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6. To get the look Mark painted the background stucco wall with Resene AquaShield tinted to Resene Pearl Lusta. 7. 8. Handy hint For added security (and permanence) attach the shelves to the concrete blocks with exterior construction glue. Step Seven Apply two coats of Resene Lustacryl tinted to Resene Permanent Green to each of the concrete blocks, allowing two hours to dry. Step Eight Apply two coats of Resene Lustacryl tinted to Resene Permanent Green to each of the fence palings, allowing two hours to dry, and then simply stack the fence palings on to the blocks to form the shelves. For more on paints and stains phone 0800 Resene (0800 737 363) or visit your Resene ColorShop or www.resene.co.nz gardener.kiwi kiwigardener 87
plant doctor Andrew Maloy answers your questions. Prickly gem Question Can you identify this horrible prickly shrub we came across last summer on a trip to the amazing Clay Cliffs near Omarama in Otago? Is it a weed? R. Brown, Wellington Answer This is matagouri, Discaria toumatou, a plant unique to New Zealand though there are related species in Australia, Tasmania and South America. It can reach several metres high and is found in many parts of the country south of the Waikato River, but much more so in tussock grassland areas of the South Island and in sandy or gravelly, dry river beds. In the North Island it’s almost an endangered plant, in the South Island it’s often thought of as a nuisance weed, but is a protected plant under the Resource Management Act. Matagouri’s vicious appearance belies its true nature, it really is an interesting plant and plays an important role in the ecology of the areas in which it grows. It’s relatively slow-growing; there are reports of specimens older than 100 years in some places. We know legumes, such as clover, peas and beans, are “nitrogen-fixing” plants, but there are also non-legumes with similar attributes, including matagouri. Its roots have a symbiotic relationship with certain soil bacteria that take in nitrogen from the air and convert into a form that can be absorbed by the plant, allowing it to survive and grow in low-nutrient soils, as well as providing a more favourable habitat for other plant species to become established. Matagouri leaves are small, leathery, grow close to the base of vicious 5cm-long thorns and are more visible in spring or in shaded parts of the plant. In full bright sun, they can appear to be almost leafless. Small, white flowers appear from October to January and are said to have nectar that makes very good honey. The fruit containing seed is a rounded berry. The Otago Daily Times (ODT) published a story in its 23 April 2020 issue, which describes the importance of matagouri berries to the native kākāriki, orange-fronted parakeet, whose population is nationally endangered. About the size of a budgie, kākāriki were once spread throughout the country, but are now the rarest parakeet and forest bird in the country. Only 300–500 birds survive today, in beech forests and valleys around the Arthur’s Pass National Park and Lake Sumner Forest Park in Canterbury and some that have been released on four offshore islands. They feed mostly on seeds and fruits at the tops of tall trees in the beech forests, but also come down to lower vegetation, such as matagouri scrublands, and to streams where they drink and bathe. Threats to kākāriki are the usual culprits, predators like stoats, rats, possums and cats, along with habitat destruction by people, deer, goats and stock. Despite these challenges there is some good news. In the ODT article, Department of Conservation monitoring Matagouri, with orange hips of wild sweet rose and blue echium flowers in the background. team leader Megan Farley says in the 12 years that she’s been involved in monitoring kākāriki, the 2019–20 season is the best she has seen, when around 100 kākāriki, many of them unbanded, were seen feasting on matagouri seeds. The number of unbanded birds indicates kākāriki have enjoyed a very successful breeding season, which is put down to extensive predator control in the core breeding area, plus the matagouri masting. Masting is when weather conditions are such that native forests flower heavily and produce bumper crops of berries and seeds. It would be interesting to see how kākāriki avoid those vicious thorns to feast on the berries. Despite legal protection, matagouri in some areas is still threatened, possums have been known to ring bark trees in spring to feed on the sweet sap, rats can cause similar damage, and weeds like gorse, broom and sweet briar (Rosa rubiginosa) compete aggressively for the same habitat. So, though at first glance it may look like a ‘horrible prickly shrub’, matagouri is a plant to be treasured. 88 kiwigardener gardener.kiwi
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