Winteraceae

A small family, more tropical in distribution than Magnoliaceae, but evidently derived from it; no stipules, and the carpel mostly reduced to a single whorl. Though the wood structure has ancient features (water-conducting elements in wood tracheids, not vessels as in almost all other flowering plants), the floral structure is more advanced than the Magnoliaceae, to which it is closely related though on parallel lines and more austral in distribution. Shrubs or trees mainly of tropical south east Asia and South America.

One endemic New Zealand genus, Pseudowintera (horopito), which contains three species. Small trees or shrubs with alternate, aromatic leaves with obvious gland dots. Flowers axillary and greenish-yellow. The fruit is a berry. Part of the text on this page has been modified from Allan (1961).

Pseudowintera axillaris (lowland horopito)

A small tree reaching up to 8m tall, with black bark and elliptic-ovate leaves which are 5-12 cm long, dark green and glossy above and bluish-green below and aromatic. The flowers are in fascicles of 3-10 and the berry is red. Grows in lowland to lower montane forests over the whole country.

Foliage and flowers of Pseudowintera axillaris.

Pseudowintera colorata (mountain horopito, pepper tree)

Either a shrub or small tree up to 10m tall. The leaves are 3.5-6 cm long elliptic-ovate, dull green with red blotches above, bluish-green below, with a strong peppery taste. The flowers are in fascicles of 2-4 and the berry blackish. Grows in lowland to montane forest south of latitude 36°30´.

Foliage and flowers of Pseudowintera colorata, note the distinctive redness to the leaves.

Pseudowintera traversii (Travers horopito)

Compactly branched shrub up to 2m tall. Leaves are 2-2.5cm long, ovate-oblong, very thick and coriaceous, dull green above, bluish-green below. Flowers solitary or in pairs. Found only in N.W. Nelson growing on montane forest margins and scrub.

Foliage of Pseudowintera traversii, note that the leaves are small and the branching is quite dense.

Key

Allan, H.H. 1961: Flora of New Zealand, Volume I, Government Printer, Wellington.

References

Allan, H.H. 1961: Flora of New Zealand, Volume I, Government Printer, Wellington.

Poole, A. L. & N. M. Adams 1994: Trees and shrubs of New Zealand. Government Printer, Wellington.