Species

Pseudopanax crassifolius

Etymology

Pseudopanax: false cure
crassifolius: From the Latin crassus' thick and folius 'leaf'

Common Name(s)

Horoeka, lancewood

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

Pseudopanax crassifolius (Sol. ex A.Cunn.) C.Koch

Family

Araliaceae

Brief Description

Small tree with distinctive draped thick long narrow toothed juvenile leaves

Flora Category

Vascular - Native

NVS Species Code

PSECRA

The National Vegetation Survey (NVS) Databank is a physical archive and electronic databank containing records of over 94,000 vegetation survey plots - including data from over 19,000 permanent plots. NVS maintains a standard set of species code abbreviations that correspond to standard scientific plant names from the Ngä Tipu o Aotearoa - New Zealand Plants database.

Structural Class

Dicotyledonous Trees & Shrubs

Synonyms

Aralia crassifolia Sol. ex A.Cunn., Panax crassifolium (Sol.) Decne et Planchon, Panax longissimum Hook.f., Panax coriaceum Regel, Hedera crassifolia Gray

Distribution

Endemic. North, South and Stewart Islands. Widespread and common

Habitat

Lowland to montane forest. Sealevel to c. 750 m a.s.l.

Features

Bushy topped tree to 15 m tall, branchlets fleshy, trunk us. unbranched in lower part, to 50 cm diam., distinctly ridged when young, bark dark becoming paler with age, wood tough. Leaves alternate; leaflets 1-3 in seedling, palmate, sessile or subsessile on very short petiolule, submembranous coarsely toothed, absent from juvenile and adult. Juvenile leaves dark green, narrow-linear, deflexed, to 1 m long, coriaceous, midrib pale cream-yellow, raised, margins distantly sharply toothed, distal margin of tooth perpendicular to midvein, not swollen. Adult leaves shorter, 10-20 x 2-3 cm, dark green, very occ. trifoliate (probably due to hybridisation with oither species), narrow elliptic-cuneate to lanceolate or linear-obovate, acute or obtuse, margins entire to sunuate or coarsely serrate, subsessile or on petioles to 10 mm long, petiole base expanded around stem. Inflorescence a terminal umbel, irregularly compound; primary rays (branchlets) 5-10, c. 6 cm long; umbellules sometimes racemosely arranged. Ovary 5-loculed, each containing 1 ovule; style branches 5, connate, tips sometimes free. Fruit fleshy, subglobose, 4-5 mm diam., style branches retained on an apical disc, dark purple when ripe. Seeds 4-5 per fruit, easily separated, broadly ovate, grooved, 2.2-3.5(-5.5) mm long.

Similar Taxa

Usually only confused with the rarer Pseudopanax ferox which has rounded discoloured teeth on the juvenile leaves, and darker brown adult leaves. Pseudopanax ferox also has a larger fruit.

Flowering

January-April

Flower Colours

Green,Yellow

Fruiting

January-April

Threats

Not Threatened

Chromosome No.

2n = 48

Endemic Taxon

Yes

Endemic Genus

No

Endemic Family

No

Attribution

Description adapted from Allan (1961) and Webb and Simpson (2001).

References and further reading

Allan, H.H. 1961. Flora of NZ, Vol. I. Government Printer, Wellington

Webb, C.J. &  Simpson, M.J.A. 2001. Seeds of NZ gymnosperms and dicotyledons. Manuka Press, Christchurch.

This page last updated on 6 Dec 2014