The New Zealand Plant Conservation Network

Species

Pittosporum umbellatum

Etymology

Pittosporum: pitch seed
umbellatum: bearing umbels

Common Name(s)

Haekaro

Current Conservation Status

2012 - Not Threatened

Conservation status of New Zealand indigenous vascular plants, 2012
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2012 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS). This report includes a statistical summary and brief notes on changes since 2009 and replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Authors: Peter J. de Lange, Jeremy R. Rolfe, Paul D. Champion, Shannel P. Courtney, Peter B. Heenan, John W. Barkla, Ewen K. Cameron, David A. Norton and Rodney A. Hitchmough. File size: 792KB

Previous Conservation Status

2009 - Not Threatened
2004 - Not Threatened

Authority

Pittosporum umbellatum Banks et Sol. ex Gaertn.

Family

Pittosporaceae

Brief Description

Small tree bearing flat smooth glossy green oval leaves and clusters of small pinkish or red flowers with a pale body on long stalks and 1.5cm wide capsules that split into two to show the black sticky seeds. Leaves 5-10cm long, ridged along upper surface.

Flora Category

Vascular - Native

NVS Species Code

PITUMB

Structural Class

Dicotyledonous Trees & Shrubs

Synonyms

Pittosporum umbellatum Banks et Sol. ex Gaertn. var. umbellatum, Pittosporum umbellatum var. cordatum Kirk

Distribution

Endemic. New Zealand: North Island (North Cape to about Waihi, Tuhua (Mayor Island). Also locally near East Cape and Gisborne)

Habitat

Coastal forest and scrub. Often on offshore islands and rock stacks. Occasionally in lowland forest.

Features

Small trees 3-12 m tall; branchlets greyish-brown to grey, young branchlets sparsely brown-tomentose soon glabrate. Leaves subverticillate, dark green adaxially, paler beneath, glabrous, coriaceous, margins thin, flat or slightly undulate, brown-pilose when young, thickened, revolute and glabrate when mature, nerves raised on both surfaces, usually brown to white-tomentose near base, secondary veins 8-15 per side, anastomosing, obscure above, distinct beneath. Juvenile leaves obovate to lanceolate, entire, occasionally crenate, sometimes deeply lobed or pinnatifid; adult leaves elliptic to oblong-lanceolate, entire, rarely crenate, acute or acuminate at apex, acute or attenuate at base, 25-100 x 15-50 mm, petioles 6-122 x 1-2 mm, brown-tomentose when young, glabrate. Inflorescences terminal, sometimes becoming lateral, umbellate, umbels up to 20-flowered; pedicels 4-25 mm long, accrescent in fruit, brown-tomentose, subtended by an approximate whorl of leaves and numerous caducous, glabrous, ciliate bud scales up to 12 mm long. Sepals slightly imbricate at base, lanceolate, acute to acuminate, 4.5-9.0 x 1.5-3.0 mm, sparsely ciliate; petals linear-oblong, subacute to obtuse, 11.0-12.5 x 2.5-5.0 mm, loosely coherent at the base, spreading from above the middle, dull red, pink, cream, white or yellow; stamens 4-8 mm long, anthers sagittiform to elliptic-oblong, 1.0-3.0 x 0.6-1.3 mm. Pistil at anthesis slightly shorter or longer than the stamens; ovary 2.5-3.5 x 1.0-3.0 mm, villous; style 3-4 mm; stigma capitate, obscurely 4-lobed or truncate. Capsules tetragonous or 4-lobed, 2(-3)-valved, 7-12 mm diameter, green to black, sparsely pubescent; valves concave in transverse section, < 1 mm thick, rim distinctly thickened, coriaceous; seeds 9-14 black, irregular.

Similar Taxa

Easily recognised by the prescence of fine brown tomentum on the young branchlets (with the mature branchlets glabrous); leathery, glabrate, leaves up to 100 mm long, mostly 2-valved, tetragonous, deeply furrowed capsules and flowers which vary between plants from deep red through pink, cream and white to completely yellow.

Flowering

August - October

Flower Colours

Cream,Red / Pink

Fruiting

Throughout the year

Propagation Technique

Easily grown from fresh seed. Can be grown from semi-hardwood cuttings. Seed germination is often variable and this species although easily grown by some can be difficult for others. Probably some selection of suitable forms from the wild is needed

Threats

Not Threatened

Chromosome No.

2n = 24

Endemic Taxon

Yes

Endemic Genus

No

Endemic Family

No

This page last updated on 6 Dec 2014