546 Transactions.— Botany. 
and grows in the most exposed situations; it bears a great quantity of fruit 
and is easily grown either from seed or cuttings, it grows with rapidity to a 
moderate height, one quite sufficient for the purpose of supplying berries, 
and it is hardier than its allied plant, the Karamu. 
As it is greedily eaten by horses, cattle, or sheep, it would require to be 
grown in enclosures, and when the berries are ripe, turkeys must not have 
access to them, as they are very fond of them and soon strip the branches. 
I do not pretend to go into what the cost would be of preparing these 
berries for the market, as I am ignorant of the process of preparing the true 
coffee berry or bean, and removing the outer fruit. Then there is the 
expense of gathering to be considered, which could be easily done by 
children. There are two berries in each fruit, lying side by side, as in the 
true coffee. Whether or not the Taupata would grow well inland I cannot 
say. lt appears to like the sea air and perhaps may not thrive beyond its 
reach, 
I find that slight bruising and washing will remove the outer pulp very 
rapidly, and possibly this may be the best mode of cleaning the seeds. The 
seeds are small compared with those of the true coffee, but the trees bear 
much fruit and appear to do so every year. As there are plenty of Taupata 
shrubs in the Wellington gardens it would be easy to make experiments. I 
have to add that I have collected a quantity of the berries, the beans of 
which when roasted and ground have a splendid coffee aroma, and when 
made into coffee the result seems to be thoroughly satisfactory. I send a 
sample of the ground coffee for the inspection of the meeting. If members 
will apply their olfactory nerves to it, I think they will be satisfied that we 
have in the Taupata berry a great source of wealth, requiring but little 
capital to develop, and capable of almost unlimited extension. 
It is not for me to dictate to professional men on the mode of raising the 
Taupata, but the plan I have adopted is simply to sow a small circle of 
seeds slightly covered, and put a stick in the middle to indicate the position. 
A bunch of plants comes up, these I plant out when convenient, probably 
the second year is about the best time for transplanting, 
After being transplanted they generally grow with great rapidity, and I 
think have plenty of seed in the second or third year. I will not be positive 
about this, as I have not paid attention to the subject previously. 
The Taupata evidently requires very little nourishment from the soil, for 
it may be seen growing vigorously on bare rocks standing in the sea, where 
it can be supported only by sending its roots deep into the clefts and fissures 
of the rock. 
This plant also grows readily from cuttings, but for raising a number of 
plants it is far better to rear it from seed, 
