MAORI NATURE NOTES.
VWritten for the Pahiatua Herald— Copyright, J.H.S.) ABKHO (the tongue) New Zealand Gentian, ol wliich about twelve varieties, all oi them white or yellow, have been found. Throughout the Northern Hemisphere the Gentian is famed for its rich blue colouring; but blue is an unknown colour in the llora of this country, where even the native v olet is white. Bees are the principal means by wh oh most bowers are fertilised; but as night flying moths had to take their place in this bee-iess land, Nature gave us white blooms, as any other colour would not he easily seen at n ght. In-Eu-rope. the blue, red, purple and yellow Gentian has a prominent place in the poetry of bowers, as it also has in the world of medic ine. The yellow variety is known is Bitterwort. From it, Gent us. King ol' Illyria, when loyalty held pre-emptive rights in poetry, science and healing, concocted his ‘gentils and simples’ of potent bitterness in medicine. The most brilliantly golden of our Gentians comes from the Auckland Islands, whe e colouring is more marked than on the mainland.
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Bibliographic details
Pahiatua Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 11390, 8 March 1930, Page 5
Word Count
189MAORI NATURE NOTES. Pahiatua Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 11390, 8 March 1930, Page 5
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