26 KAURI NATURAL REGENERATION, 
KAURI NATURAL REGENERATION. 
Natural regeneration in New Zealand forests 1s discussed later at 
_ 115. and the natural regeneration of Kauri in the Waipoua Forest at 
p. 28 of ‘‘ Waipoua Kauri Forest.” | 
Dr. Cockayne remarks (Botanical Report, 1908) that in the Kauri 
forest he notices usually nothing between seedlings and old trees, whereas 
outside the forest, in the Manuka scrub, Kauri can be seen coming up 
in abundance, and here trees of all ages are seen, In the forest Kauri 
is succeeded by Taraire. I gather that in his view the patches of forest 
where Kauri is abundant represent a transition period between the open 
country and the laraire forest. . 
How far this may be correct is not of much consequence in the culti- 
vated forest, since it is certain that by lightening the covert Kauri can 
be brought up in any part of the Kauri forest, provided precautions 
be taken to prevent the Kauri being dominated by Taraire and other 
trees of the dense under-forest. Kauri seed will germinate in Manuka 
scrub, and Kauri saplings will push their way through in the form of 
long slender whipsticks; but under the dense cover of Taraire and Tawa 
the seed of Kauri rarely germinates. 
Kauri Seed and Fire.—The Kauri flowers in spring, and the seed is 
ripe eighteen months afterwards, in autumn. Thus Kauri seed is ready 
just at the right time for ground burnt during the summer. This 
explains its tendency to good natural regeneration after fires. 
Kauri Seed.—There are no male and female trees with Kauri. 
As in the true pines, the male and female flowers of Kauri are 
separate, but on the same tree. This is favourable to easy cross- 
fertilization, which is the best, and tends to give the best seed. 
But the seed of Kauri is neither abundant nor easy to preserve. ‘Though 
there is some diversity of opinion as to the keeping-qualities of Kauri 
seed in the ground, the predominance of opinion is that Kauri seed 
will lie dormant in the ground for many years. Indeed, were this not 
so it would be impossible to explain the appearance of Kauri in many 
places after all possible parent trees had vanished from the locality for 
years. That Kauri seed may germinate at once or lie dormant for 
thirty years is the general belief of practical men who have had Kauri 
under observation. Mr. Karl Qwist, who knows Kauri Gully, near 
Auckland, very well, is of this opinion, and he showed me a quantity 
of young Kauri struggling through Manuka, which appeared to support 
his view. Here the young Kauri is coming up everywhere, except in 
the dense bush near the stream. l 
Collection of Seed.—It is not easy to collect Kauri seed. It is shed 
usually before the cone falls and scattered’ where the wind mav take it ; 
though sometimes a big heavy cone (a globe 2in. or 3 in. in diameter) 
may fall and burst open on its fall, scattering the seed in a tempting 
heap for birds and rats. Under systematic forestry these difficulties will 
be less, because, the felling of all the trees being regulated, it will be 
easy to arrange for the felling at the right time for seed of just as many 
trees as are required for this purpose, and for the getting of them without 
delay into the seed-beds or preserving sand-layers (stratification). 
Says D. Hay in Trans. N.Z. Inst., 1872,— | ; 
The seed is produced in a big rou 
nd cone, fl . ay 
to the ground when ripe, and, owing t ne, flattened at the top. This falls 
e 
o the great height it has to fall, breaks to 
