Podocarpus totara
Template:Short description Template:About Template:Use New Zealand English Template:Speciesbox
Podocarpus totara (Template:IPAc-en),<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> commonly known as the {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}, is a species of podocarp tree endemic to New Zealand. It grows throughout the North Island, South Island and rarely on Stewart Island / Rakiura in lowland, montane and lower subalpine forest at elevations of up to Template:Convert.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Tōtara is commonly found in lowland areas where the soil is fertile and well drained.<ref name="Te Ara">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Its Māori name comes from the Proto-Polynesian word *tootara (related to the word tara lit. 'thorn') which when passed down to descendant languages refer to spiny creatures, especially the porcupinefish (Diodon hystrix) due to its spiky leaves.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The spelling "totara" without the tohutō is also common in English.
DescriptionEdit
The tōtara is a medium to large tree, which grows slowly to around Template:Convert exceptionally to Template:Convert; it is noted for its longevity and the great girth of its trunk. The bark peels off in papery flakes, with a purplish to golden brown hue. The sharp, dull-green, needle-like leaves are stiff and leathery, Template:Convert long. This plant produces highly modified cones with two to four fused, fleshy, berry-like, juicy scales, bright red when mature. The cone contains one or two rounded seeds at the apex of the scales.
The largest known living tōtara, the Pouakani Tree, near Pureora in the central North Island, is over Template:Convert tall and nearly Template:Convert in trunk diameter at breast height.<ref name="totara-history">Template:Cite book</ref> Bushmen discovered it in 1950.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Other large trees are known in this area, while Whirinaki Forest, to the east, but also on deep recent volcanic soils, has groves of very tall tōtara (over Template:Convert in height).
Tōtara is often found regenerating on farmland, as it is not eaten by livestock.<ref name="Te Ara" />
VarietiesEdit
The two varieties of tōtara are:<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
- P. t. var. totara
- P. t. var. waihoensis
Related treesEdit
In a classic example of Antarctic flora species-pair the tōtara is very closely related to Podocarpus nubigenus from South America, to the extent that if planted together, they are very difficult to distinguish. The best distinction is the grey-green tone of the leaves, compared to the slightly brighter green of P. nubigenus.
CultivationEdit
Tōtara grows easily from fresh seed and cuttings.<ref name=nzpcn>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It has been planted in the United Kingdom as far north as Inverewe, Scotland.<ref name="Royal Horticultural Society">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Several cultivars for garden use have been introduced. These include 'Albany Gold' and 'Aurea', both have yellow 'gold' foliage that darkens in winter; 'Pendula', which has a weeping growth habit that is especially pronounced in young plants; 'Silver Falls', also pendulous but with cream-edged foliage; and 'Matapouri Blue', which has a conical form and glaucous foliage.
Human useEdit
The wood is hard, straight-grained, and very resistant to rot, especially its heartwood. Due to its durability, tōtara wood was often used for fence posts, floor pilings, and railway sleepers. It is also prized for its carving properties, and was the primary wood used in Māori carving. It was the primary wood used to make waka (canoes) in traditional Māori boat building due to its relatively light weight (about 25% lighter than kauri), long, straight lengths, and natural oils in the wood that help prevent rotting. Tōtara could be drilled with chert points to make holes near the edges of the timber without splitting. In larger tōtara waka, three or more sections were laced together with flax rope. A tōtara waka took at least a year to make using stone adzes.
Bark from tōtara is used to cover and protect traditional pōhā bags.<ref name="Landcare1">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
GalleryEdit
- PodocarpusTotara.jpg
Receptacle and seed of tōtara
- PodocarpusTotaraBark.jpg
The reddish-grey bark of the tōtara is thick, corky, furrowed and stringy
ReferencesEdit
External linksEdit
Template:Sister project Template:Sister project
- Template:Cite iucn.
- New Zealand Plant Conservation Network, URL: Podocarpus totara var. totara. Accessed 2010-10-03.
- New Zealand Plant Conservation Network, URL: Podocarpus totara var. waihoensis. Accessed 2010-10-03.