88 
New Zealand Ferns 
The numbers of this handsome tree-fern are almost 
incredible; not only does one come across them in end- 
less groves, but they are scattered everywhere among 
the vegetation, singly and in groups. The warm, nut- 
brown colour of the trunks makes a pleasing contrast to 
the surrounding greenery. 
The “bunga” of the bushman, used for all manner of 
purposes — fences, verandah posts, even for making 
roads. It puts forth its principal growth in the spring, 
when every tree is crowned with a ring of light-brown 
crooks. Compared with C. medullaris , its growth is 
slow, and the feathery crown is more horizontal, not so 
curved. When growing from the side of a ravine, the 
stem often leans towards the stream, and then, with a 
graceful curve, regains the vertical. Although unusually 
abundant, this species is almost restricted to the Domin- 
ion, being reported with certainty only from Lord Howe 
Island. 
(31) C. medullaris (pithy). “Korau,” “Mamaku,” 
“Black tree-fern.” The tallest of the tree-ferns, the 
great spreading crown supported on a slender black 
stem. Monarch of the grove. The curved fronds, cover- 
ing an area 36 feet across, make a picture of unsurpass- 
ing splendour. 
Description . — Trunks 20 to 50 feet high, or even more in old 
plants, furnished at the base with hard thick buttresses formed 
of matted aerial rootlets from 1 to 2\ feet in diameter, tapering 
to the trunk proper, which is slender for its height — 7 to 8 inches 
through, black, and decorated with a formal hexagonal pattern 
running diagonally round the stem. Stalks stout, clothed at the 
base with copious black scales. Fronds numerous, 20 to 30 in 
