Ulmus parvifolia
Lacebark or Chinese elm Ht 10-15m
Broadly spreading, deciduous. Small leaves which may persist into winter in mild climates. Patterned brown bark in winter. Used as a shelter tree on exposed sites. Can tolerate tar sealed car parks.
Group trees and shrubs:
Yes
Categories:
- Medium tree
- Deciduous
- Tolerates exposed sites
- Tolerates dry sites
- Attractive autumn colours - yellow
- Erosion control
- Shelter
Tsuga heterophylla (PLUG grown)
Western hemlock Ht 30-40m
Western N. America. Conical, evergreen. Make a graceful specimen tree. Will tolerate shade, prefers regular rainfall. Component of Douglas fir forest. Suited to uneven aged selection forestry. Will clip to an attractive hedge.
Group trees and shrubs:
No
Categories:
- Large tree
- Evergreen
- Tolerates exposed sites
- Tolerates dry sites
- Tolerates shade
- Attractive berries fruits or cone
- Timber
- Shelter
- Container Grown
- Hedging
Taxus baccata (POT grown)
English yew Ht 10-20m
Wide spreading, evergreen. Very shade tolerant and casts very heavy shade. Foliage poisonous to horses. Clips well as a formal hedge. Enjoys alkaline soils but not heavy clays.
Group trees and shrubs:
No
Categories:
- Small Tree
- Evergreen
- Tolerates dry sites
- Intolerant to clay soils
- Tolerates shade
- Attractive to birds
- Attractive berries fruits or cone
- Container Grown
- Hedging
- Tolerates limestone soils
Sorbus aucuparia
Rowan Ht 5-15m
European mountain ash. Broadly conical deciduous. Leaves pinnate turning orange in colder areas. White flowers in clusters then red berries. Suited to colder areas. Berries rich in vitamin C for jelly and herbal remedies.
Group trees and shrubs:
Yes
Categories:
- Small Tree
- Deciduous
- Tolerates exposed sites
- Tolerates dry sites
- Attractive autumn colours - red
- Attractive flowers or catkins
- Attractive to birds
- Attractive berries fruits or cone
- Attracts bees
- Edible fruits and seeds
Sophora prostrata (POT grown)
Kowhai - South Island mountain Ht 1-2m
Endemic to dry stoney Eastern South Island sites. A small dense bush to 2m tall, zig-zaggy branches 25mm long leaves, leaflets 4mm long, drooping orange-yellow flowers in spring, 5cm nobbly pods with hard brown to almost black seeds.
Juveniles & adults similar. Useful for bonsai.
Group trees and shrubs:
No
Categories:
- Shrub
- Evergreen
- Tolerates exposed sites
- Tolerates dry sites
- Attractive flowers or catkins
- Attractive to birds
- Attractive berries fruits or cone
- Attracts bees
- Container Grown
Sophora molloyi 'Dragon's Gold' (POT grown)
Kowhai - Winter flowering Ht 1.5m
A clone selected by Blue Mountain Nurseries originating from Stephens Island in Cook Strait, home of the tuatara and produced by cuttings. A dense sprawling evergreen shrub flowering in July, attracting tuis and bellbirds. Tolerates cold, drought and coastal gales.
Group trees and shrubs:
No
Categories:
- Shrub
- NZ native
- Evergreen
- Resistant to salt spray
- Tolerates exposed sites
- Tolerates dry sites
- Attractive flowers or catkins
- Attractive to birds
- Container Grown
Sophora molloyi (POT grown)
Kowhai - Cook Strait Ht 1-3m
Bushy sprawling evergreen shrub restricted to Cook Strait Islands and S. North Island bluffs. No divaricating juvenile stage. Leaves up tp 100mm long, petiolules & rachides channelled above, leaflets 23-37 similar in size, not crowded or overlapping. Petiolules usually pubescent with other leaflet parts. Apr -Oct up to 5 flowers, part hidden in foliage, up to 9 light brown to yellow seeds.
Group trees and shrubs:
No
Categories:
- Shrub
- NZ native
- Evergreen
- Resistant to salt spray
- Tolerates exposed sites
- Tolerates dry sites
- Attractive flowers or catkins
- Attractive to birds
- Attractive berries fruits or cone
- Attracts bees
- Erosion control
- Container Grown
Sophora microphylla (POT grown)
Kowhai - South Island Ht 5-25m
Can grow to 25m usually a single trunk, branches weeping and spreading. Adult leaflets 30-50, not crowded or overlapping, of similar size, with an obvious petiolule, moderately to sparcely hairy, hairs straight and appressed. Leaves >30mm, leaflet pairs >6. Juveniles divaricating and interlacing branching. Can be deciduous in a cold climate. To 7 Yellow flowers in a bunch in Spring attract tuis and bellbirds, pigeons feed on the leaves.
Group trees and shrubs:
No
Categories:
- Small Tree
- NZ native
- Evergreen
- Tolerates wet sites
- Tolerates exposed sites
- Tolerates dry sites
- Attractive flowers or catkins
- Attractive to birds
- Attractive berries fruits or cone
- Attracts bees
- Erosion control
- Container Grown
Sophora longicarinata (POT grown)
Kowhai - Golden Bay Ht 4-5m
Endemic to marble and limestone soils in NW Nelson & W Marlborough. Tree with single straight trunk or a multi-stemmed shrub. Leaves 140mm with 35-54 small equal-sized leaflets, much finer and less dense than other kowhai. Flowers
lemon-yellow Oct-Jan. No divaricating juvenile stage.
Group trees and shrubs:
No
Categories:
- Small Tree
- NZ native
- Evergreen
- Tolerates dry sites
- Attractive flowers or catkins
- Attractive to birds
- Attractive berries fruits or cone
- Attracts bees
- Container Grown
Sophora howinsula (POT grown)
Lord Howe Is. kowhai (syn.'Gnome') Ht 3-4m
Native to Lord Howe Island, part of the largely submerged Zealandia, on which NZ sits. Small stocky evergreen tree with a lignotuber at ground level. Pinnate leaves 5-10cm long larger than S. tetraptera. Larger yellow flowers July to Sept. 7-12cm pods contain smooth orange-brown seeds. Wood is hard and durable.
vergreen, with upright vase shaped slightly arching branches.
Larger leaves and much larger flowers. Hardy, slower than most kowhai. Suitable for a small garden. Known by the name 'Gnome'.
Group trees and shrubs:
No
Categories:
- Shrub
- NZ native
- Evergreen
- Tolerates dry sites
- Attractive flowers or catkins
- Attractive to birds
- Attractive berries fruits or cone
- Attracts bees
- Container Grown
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