Pseudopanax crassifolius
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Lancewood | ||||||||||||||
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 Adult tree
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Secure
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| Pseudopanax crassifolius (Sol. ex A.Cunn.) C.Koch |
Pseudopanax crassifolius, horoeka, or lancewood, is a New Zealand native tree belonging to the family Araliaceae. It is found throughout New Zealand from sea level up to about 750 m. The juvenile form, which lasts for between 15 and 20 years, is very easily recognized. The leaves are stiff and leathery with a prominent central rib, about 1 cm wide and up to 1 m long with irregular teeth, all growing downwards from a central stem. The young trunk has characteristic vertical swollen ridges. As the tree gets older the stem begins to branch producing a bushy top, and the leaves become wider and shorter, losing their teeth. It is only when the tree is mature that it adopts its "normal" shape - round-topped, with a straight clean trunk up to 50 cm thick. Maximum height is 15 m.
Closely related is Pseudopanax ferox, the toothed lancewood. It is similar to P. crassifolius except the leaves are more abundant and severely toothed, resembling a bandsaw blade.
One of the theories about this curious change of appearance is that the young plant had to protect itself against browsing by the moa, the giant flightless bird that roamed New Zealand's bush in prehistoric times. Once above moa height, it was out of danger and turns into a "regular" tree.
[edit] In fiction
The New Zealand lancewood is celebrated in fiction in a novel titled Lancewood, written by Alan Marshall and published by Indra Publishers in Australia. A paragraph from Chapter 3 reads:
"A bizarre jagged gem of the forest, the lancewood's distinctive habit splits the soft forest light to stab one in the eye with an odd, unearthly beauty. It's slicing leaves, each blade a blade, gives the plant the demeanor of a strangely elegant weapon."
[edit] External links
- Flora of New Zealand, URL:Pseudopanax crassifolius. Accessed 17 May 2007.
- New Zealand Plant Conservation Network, URL:Pseudopanax crassifolius. Accessed 17 May 2007.
Media related to Pseudopanax crassifolius from the Wikimedia Commons.
[edit] References
- Salmon J T, The Native Trees of New Zealand, AH & AW Reed Ltd, Wellington, New Zealand 1973 ISBN 0-589-01340-8
