LAURELIA NOVAl-ZELANDIA;, A. Cunningham. 
THE PUKATEA. 
OrDER—MONIMIACE-. 
(Plate LXXI.) 
Tue pukatea is one of the loftiest trees in New Zealand, and exhibits a decided 
preference for swampy land, or the banks of streams and gullies. It sometimes 
attains the height of 150ft., but is usually from goft. to 120ft., with a trunk from 
aft. to 6ft. in diameter, clothed with white bark, and flanked with radiating 
buttresses at the base, which in some cases more than double the diameter of 
the trunk. 
Its glossy foliage and massive trunk give it a noble and attractive appear- 
ance, notwithstanding the distant and somewhat naked aspect of its branches: it 
is one of the best-known trees in the New Zealand forests. 
‘The branchlets and leaves are opposite, and the former are usually clothed 
with fine pubescence, as are the short leaf-stalks. The leaves are of thick 
texture, from #in. to rgin. wide, and are nearly twice as long as broad, the 
mareins being obscurely or coarsely toothed. The male and female flowers are 
developed on separate plants, and arranged in racemes springing from the axils 
of the leaves, and about one-third their length, bearing from six to nine flowers ; 
the pedicels and perianth-leaves are densely clothed with silky hairs. 
The male flowers consist of a cup-shaped perianth, consisting of five small 
ovate leayes, surrounding from six to ten stamens, the filaments of which are 
very short and thick, with a curious glandular protuberance on each side: the 
anthers open by a broad valve on each side. The female flower is similar to the 
male in general appearance, the stamens being represented by scales; the pistil 
consists of from six to cieht carpels sunk in the tube of the perianth, the ovary 
and style of each carpel being clothed with long hairs. After fertilisation has 
taken place the perianth-tube becomes elongated, and completely invests the 
pistil: it is fully fin. long when fully matured, and splits into four pieces to 
liberate the ripe carpels, which are one-secded and clothed with long silky hairs. 
PROPERTIES AND UsEs. 
The wood of the pukatea is of a pale-brown colour, sometimes with a slight 
tinge of yellow; it is cloudy, streaked with deeper shades, and is often very 
ornamental, Although rather soft, it is of great strength and of extreme tough- 
ness, does not split, and is difficult of combustion, It is a timber of great value, 
but has been sadly neglected, chiefly on account of its not being durable when 
in contact with the ground. It has been frequently used for boat-building, for 
which it is valued, as nails may be driven in any direction without causing it to 
split. In Taranaki it is occasionally used for weather-boards with good results, 
and has been used for external roofing-boards, which remained in good condition 
for seventeen years. Tor common furniture it is excellent, as well as for many 
kinds of ornamental work. It is gratifying to find that its use is increasing, 
although but slowly. 
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