Dacrycarpus dacrydioides
Encyclopedia
Dacrycarpus dacrydioides or kahikatea (from its name in the Māori language
) is a coniferous
tree
endemic to New Zealand
.
The tree grows to a height of 55 metres (180 ft) with a trunk exceeding 1 metres (3 ft) in diameter, and is buttressed at the base. It is dominant in lowland forest and wetland
s throughout the North
and South Island
s. The leaves
are spirally arranged; on young plants, they are awl-shaped, 3 to 8 mm long, and twisted at the base to lie spread to the sides of the shoot in a flat plane; on mature trees, they are scale-like, 1 to 3 mm long, and placed all round the shoot. The cones
are highly modified, with the cone scales swelling at maturity into an orange to red, fleshy, aril
with a single apical seed
3 to 5 mm in diameter. The seeds are dispersed by bird
s, which eat the fleshy scale and pass the seeds in their droppings.
Before extensive logging
, trees of 80 m height were known. A specimen on private land near Matirangi Forest in the Taranaki region is the tallest native tree in New Zealand at 56.4 metres (185 ft). Tāne Mahuta
, the famously large kauri tree (Agathis australis
), is 51.2 m.
The tree was previously referred to by the misleading name "white pine", despite its not being a pine
; the Māori
name kahikatea is now more widely used (other Māori names are kaikatea, kahika, katea, kōaka).
Like many other species in the family Podocarpaceae, the classification of kahikatea has changed over time, having also been placed in the genera Podocarpus
and Nageia
.
does not impart an odour, and is clean and lightweight, Kahikatea was used to make boxes for the exporting of butter
when the refrigerated export became feasible from Australia and New Zealand in the 1880s. The butter was exported in 56 lb
slabs, and kahikatea became less common as the export industry grew. Indeed, tall mature pure kaihikatea forest, a once distinctive and widespread wetland type, is all but gone except for very small patches mostly on the West Coast.
For Māori, the kahikatea had many uses. The fleshy aril
or koroi was an important food resource, and was served at feasts in great amounts. The wood was also favoured for making bird spears. Soot obtained from burning the heartwood supplied a pigment for traditional tattooing (tā moko
).
Kahikatea, along with other trees in privately owned forests, can only be harvested under a permit system and if sustainable harvesting techniques are used.
Maori language
Māori or te reo Māori , commonly te reo , is the language of the indigenous population of New Zealand, the Māori. It has the status of an official language in New Zealand...
) is a coniferous
Pinophyta
The conifers, division Pinophyta, also known as division Coniferophyta or Coniferae, are one of 13 or 14 division level taxa within the Kingdom Plantae. Pinophytes are gymnosperms. They are cone-bearing seed plants with vascular tissue; all extant conifers are woody plants, the great majority being...
tree
Tree
A tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
endemic to New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
.
The tree grows to a height of 55 metres (180 ft) with a trunk exceeding 1 metres (3 ft) in diameter, and is buttressed at the base. It is dominant in lowland forest and wetland
Wetland
A wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with water either permanently or seasonally. Wetlands are categorised by their characteristic vegetation, which is adapted to these unique soil conditions....
s throughout the North
North Island
The North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the much less populous South Island by Cook Strait. The island is in area, making it the world's 14th-largest island...
and South Island
South Island
The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman Sea, to the south and east by the Pacific Ocean...
s. The leaves
Leaf
A leaf is an organ of a vascular plant, as defined in botanical terms, and in particular in plant morphology. Foliage is a mass noun that refers to leaves as a feature of plants....
are spirally arranged; on young plants, they are awl-shaped, 3 to 8 mm long, and twisted at the base to lie spread to the sides of the shoot in a flat plane; on mature trees, they are scale-like, 1 to 3 mm long, and placed all round the shoot. The cones
Conifer cone
A cone is an organ on plants in the division Pinophyta that contains the reproductive structures. The familiar woody cone is the female cone, which produces seeds. The male cones, which produce pollen, are usually herbaceous and much less conspicuous even at full maturity...
are highly modified, with the cone scales swelling at maturity into an orange to red, fleshy, aril
Aril
An aril is any specialized outgrowth from the funiculus that covers or is attached to the seed. It is sometimes applied to any appendage or thickening of the seed coat in flowering plants, such as the edible parts of the mangosteen and pomegranate fruit, the mace of the nutmeg seed, or the...
with a single apical seed
Seed
A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
3 to 5 mm in diameter. The seeds are dispersed by bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s, which eat the fleshy scale and pass the seeds in their droppings.
Before extensive logging
Logging
Logging is the cutting, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks.In forestry, the term logging is sometimes used in a narrow sense concerning the logistics of moving wood from the stump to somewhere outside the forest, usually a sawmill or a lumber yard...
, trees of 80 m height were known. A specimen on private land near Matirangi Forest in the Taranaki region is the tallest native tree in New Zealand at 56.4 metres (185 ft). Tāne Mahuta
Tane Mahuta
Tāne Mahuta is a giant kauri tree in the Waipoua Forest of Northland Region, New Zealand. Its age is unknown but is estimated to be between 1,250 and 2,500 years old. It is the largest kauri known to stand today...
, the famously large kauri tree (Agathis australis
Agathis australis
Agathis australis, commonly known as the kauri, is a coniferous tree found north of 38°S in the northern districts of New Zealand's North Island. It is the largest but not tallest species of tree in New Zealand, standing up to 50 m tall in the emergent layer above the forest's main canopy. The...
), is 51.2 m.
The tree was previously referred to by the misleading name "white pine", despite its not being a pine
Pine
Pines are trees in the genus Pinus ,in the family Pinaceae. They make up the monotypic subfamily Pinoideae. There are about 115 species of pine, although different authorities accept between 105 and 125 species.-Etymology:...
; the Māori
Maori language
Māori or te reo Māori , commonly te reo , is the language of the indigenous population of New Zealand, the Māori. It has the status of an official language in New Zealand...
name kahikatea is now more widely used (other Māori names are kaikatea, kahika, katea, kōaka).
Like many other species in the family Podocarpaceae, the classification of kahikatea has changed over time, having also been placed in the genera Podocarpus
Podocarpus
Podocarpus is a genus of conifers, the most numerous and widely distributed of the podocarp family Podocarpaceae. The 105 species of Podocarpus are evergreen shrubs or trees from 1-25 m in height...
and Nageia
Nageia
Nageia is a genus of conifers belonging to the podocarp family Podocarpaceae. Nageia includes evergreen shrubs and trees, from one to 54 meters in height. A 2009 treatment of the genus recognized five species. Some authors consider Nageia formosensis to be a separate species from Nageia nagi,...
.
Uses
The timber was initially not so highly regarded by European settlers as it was less attractive, strong, or resilient to rot than the other coniferous timbers available. However, since the woodWood
Wood is a hard, fibrous tissue found in many trees. It has been used for hundreds of thousands of years for both fuel and as a construction material. It is an organic material, a natural composite of cellulose fibers embedded in a matrix of lignin which resists compression...
does not impart an odour, and is clean and lightweight, Kahikatea was used to make boxes for the exporting of butter
Butter
Butter is a dairy product made by churning fresh or fermented cream or milk. It is generally used as a spread and a condiment, as well as in cooking applications, such as baking, sauce making, and pan frying...
when the refrigerated export became feasible from Australia and New Zealand in the 1880s. The butter was exported in 56 lb
Pound (mass)
The pound or pound-mass is a unit of mass used in the Imperial, United States customary and other systems of measurement...
slabs, and kahikatea became less common as the export industry grew. Indeed, tall mature pure kaihikatea forest, a once distinctive and widespread wetland type, is all but gone except for very small patches mostly on the West Coast.
For Māori, the kahikatea had many uses. The fleshy aril
Aril
An aril is any specialized outgrowth from the funiculus that covers or is attached to the seed. It is sometimes applied to any appendage or thickening of the seed coat in flowering plants, such as the edible parts of the mangosteen and pomegranate fruit, the mace of the nutmeg seed, or the...
or koroi was an important food resource, and was served at feasts in great amounts. The wood was also favoured for making bird spears. Soot obtained from burning the heartwood supplied a pigment for traditional tattooing (tā moko
Ta moko
Tā moko is the permanent body and face marking by Māori, the indigenous people of New Zealand. Traditionally it is distinct from tattoo and tatau in that the skin was carved by rather than punctured...
).
Kahikatea, along with other trees in privately owned forests, can only be harvested under a permit system and if sustainable harvesting techniques are used.
External links
- Gymnosperm Database - Dacrycarpus dacrydioides
- Environment Waikato - Kahikatea
- http://www.nzes.org.nz/nzje/free_issues/ProNZES21_62.pdf The Kahikatea Forests of South Westland (New Zealand Journal of EcologyNew Zealand Journal of EcologyThe New Zealand Journal of Ecology is a biannual peer-reviewed scientific journal publishing ecological research relevant to New Zealand and the South Pacific. It has been published since 1952, firstly as a 1952 issue of New Zealand Science Review and then as the Proceedings of the New Zealand...
)