The Kawa-kawa (_Piper excelsum_) is a large shrub of the pepper tribe, allied to kava and cubebs. It is ornamental, and has an aromatic scent.
The Pukatea (_Atherosperma N.Z._) is a tree of the second largest class. Its timber is soft but durable, and is much used for boat-building. It is a remarkably handsome tree.
The Rata (_Metrosideros robusta_) is of the myrtle tribe. When young it is a creeper and a parasite, called then Ratapiki. It gradually strangles and absorbs the tree round which it climbs, becoming eventually a forest giant, gnarled and twisted. In all its stages it bears a gorgeous scarlet flower. The timber is used for rails, posts, and shingles.
The Ti, or "cabbage-tree palm" (_Cordyline Australis_), grows as high as fifty feet. It branches into various stems, each bearing a head of leaves. The leaf yields a strong fibre. The plentiful seeds are full of oil. The root is farinaceous, and was an item of Maori diet. It is very abundant.
The Toi (_Cordyline indivisa_) is a more ornamental, rarer, and smaller species of "cabbage-tree;" the leaf is larger, handsomer, and also fibre-yielding. Its root is also esculent, like that of the Ti. The name of Toi likewise belongs to a herb (_Barbarea vulgaris_), the leaves of which are eaten like cabbage or spinach.
The Tingahere, or "lancewood" (_Cordyline stricta_), is another species of the same family. It is of very singular appearance, its head resembling a tuft of copper-coloured feathers or hair. There are several more members of this tribe to be seen pretty frequently in the mixed bush.
The Nikau (_Areca sapida_) attains forty or fifty feet. It is a handsome palm, bearing enormous fronds, often fifteen feet or more in length. They are used for thatching wharès in the forest. Within the crown of the leaves is an edible pith, a stick of pinky-white stuff, the size of a man's arm, eating like celery and cocoa-nut in combination; it is refreshing and wholesome.
The Tawhera or Kie-kie (_Freycinetia Banksii_) appears to be sometimes a parasite, sometimes a shrub, and sometimes a small tree. It is a curious plant, with tufts of stringy leaves. It bears a fruit very much esteemed by the Maori, which resembles a green pine-apple, small, and eats like honey and cream.