Kia ora (hello) from Aotearoa, New Zealand, home of pohutukawa (Metrosideros excelsa), a relative of our native Hawaiian ohia lehua (Metrosideros polymorpha).
In the Southern Hemisphere seasons are reversed. Kiwis celebrate Christmas in the summer month of December. The pohutukawa is known as the New Zealand Christmas tree because of the prolific explosion of crimson blossoms ornamenting the trees during this holiday period.
Pohutukawa’s brushlike flower could be a twin to Hawaii’s ohia lehua. One distinction is its tree-wide eruption of bloom.
Maori legend reveals that Tawhaki, a young Maori warrior, searched for the location of heaven to avenge the death of his father. During this pursuit, Tawhaki fell back to Earth. The rouge of the pohutukawa flowers symbolizes his blood.
Te Aroha, an 800-year-old pohutukawa with contorted branches and twisted trunk, clings to a craggy outcrop in the swirling winds of Cape Reinga on the northern point of New Zealand. The Maori consider this revered tree as "the place of leaping." They believe this pohutukawa is the beginning of the final journey for spirits of the deceased as they return to their historic homeland of Hawaiiki. Spirits leap off the Aotearoa headland, plunging toward the roots of Te Aroha, the entrance into the underworld.
The largest pohutukawa in Aotearoa is named Te Waha o Rerekohu. It towers a majestic 65 feet, and its branches sprawl across 125 feet.
Modern-day cultivars of pohutukawa showcase a varied palette of Tawhaki’s blood. Parnell and Fire Mountain varieties produce flowers with glowing intensities of red. Pink Lady trees deliver blooms with valentine-pink floral filaments, while the Gala variety displays green leaves with yellow centers and royal red-and-gold filaments.
Moon Maiden and Aureus pohutukawa generate golden-yellow filaments similar to Hawaii’s ohia mamo. Aureus trees have been traced to two pohutukawas discovered in 1940 on Motiti island in the Bay of Plenty.
The environmental nemesis of pohutukawas in New Zealand is the common brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula), which wreaks havoc on foliage and vegetative buds. Possums eat mature leaves in winter and consume young leaves in spring.
Early bushmen brewed a tea from an infusion of the inner layers of pohutukawa bark as a treatment for dysentery and diarrhea. Studies have discovered the presence of ellagic acid, an astringent, used in modern medicine for both ailments. The tree’s nectar was traditionally used for food and to alleviate sore throats.
The dense, reddish-brown wood was carved and used in boat-building, dock gates, paddles, spade blades, digging sticks, eel clubs and weapons.
While hiking a rugged area called Ti Point, I encountered pohutukawas that evoked the mythical "Lord of the Rings" realm. The trail skirted the coastline of Omaha Bay. The ground was an ocean of emerald-green pasture grass. Granite boulders were sprinkled in the landscape with perfect, geologic feng shui. Massive pohutukawas with twisted, writhing trunks and coiled branches were the exclusive trees — royal kings of their forest.
The pohutukawa is cherished by the Maori as a rakau rangatira (chiefly tree). Our Pacific brethren got it right.
Duane Choy is a native Hawaiian plant specialist. Reach him at HanaHou@ecologyfund.net.
