Pittosporum tenuifolium Banks & Solander. ex Gaertn.

국표에 없다.

Pittosporum tenuifolium is a small evergreen tree endemic to New Zealand – up to 10 m (33 ft) – commonly known as kōhūhū and black matipo, and by other Māori names kohukohu and tawhiwhi. Its small, very dark, reddish-purple flowers generally go unnoticed, and are scented only at night. The Latin tenuifolium means "slender-leaved"

Description

Pittosporum translates to tarry – pittos – seed – sporum, a reference to the sticky fluid that encases the seeds and tenuifolium means thin – tenui – leaf – folium.

Kōhūhū is a bush or small tree that grows up to around 8–10 metres tall. The trunk is slender (30–40 cm diameter) with a mottled dark grey bark color that progressively turns black towards the tips of the branches

The leaf coverage is compact in kōhūhū; the leaves are arranged alternately on the stem and the petiole is short. The leaves themselves are usually small – 2–4 cm long by 1–2 cm wide – but can grow up to 7 cm long. The edges are undulated and the leaf shape can range from oval to almost circular. Young leaves are covered in a layer of fine hairs that gets shed as the leaves grow. Adult leaves have a smooth, glossy texture. The colouration of the foliage is a silvery green, darker on the upper side and lighter underneath. The midrib of the leaf and its smaller lateral veins are whiteish and quite visible on the upper side of the leaf.

Kōhūhū has small – around 1 cm in diameter – dark coloured flowers. The colour ranges from dark-red to dark-purple turning almost black as the flowers age. On rare occasions, the colour can be red or yellow. The flowers develop from lateral buds, either individually or in clumps, and can be male or bisexual.

The flowers are filled with nectar and 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, and it is believed these insects help with pollination.

Fertilised flowers develop into small – around 1.2 cm in diameter –  globe shaped fruits. The fruit is covered in a small layer of hairs during early maturation that is progressively discarded as the capsule ripens. In the ripening process the capsule shrinks, hardens up and turns almost black, splitting into two or three segments when ripened. Inside are black seeds, encased in a very sticky substance. The stickiness of the seeds is likely to help with seed dispersal.

Pittosporum tenuifolium - Wikipedia