Brachyglottis repanda

Brachyglottis repanda (rangiora or bushman's friend) is a small, bushy tree or tall shrub endemic to New Zealand. It grows to a height of 5 to 7 meters. The petioles of the leaves have a characteristic groove up to 10 cm long.[1] The large leaves with a soft furry underside have been referred to as "bushman's toilet paper".

Brachyglottis repanda
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Plantae
(unranked):
Angiosperms
(unranked):
Eudicots
(unranked):
Asterids
Order:
Asterales
Family:
Asteraceae
Tribe:
Senecioneae
Genus:
Brachyglottis
Species:
B. repanda
Binomial name
Brachyglottis repanda
J.R.Forster & G.Forster

Other common names in Māori (beyond rangiora) include: kōuaha, pukapuka, pukariao, puke-rangiora, raurākau, raurēkau, whārangi, or whārangi-tawhito.

Description

Brachyglottis repanda is a shrub / small tree which grows to around 6 m (19.7 ft.) tall and has corky bark. It has leathery 5 - 25 cm long 5 - 20 cm wide leaves suspended off of 8 - 10 cm grooved Petioles. The leaves are a pale green above and white underneath as the underside is covered with many tiny white hairs.[2]

It flowers from August to October with dramatic panicle inflorescences which have 6 ribs and 3mm long involucral bracts. Pseudanthium are 5mm in diameter and the Inflorescences contain 10 - 12 yellow Florets.[2]

The Seeds are oblong and 1 - 1.8 mm long, with 2 - 3 mm rough yellow pappus. It fruits from November to December and disperses its seeds via the Wind. [2]

Etymology

Brachyglottis comes from the two greek words: Brachus, meaning short, and glottis which is the vocal apparatus of the Larynx. Repanda means irregularly undulating, referring to the leaf margins.[2]

Cultivation

Brachyglottis repanda is easy to grow either from seed or from cuttings, though may be short-lived and requires a hard prune after flowering.[2]

In Māori Culture

Māori used the plant for a number of medicinal uses. The leaves were used for wounds and old ulcerated sores, and the gum was chewed for foul breath but was poisonous if swallowed.[3] The leaves were used to wrap cakes made from Hīnau berry meal while they cooked in a Hāngi.[4] They were also used to line the baskets which held the siftings of Raupō pollen in the process of making bread (from the pollen), the siftings then being thrown out.[5]

Toxins

The honey made by bees produced with the nectar from Brachyglottis repanda is poisonous, and for this reason Māori never collected honey when it was in flower. The plant is also poisonous to livestock, particularly horses, and it makes them "drunk." The animals stagger around and fall, often to their death, as a result.[6]

References
  1. "Brachyglottis repanda (Rangiora)". Terrain.net.nz.
  2. "Brachyglottis repanda". New Zealand Plant Conservation Network. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  3. Brooker, S. G.; R. C. Cambie; R.C. Cooper (1987). New Zealand Medicinal Plants. Reed Books. ISBN 0-7900-0250-7.
  4. Taylor, Richard (1855). Te Ika a Maui, or, New Zealand and its inhabitants : with the geology, natural history, productions, and climate of the country, &c. London: Wertheim and Macintosh. p. 393.
  5. Taylor, Richard (1855). Te Ika a Maui, or, New Zealand and its inhabitants : with the geology, natural history, productions, and climate of the country, &c. London: Wertheim and Macintosh. p. 392.
  6. ASTON, B. C. "THE POISONOUS, SUSPECTED, AND MEDICINAL PLANTS OF NEW ZEALAND" (PDF). New Zealand Journal of Agriculture. feb. 20. 1923: 80–81 – via Botanical Dermatology Database.

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