tripsis Posted February 10, 2011 (edited) Shots from my recent time in New Zealand. I really love alpine flora, I think it's amazing. Most of the photos are mine, but a few are by my girlfriend. Vascular plants Solanum aviculare. The fruits were eaten by Australian aborigines, after roasting them to remove the skin (and thus toxins). Not sure if the Māori used it too. Macropiper excelsum. Seeds collected. Kawakawa is a traditional medicinal plant of the Māori. An infusion is made from the leaves or roots, and used for bladder problems, boils, bruises, to relieve pain or toothache, or as a general tonic. The sweet edible yellow berries (most often found in summer on female trees) of the plant were eaten as a diuretic.The leaves of this plant are used to make Titoki Liqueur which is exported to Japan, Australia, Fiji and the United Kingdom. The seeds of this plant could be used commercially as culinary spice, as this tree is related to Piper nigrum (Black pepper). From Wiki. Rhipogonum scandens. Supplejack (R. scandens) has a fibrous root rich in starch and used as a beer flavoring. Known to the Māori of New Zealand as Kariao (Kareao or Karewao) and Pirita, a concentrated decoction of the supplejack root has a sweetish sarsaparilla-like scent and flavour and is soothing to the throat.[1] It was also useful in treating bowel complaints, fever, rheumatism and skin diseases.[2] The edible small berry is dry and insipid but the cooked young shoots reportedly taste like fresh green beans. The sap is also edible. From Wiki. The shoots can also be eaten fresh and when broken, a large quantity of liquid is released. Coprosma sp. Some Coprosma species have edible fruits and the seeds can be used as a coffee substitute. Not sure it that applies to the ones I was finding. The fruit tasted pretty good, but I wasn't confident to eat them. Dracophyllum traversii. Gaultheria depressa var. depressa. Also known as the mountain snowberry, it has sweet, edible berries which have an extremely floral smell (it's almost like eating flowers). Many tiny seeds collected. The harvest: Celmsia traversii Gentiana patula Hebe sp. Raoulia sp., I think R. grandiflora. Metrosideros umbellata (Southern rata) Donatia novae-zelandiae With Drosera species growing amongst it: Phyllachne colensoi Pentachondra pumila Drosera sp. Manuka (Leptospermum scoparium) or kanuka (Kunzea ericoides), I couldn't work out which one... Edited February 10, 2011 by tripsis Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tripsis Posted February 10, 2011 Other randoms for which I'm lacking IDs... Maybe a Nothofagus species? Bryophytes Lycopodium fastigiatum Lichens Cladia retipora. Fungi Amanita spp. Hygrocybe sp.? A pair of boletes. Ganoderma spp. Purple puffball. Anyone know what it is? I thought this was a Ganoderma at first, but it had a brown pore surface. Any ideas? ? 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
yaguareté Posted February 10, 2011 Beautiful photos mate, those trees that grow horizontally accross the rocks are amazing, im pretty sure i've seen them on a David Attinborough doco. Thanks for sharing Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kindness Posted February 10, 2011 wow man, that is beautiful. Thankyou heaps for posting the pictures. I really loved the horizonal trees. My love reckons its at taranaki, but doesn't look like it to me, where are they? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tripsis Posted February 10, 2011 Thanks guys. All pictures taken along the Heaphy track in Kahurangi NP. I would have got shots of the flora in Tongariro NP, but a knee injury sadly prevented me from doing it... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Amazonian Posted February 10, 2011 (edited) You lucky bugger. All that beauty. Thanks for letting us share some of your holiday. And those tree's trees, why do they grow like that? is there a strong wind or something? Edited February 10, 2011 by Amazonian Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tripsis Posted February 10, 2011 They were on top of a mountain, so very exposed. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ferret Posted February 10, 2011 great stuff tripsis! did the Macropiper have much smell to it? has an interesting oil profile but the plants I've smelt down here were very low in oil. Gaultheria's are sweet, love to get my hands on some methyl-salicylate species.. That would be a Leptospermum, Kunzea should have stamens longer than the petals Maybe your suspected Ganoderma was just old and the pore surface not fertile anymore? looks a lot like applanatum And I will concur that those prostate alpine'y 'trees' are pretty off the hook! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tripsis Posted February 10, 2011 The Macropiper smelt great. Can't remember how exactly, but it was definitely aromatic. I've got some seeds coming of G. miqueliana, which is supposed to have a very strong wintergreen flavour. So it was manuka...I would have collected seeds, but I was too early in the season. The nuts were still ripening. It could have just been an old Ganoderma, although the entirety of the pore surface was the same colour. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ferret Posted February 10, 2011 mmmm great, keep me in mind if youre trading any Macropiper and wintergreeny seeds! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CβL Posted February 10, 2011 The unidentified plant with tiny berries and parallel veins is a Coriaria spp. Awesome pictures though mate, I haven't hiked in Kahurangi NP before - definitely is higher on the list now though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rabaelthazar Posted February 10, 2011 Thanks for sharing, Tripsis. Beautiful shots. Everyone seems to dig the horizontal trees... they are pretty awesome. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
