Corynocarpus laevigatus
| Corynocarpus laevigatus | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |  |
| Hardiness: | 8 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Evergreen | |
| Height: | 39' |
| Width: | 26' |
| Blooms: | Late Spring-Early Summer |
| Open Woods Forest | |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
 | |
Corynocarpus laevigatus (common name: new zealand laurel)
Propagation: Seed - best sown in a greenhouse as soon as it is ripe[1]. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.
Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July/August in a frame[1].
Cultivation: Succeeds in ordinary garden soil[2]. Best grown in a woodland garden[3].
Plants are not very frost-tolerant and are only hardy outdoors in the mildest areas of Britain[2]. There is a large tree in Falmouth[4].
Plants tolerate pruning if this is necessary[1].
Range: New Zealand.
Habitat: Coastal and lowland forest, south to latitude 44°south[5].
Edibility: Fruit - raw. Sweet and pulpy[2][6][7][4][8][9][10]. One report says that it is poisonous raw[11], though the writer might have been confused with the seed[K].
Seed - cooked[7][4][8][12]. The seed needs to be soaked in salt water or thoroughly boiled or roasted in order to destroy a deleterious principle[2][6][13]. A staple food of the Maoris, it contains a tasteless farinaceous substance[6][9]. The seed contains about 11% protein and 58% carbohydrate[10].
Usage: An insecticide is made from the plant[11].
Wood. The tree trunk is used by the Maoris to make canoes[7][8].
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
In Leaf: Evergreen
Seed Ripens: Early Winter-Late Winter
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Known Hazards: The seed is poisonous raw[14][10].
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Brickell, Christopher. The RHS Gardener's Encyclopedia of Plants and Flowers. Dorling Kindersley Publishers, 1990.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ Taylor, Jane. The Milder Garden. Dent, 1990.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Thurston, Edgar. Trees and Shrubs in Cornwall. Cambridge University Press, 1930.
- ↑ Allan, Harry. Flora of New Zealand. Government Printer Publications, 1961.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Hedrick, Ulysses. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications, 1972.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Uphof, Johannes. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim, 1959.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Usher, George. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable, 1974.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Heywood, Vernon. Flowering Plants of the World. Oxford University Press.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Crowe, Andrew. Native Edible Plants of New Zealand. Hodder and Stoughton, 1990.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Brooker, Stanley. Economic Native Plants of New Zealand. Oxford University Press, 1991.
- ↑ Laing, Robert. Plants of New Zealand. Whitcombe and Tombs Ltd, 1907.
- ↑ Howes, Frank. Nuts. Faber, 1948.
- ↑ Frohne, Dietrich and Hans Pfänder. J. A Colour Atlas of Poisonous Plants. Timber Press, 1984.