., A., C.

W. Europe to Italy 1867

Grassland, scrubland, forest margins, coastal habitats, waste places.

FL (Jan)-May-Nov-(Dec).

Gorse has been widely used in N.Z. as a hedging plant and is still used in some areas. The sp. is now a common and persistent weed in many parts of N.Z., particularly in rough foothills and less-intensively farmed areas (Plate 2). Forms of U. europaeus with smaller spines and of generally finer appearance are found in some areas, but these plants are easily distinguished from U. minor by the broader bracteoles and longer corolla.