Melicytus ramiflorus < Species index > Metrosideros fulgens
This article was first published in the Tararua Tramper Volume 96, # 1, February 2024
February in the hills with Michele Dickson, Chris Horne
Metrosideros diffusa, aka tea, White climbing rātā
Photo: Jeremy Rolfe
Origin of the botanical names
Metrosideros means ‘iron-hearted wood, core of iron’. It is derived from the Greek words ‘metra’ meaning ‘heartwood’ and 'sideron' meaning ‘iron’. The genus is a member of the Myrtaceae family which in Aotearoa / New Zealand includes six species of vines and six species of trees: northern rātā, southern rātā, Bartlett's rātā, Parkinson's rātā, pōhutukawa and Kermadec pōhutukawa.
Distribution and habitat
White climbing rātā is endemic to Aotearoa. It grows in lowland and lower montane forests, especially on their edges throughout Te Ika a Māui / North Island, Te Waipounamu / South Island and Rakiura / Stewart Island.
Growth habit
This species of rātā is a slender liane / vine up to 15 m or more tall. Along the stems many tiny roots develop which penetrate into the bark of the host plant for support, enabling the vine to climb. The older stems can be several centimetres in diameter. The pale bark is in thin strips. The branchlets are indistinctly 4-angled and finely hairy. The thin, oblong, glossy leaves are 7 – 8- (15) x 3-8 mm, have very short stalks / petioles and are opposite, being arranged in two rows. The ends of the leaves are rounded or pointed. Look for the distinctive intramarginal vein inside each edge on the underside of a leaf.
Reproduction
The scented white to pink 10-12 mm flowers develop on woody stalks below the leaves from October to January. The prominent feature of the flowers is the numerous long stamens, typically like other species of the genus. The seed capsules which develop from January to March are 3-4 mm in diameter.
Uses
Birds feed on nectar from the flowers then spread the pollen. Bees collect the nectar which contributes to the production of honey. Where can you find white climbing rātā – aka tea?
Look for it
In Ōtari Wilton's Bush, most mature Wellington bush reserves and secondary growth, regional parks and in the Remutaka, Aorangi*, Akatarawa and Tararua ranges.
- It is uncommon in the Aorangi Range.
Note - See on our web site The Tramper Vol. 84 No. 1, February 2012 on page 12 the description of another rātā vine – Metrosideros perforata.
In The Hills 2023-12 < Index chronological > In The Hills 2024-03