Kowhai

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Kowhai Tree

Kowhai flowers

Kingdom:	Plantae
Division:	Magnoliophyta
Class:	Magnoliopsida
Order:	Fabales
Family:	Fabaceae
Subfamily:	Faboideae
Genus:	Sophora

Species

S. chathamica
S. fulvida
S. godleyi
S. longicarinata
S. microphylla
S. molloyi
S. prostrata
S. tetraptera

Kowhai is a small woody legume tree native to New Zealand. There are eight species. Sophora microphylla is the most common, and has smaller leaves and flowers than Sophora tetraptera. Kowhai trees grow throughout the country and are a common feature in New Zealand gardens.

Kowhai tree in full bloom, before foliage has emerged

Most species of Kowhai grow to around 8 m high and have fairly smooth bark with small leaves. They have horn-shaped yellow flowers, which appear in early spring. Their nectar is a favourite food for Tui, Bellbird and Kererū (New Zealand Wood Pigeon). The very distinctive almost segmented pods, which appear after flowering, each contain six or more smooth, hard, yellow seeds. These seeds can be very numerous and the presence of many hundreds of these distinctively yellow seeds on the ground quickly identifies the presence of a nearby Kowhai tree. Unusually for New Zealand plants, some species of Kowhai are deciduous, losing their tiny, dull green leaves each winter. Many other Kowhai trees lose most of their leaves immediately after flowering in October or November but quickly produce new leaves.

Kowhai trees are relatively easy to grow if the seed is first immersed in boiling water or is chitted [1] prior to sowing. Outside of New Zealand, Kowhais tend to be restricted to mild temperate maritime climates.

Sophora prostrata, sometimes called "Little Baby", is used as a Bonsai tree. It grows to the height of up to 2 meters, has zigzaging stems, and smallish leaves quite sparsely in the tree. [2]