Eastern Wairarapa foothills
Tauweru River, Gladstone, Ponatahi.
Environmental Factors: A dry climate with windy summers that worsen drought conditions. Loess-rich soils on the foothills east of the plains pug in the winter. Some frosts experienced.
Past Landscape: Drier areas were dominated by kanuka associations and totara. Titoki and ngaio dominated the relatively frost-free areas.
Plants we recommend:
"Heritage" trees
All podocarps, especially totara & matai; black beech
Trees
Big (b) = >15m Medium (m) = 10-15m Small (s) = <10m
Broadleaf (m) ( Griselinia lucida), cabbage tree (m), fivefinger (m), forest cabbage tree (s) hinau (b), kaikomako (s) kohuhu (m), lancewood (m), lacebark (s) lowland ribbonwood (b), manuka (m), marble-leaf (s) narrow-leaved maire (b), ngaio (m), rewarewa (b), Sophora microphylla (s) small-leaved milk tree (s), lemonwood (m), tawa (b), titoki (b), tree hebe (s), white maire (b), wineberry (s), rohutu (s)
Shrubs
Coprosma propinqua, Coprosma rigida, karamu ( Coprosma lucida and Coprosma robusta), Raukaua anomalus, kanono, Carmichaelia australis, poataniwha, rangiora
Climbers (c) and scramblers (s)
NZ convolvulus (c), NZ passionfruit (c), NZ jasmine ( Parsonsia capsularis) (c), white rata (c), Clematis foetida (c), small white rata (c)
Ferns- including tree ferns (tf)
Button fern, NZ maidenhair, silver fern (tf), rasp fern
Grasses (a), sedges (s) and rushes (r)
Longwood tussock (s) Glen Murray tussock (s) spring-flowering toetoe (g), Beddie’s tussock (g).
Look for these symbols in the main list for more plants to plant in this zone: Os, Fh, Fm, Ab, Af.
Did you know?
Button fern ( Pellaea rotundifolia, tarawera) is New Zealand’s most common and widespread fern. The Pellaea family is widespread throughout the world. Button fern has dark green rounded parts to its fronds as its name suggests. The spores develop along the margin of the underside of the leaf.