Pennantia corymbosa

Pennantia corymbosa
Scientific classification
Kingdom:Plantae
Clade:Angiosperms
Clade:Eudicots
Clade:Asterids
Order:Apiales
Family:Pennantiaceae
Genus:Pennantia
Species: P. corymbosa
Binomial name
Pennantia corymbosa
J.R.Forst. & G.Forst.

Pennantia corymbosa, or commonly known as kaikōmako, is a small dioecious forest tree of New Zealand.

Small creamy, white flowers are produced between November and February, followed by a shiny black fruit in autumn. They are a favourite food of the New Zealand bellbird.

The Māori name kaikōmako means food (kai) of the bellbird (kōmako). Traditionally the Māori used kaikōmako to make fire by repeatedly rubbing a pointed stick into a groove on a piece of māhoe.[1]

One of the English names is "duck's foot", coming from the shape of the juvenile plant's leaf.[2] Juvenile plants have small leaves with tangled, divaricating stems, while mature plants have much larger leaves and a normal tree architecture.

A kaikōmako tree

References

  1. "Traditional Plant Use By Māori". eske-style. Retrieved 25 August 2012.
  2. "Kaikomako (Pennantia corymbosa)". Taranaki Educational Resource: Research, Analysis and Information Network. Retrieved 2012-04-23.


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