280 PLANTS OF NEW ZEALAND 



Metrosideros florida (The Flowery Bata). 



A shrub, or lofty climber. Leaves l in. -3 in. long, oblong, obtuse, entire, 

 shining. Flowers in large terminal cymes. Petals yellowish, or pale pink, 

 inconspicuous. Stamens 1 in.-l^ in. long ; filaments orange-red to crimson, 

 anthers golden. Fruit a woody capsule, half the length of the calyx-tube. Both 

 islands : common on forest trees. Fl. Nov. -April. Maori names : Aka, 

 Akatawhiwhi, Pua-tawhiwhi. English name Rata-vine. 



The rata-vine is one of the most remarkable climbers of the 

 New Zealand forest. The stem is sometimes six inches in 

 diameter, and climbs to the tops of the highest trees. It is 

 often confused with Metrosideros robusta, but it is the latter, 

 not the former, which strangles its support. 



Bushmen quench their thirst with the juice of the rata-vine. 

 A slit is cut in the wood, and the bark left hanging, when a 

 clear juice drops freely from the cut. A piece of rat a- wood 

 four feet in length, and three inches in diameter, was kept in 

 a workshop for three weeks, until apparently quite dry. Then 

 a cut was made lengthwise in it, and it yielded a gallon 

 and a half of liquid. This juice was of a clear, bright, pinkish 

 hue, and tasted somewhat like dry cider. The inner rata-bark 

 is used to heal sores, and to stop bleeding. It is sometimes 

 boiled with the bark of the rimu and the kauri, to make a 

 lotion for the sore backs of horses. According to the Maori 

 tradition, the bark of this, as of other trees, when required for 

 healing purposes, should be cut from the side upon which the 

 sun rises. 



Metrosidenos hypericifolia (The Hypericum-leaved Bata). 



A straggling climber. Bark ragged ; branches 4-angled. Leaves sessile, 

 J in.-f in. long, oblong, shining, rather membranous. Flowers small, in lateral 

 cymes or racemes. Petals white or pink, in.- in. long. Capsule J in. long. 

 Damp bush, in both islands. Fl. Nov. -Jan. 



Metros! deros lucid a (The Shining Bata). 



A shrub or tree, 40-60 ft. high. Leaves 1 in. -3^ in. long, silky when young, 

 shining when mature, pointed at both ends. Flowers in short terminal cymes. 

 Petals small, scarlet. Stamens nearly an inch long, scarlet. Both islands ; 

 Lord Auckland's group. Fl. Dec. -Jan. A variety with yellow flowers has been 

 found on Arthur's Pass. 



