Pittosporum tenuifolium
(Kohuhu, Black Matipo)
Pittosporum tenuifolium
(Kohuhu, Black Matipo)
Prices:
Each | 20 or more | |
---|---|---|
1.5L Pot | $7.50 | $7.00 |
10L Pot | $40.00 | $35.00 |
Details:
Type: | Tree |
Growth Rate: | Fast |
Mature Height: | 6 m |
Mature Width: | 3 m |
Site Condition: | Coastal, Exposed, Frost Tolerant, Heavy Soil, Loamy Soil, Sandy Soil, Waterways |
Sun: | Full Sun, Part Shade |
Drainage: | Dry, Moist |
Features: | Suitable for hedging or shelter. Attractive to birds, insects and bees. Flower colour: Black. Foliage colour: Green. Fruit colour: Black. Native. Suitable restoration species. |
Pittosporum tenuifolium, Kohuhu, commonly called Black Matipo, is endemic and widespread throughout New Zealand. It is an extremely popular, adaptable and fast growing. Shiny light-green foliage with wavy margins and reddish brown branchlets. Fragrant dark red flowers in spring. Excellent plant for hedging and shelter. Tolerates wind, drought, frost, coastal conditions. A key species for forest revegetation and also a useful riparian edge plant. Kōhūhū grows particularly quickly at forest edges located at the bottom of high terraces. Sun or shade. Hardy. Evergreen.
The flowers’ colour ranges from dark-red to dark-purple turning almost black as the flowers age. Nectar fills the flowers. The flowers exude a honey-scented fragrance in the evenings with the scent being more obvious in slightly damp conditions. This attracts moths and night-flying insects, New Zealand’s indigenous pollinators. Fertilised flowers develop into small fruits that blacken as they ripen.
Habitat: A small tree of coastal to montane shrubland and forested habitats. Preferring successional habitats.
Flowering: Spring - Summer [October - January]
Fruiting: Autumn [February - May]
My Lists: Erosion Control, Rongoa