MAORI NATURE NOTE.
FOR THE “DAILY TIMES.” (Copyright, J.H.S.) KOWHIWIII (twining) a shrub, tho flowers and leaves of which are in certain seasons dark purple, and the fragrant bark almost black. When used as a hedge plant and cut back, it would seem to produce neither flower nor fruit. From its form and foliage with the black stems, it makes a handsome garden shrub. The gum exudes from a broken surface and was prized by the Maori, for its sweet scent. It was worn by men and women in a necklet of dressed flax, and found to have a soothing effect.
KARO (black dye) is said to be a seasido sister to the Kowhiwhi, but the leaves arc thick and hairy, a provision against drought and the ravages of insects. ' Several varieties bear the same Maori names. As a hedge plant we refer to it as Matipo, but that is quite a different shrub. The scent of this shrub seems to bo given off only at night as a guide to its dark flower, for fertilising insects.
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Wairarapa Daily Times, 7 March 1930, Page 5
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177MAORI NATURE NOTE. Wairarapa Daily Times, 7 March 1930, Page 5
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