Laurelia novae-zelandiae
Encyclopedia
Laurelia novae-zelandiae, also called Pukatea, is a large laurifolia evergreen
tree
, endemic
to the forests of New Zealand
. with so-called 'toothed' leaves and producing small flowers. It is a species in the Atherospermataceae
(formerly Monimiaceae
) family, typical representative of Laurel forest
ecoregion
.
of New Zealand, and the northern third of the South Island
. Requires plenty of moisture, many times in damp areas or on the edges of streams. It often grows in damp low-land forests, especially gullies. Rainy, moisty, damp places and swamps... the typical laurel forest habitat.
The species is a laurifolia related with laurel forest
species of Australia
, New Caledonia
and Valdivian laurel forest of Sudamerica, through the connection of the Antarctic flora
. The Laurelia genus, contains only two species, both endemic to the southern hemisphere, an example of Gondwana
n distribution.
Other one is Laurelia sempervirens
native to Chile
.
The tree is endemic to New Zealand, is widespread in mainly coastal situations. The ecological requirements of the species, are those of the laurel forest
and like most of their counterparts laurifolia in the world, is a vigorous species with a great ability to populate the habitat that is conducive, grows well in poorly drained soil but is equally at home on hillsides. Pukatea require a warm subtropical to tropical climate cool but also frost-free or with only very slight winter frosts not below -4°C, and with high summer heat, rainfall, and humidity. Growth is best on well-drained, slightly acidic soil
s rich in organic matter.
, Laureliopsis philippiana
, Laurelia sempervirens and others lauroides.
Pukatea can slowly grow to a height of 40 m, usually 35 m, and is the only New Zealand native tree developing large plank-buttresses to support the tree's growth in swamp or shallow-soil areas. Also it have specialized respiratory roots structure in certain waterlogged ground or mud named pneumatophores. These fragrant trees are characteristic of the lower strata of the tropical rainforest. The species is a conical resistant tree with thin bark and a pale brownish grey trunk that becomes attractively buttressed at the base. Its dark green glossy, elliptic leaves are 5-7 cm long and have coarsely serrated edges and paler undersides. The odorous opposite leaves
, without shalls, have oil cells in the parenchyma, and brochidodromous nerve
s. It is a mostly dioecious
species, male and female flowers are on separate individual specimens. Some specimens had a ratio as high as 100 male flowers to every female or hermaphrodite one. These results suggest that the species is not truly dioecious. The female and hermaphrodite flowers are very similar. The flowers are tiny, inconspicuous and in small racemes. The star-shaped flowers are whitish with yellow glistening glands and scarlet anther flaps. The glands at the base of the stamens in Laurelia novaezelandiae secrete nectar that accumulates at the base of the flower and makes a large number of bees, blowflies, small flightless animals and Bombyliidae
visit flowers . The nectar is visible as a colourless liquid which gives a glistening appearance to the outer faces of the glands. Nectar runs down from the glands and accumulates on the floor of the flower as a result of continuing secretion. The fruit are little pear shaped capsules which contain numerous seeds attached to fine feathery anemophilous filaments which aid to disperse by wind. The seed of this species is dispersed by the wind (anemochory). The feathery achenes must keep moist when sown. Often, only a few seeds are viable.
is pale-yellowish, with growth rings little notorious and homogeneous and fine texture. An extract from the bark containing the alkaloid
pukateine
is used in traditional Māori herbal medicine as an analgesic
.. It was used by indigenous peoples to treat tuberculosis. The bark of Laurelia novae-zelandiae was used by Maori in a number of medical remedies but it was especially noted for its use against tubercular lesions. The pulp of the cambium was boiled in water and the resulting liquid used for treating tubercular ulcers.
Evergreen
In botany, an evergreen plant is a plant that has leaves in all seasons. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which completely lose their foliage during the winter or dry season.There are many different kinds of evergreen plants, both trees and shrubs...
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
Endemic (ecology)
Endemism is the ecological state of being unique to a defined geographic location, such as an island, nation or other defined zone, or habitat type; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. For example, all species of lemur are endemic to the...
to the forests of 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...
. with so-called 'toothed' leaves and producing small flowers. It is a species in the Atherospermataceae
Atherospermataceae
The Atherospermataceae, commonly known as the southern sassafrases, are a family of broadleaf evergreen trees and shrubs. The family includes 14 species in seven genera. The atherosperms are native to the southern hemisphere, with two species native to southern Chile and 12 species native to...
(formerly Monimiaceae
Monimiaceae
Monimiaceae is a family of flowering plants, which includes 150-220 species of shrubs and small trees in 18-25 genera. They are native to the southern hemisphere tropics and subtropics. The largest genus is Tambourissa, with 50 species in Madagascar, the Mascarene Islands, and the Comoros...
) family, typical representative of Laurel forest
Laurel forest
Laurel forest is a subtropical or mild temperate forest, found in areas with high humidity and relatively stable and mild temperatures. They are characterized by tree species with evergreen, glossy, enlongated leaves, known as laurophyll or lauroide...
ecoregion
Ecoregion
An ecoregion , sometimes called a bioregion, is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than an ecozone and larger than an ecosystem. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and contain characteristic, geographically distinct assemblages of natural...
.
Distribution
Pukatea is generally found in lowland forest and grows throughout the North IslandNorth 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...
of New Zealand, and the northern third of the 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...
. Requires plenty of moisture, many times in damp areas or on the edges of streams. It often grows in damp low-land forests, especially gullies. Rainy, moisty, damp places and swamps... the typical laurel forest habitat.
The species is a laurifolia related with laurel forest
Laurel forest
Laurel forest is a subtropical or mild temperate forest, found in areas with high humidity and relatively stable and mild temperatures. They are characterized by tree species with evergreen, glossy, enlongated leaves, known as laurophyll or lauroide...
species of Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
and Valdivian laurel forest of Sudamerica, through the connection of the Antarctic flora
Antarctic flora
The Antarctic flora is a distinct community of vascular plants which evolved millions of years ago on the supercontinent of Gondwana, and is now found on several separate areas of the Southern Hemisphere, including southern South America, southernmost Africa, New Zealand, Australia and New Caledonia...
. The Laurelia genus, contains only two species, both endemic to the southern hemisphere, an example of Gondwana
Gondwana
In paleogeography, Gondwana , originally Gondwanaland, was the southernmost of two supercontinents that later became parts of the Pangaea supercontinent. It existed from approximately 510 to 180 million years ago . Gondwana is believed to have sutured between ca. 570 and 510 Mya,...
n distribution.
Other one is Laurelia sempervirens
Laurelia sempervirens
Laurelia sempervirens, called from mapuche: Tihue, Trihue, also called Chilean Laurel or Chilean Sassafras. It is a species of Evergreen tree in the family Atherospermataceae, formerly Monimiaceae family, in the southern hemisphere genus of plant Laurelia, not closely related to Lauraceae despite...
native to Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
.
The tree is endemic to New Zealand, is widespread in mainly coastal situations. The ecological requirements of the species, are those of the laurel forest
Laurel forest
Laurel forest is a subtropical or mild temperate forest, found in areas with high humidity and relatively stable and mild temperatures. They are characterized by tree species with evergreen, glossy, enlongated leaves, known as laurophyll or lauroide...
and like most of their counterparts laurifolia in the world, is a vigorous species with a great ability to populate the habitat that is conducive, grows well in poorly drained soil but is equally at home on hillsides. Pukatea require a warm subtropical to tropical climate cool but also frost-free or with only very slight winter frosts not below -4°C, and with high summer heat, rainfall, and humidity. Growth is best on well-drained, slightly acidic soil
Soil
Soil is a natural body consisting of layers of mineral constituents of variable thicknesses, which differ from the parent materials in their morphological, physical, chemical, and mineralogical characteristics...
s rich in organic matter.
Description
This species is very similar to Bay LaurelBay Laurel
The bay laurel , also known as sweet bay, bay tree, true laurel, Grecian laurel, laurel tree, or simply laurel, is an aromatic evergreen tree or large shrub with green, glossy leaves, native to the Mediterranean region. It is the source of the bay leaf used in cooking...
, Laureliopsis philippiana
Laureliopsis philippiana
Laureliopsis philippiana , known as Tepa is a species of plant endemic to Chile and Argentina . In Chile it is found from Maule to Aysen. It grows on humid and deep soils.-Description:...
, Laurelia sempervirens and others lauroides.
Pukatea can slowly grow to a height of 40 m, usually 35 m, and is the only New Zealand native tree developing large plank-buttresses to support the tree's growth in swamp or shallow-soil areas. Also it have specialized respiratory roots structure in certain waterlogged ground or mud named pneumatophores. These fragrant trees are characteristic of the lower strata of the tropical rainforest. The species is a conical resistant tree with thin bark and a pale brownish grey trunk that becomes attractively buttressed at the base. Its dark green glossy, elliptic leaves are 5-7 cm long and have coarsely serrated edges and paler undersides. The odorous opposite 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....
, without shalls, have oil cells in the parenchyma, and brochidodromous nerve
Nerve
A peripheral nerve, or simply nerve, is an enclosed, cable-like bundle of peripheral axons . A nerve provides a common pathway for the electrochemical nerve impulses that are transmitted along each of the axons. Nerves are found only in the peripheral nervous system...
s. It is a mostly dioecious
Dioecious
Dioecy is the property of a group of biological organisms that have males and females, but not members that have organs of both sexes at the same time. I.e., those whose individual members can usually produce only one type of gamete; each individual organism is thus distinctly female or male...
species, male and female flowers are on separate individual specimens. Some specimens had a ratio as high as 100 male flowers to every female or hermaphrodite one. These results suggest that the species is not truly dioecious. The female and hermaphrodite flowers are very similar. The flowers are tiny, inconspicuous and in small racemes. The star-shaped flowers are whitish with yellow glistening glands and scarlet anther flaps. The glands at the base of the stamens in Laurelia novaezelandiae secrete nectar that accumulates at the base of the flower and makes a large number of bees, blowflies, small flightless animals and Bombyliidae
Bombyliidae
Bombyliidae is a large family of flies with hundreds of genera, although their life cycles are not well known. Adults generally feed on nectar and pollen, thus are pollinators of flowers. They superficially resemble bees, thus are commonly called bee flies, and this may offer the adults some...
visit flowers . The nectar is visible as a colourless liquid which gives a glistening appearance to the outer faces of the glands. Nectar runs down from the glands and accumulates on the floor of the flower as a result of continuing secretion. The fruit are little pear shaped capsules which contain numerous seeds attached to fine feathery anemophilous filaments which aid to disperse by wind. The seed of this species is dispersed by the wind (anemochory). The feathery achenes must keep moist when sown. Often, only a few seeds are viable.
Uses
Historically, the light, but tough timber of pukatea has been used for boat building. The timber of Pukatea was used by Maori to create figureheads for canoes. It is rather soft, but very strong. It yields a pale hardwood that is difficult to split and that upon impact rather than to break, it dents. Its 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...
is pale-yellowish, with growth rings little notorious and homogeneous and fine texture. An extract from the bark containing the alkaloid
Alkaloid
Alkaloids are a group of naturally occurring chemical compounds that contain mostly basic nitrogen atoms. This group also includes some related compounds with neutral and even weakly acidic properties. Also some synthetic compounds of similar structure are attributed to alkaloids...
pukateine
Pukateine
Pukateine is an alkaloid found in the bark of the New Zealand tree Laurelia novae-zelandiae . An extract from pukatea is used in traditional Māori herbal medicine as an analgesic, and it is thought pukateine is the active component, as it is similar in both structure and activity to alkaloids such...
is used in traditional Māori herbal medicine as an analgesic
Analgesic
An analgesic is any member of the group of drugs used to relieve pain . The word analgesic derives from Greek an- and algos ....
.. It was used by indigenous peoples to treat tuberculosis. The bark of Laurelia novae-zelandiae was used by Maori in a number of medical remedies but it was especially noted for its use against tubercular lesions. The pulp of the cambium was boiled in water and the resulting liquid used for treating tubercular ulcers.