Re:Knightia excelsa
- Subject: Re:Knightia excelsa
- From: d* f*
- Date: Fri, 15 Feb 2002 01:48:03 -0800 (PST)
--- Tony and Moira Ryan <theryans@xtra.co.nz> wrote:
> We do have a native member of the Family here
> anyway, the Rewarewa
> (Knightia excelsa), a quite tall narrow tree which
> is typically common
> in regenerating forest where its distinctive rather
> spear-like form
> makes it stand out amid smaller and lumpier
> vegetation. it has
> rusty-red flowers in a "bottlebrush" formtion.
>
> Moira
> --
> Tony & Moira Ryan
> Wainuiomata NZ,
> where it's Summer in January and Winter in July.
>
Moira,
I saw a large Knightia for the first time at UC Santa
Cruz on the same visit, and was at first stumped as to
what it could be. It was in full bloom, and looking
rather formal, but the flowers were not noticeable
from a distance, and even close up seemed to remain
virtually hidden by the foliage. I always wonder what
benefit it is to the plant to not show off its own
flowers for pollinators? I also saw my first Xeronema
callistemon while visiting the New Zealand section at
UC Berkeley's Botanic Garden, looking a little worse
for the wear from the recent bout of frost, but still
with one bloom holding up.
This sighting reminded me to ask about the
availability of Xeronema at a local wholesale nursery.
Nevin Smith said that he dumped this as a commercial
crop after receiving plants or seed, (I'm not clear
which), from Duncan and Davies, and not being able to
get it to bloom. As it is, there is just the
tantalizing suggestion of it having been commercially
available for a brief moment, and now only available
in California to those willing to grow it from seed.
I saw another familiar New Zealand face at the
Berkeley Gardens that I had not noticed before in the
gardens, Aciphylla aurea/Golden Spaniard. This is
the one species that I had previously seen for sale up
in Seattle last July, and brought one home to try in
my garden. Sad to say, I think I lost mine this
January to rot and lack of sun in all the rain, but
can at least watch the progress of these plants at the
Botanic Garden. They remind me of the Puyas from
South America, and appeal to me because of the very
spiny forms and long lasting bold textured flower
spikes. I see that they are being offered by a few
nurseries on line in New Zealand, but gather that they
are not a popular garden plant, but more for the
gardener wanting something different. Probably not
destined to be a popular landscape plant for the same
reasons as the Puyas, its large size and clumping
habits along with fiercely spiny foliage tends to
repel most sensible people from growing them in a
garden setting.
I am surprised to hear that Leucospermum cordifolium
is fairly widely grown throughout New Zealand. It
suffers from the occasional freezes we get here, and
was one of the most damaged/killed Proteacea members
at UC Santa Cruz. I also lost all of my Pincushions
in our 1990 freeze, and again in 1998. I would think
that this would rule it out for most of the South
Island, New Zealand except along the immediate coast.
Cheers,
David in Berkeley
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