Clematis forsteri < Species index > Coprosma areolata
This article was first published in the Tararua Tramper Volume 95, # 11, December 2023
December in the hills with Michele Dickson, Chris Horne
Clematis paniculata, Puawānanga, white clematis
Photo: Jeremy Rolfe
Origin of the botanical names
Clematis is derived from the Greek word ‘klema’ meaning ‘a vine-branch’ or ‘a pruned twig’; ‘paniculata’ is derived from Latin words meaning ‘bearing panicles, loose clusters of flowers’. The genus is a member of the Ranunculaceae family which, in addition to many introduced garden plants, is represented in New Zealand by many buttercup species.
Distribution and habitat
Puawānanga is endemic to Aotearoa. It is found in lowland and lower montane forests, especially marginally, from Manawatāwhi/Three Kings Island to Rakiura/Stewart Island and is naturalised on Rekohu/Chatham Island.
Growth habit
Puawānanga is a woody vine/climber using other plants for support by twining and winding itself up into and over other foliage. The main stems can be up to 20 cm at the base, with bark grey-brown and furrowed. The branchlets are stout, pliant and glabrous. The leaves are trifoliate on petioles up to 4 cm long with petiolules 1-2 cm long. The leaf blades are dark green, thick, shiny, ovate with a flattish base. The leaf apex is sometimes lobed, more usually so in juvenile leaves. Leaflet size is variable (5-)-7-13-(10) × 6-12 (-19) cm, as are leaf margins, being usually smooth in adults to often slightly scalloped in juveniles. The petioles and petiolules often twine around host plants.
Reproduction
The white star-shaped, yellow-centred flowers make puawānanga one of the most showy species in our native flora, the white clusters standing out amongst green bush. They are borne in panicles, have no petals, but have 4-8 large, 4 x 1 cm, petal-like, white sepals. Flowers are unisexual and on separate plants, the male flowers being larger. Both male and female parts are numerous. Pollination is by pollen-collecting bees. At fruiting, the female part develops a long, curved, feathery tip 4 – 6.5 cm long, as the seed develops into a dry single-seeded fruit dispersed by wind. These form drooping, beard-like clusters from each flower. Flowering is June to November, fruiting October to January.
Uses
Puawānanga flowers are said to produce fine honey. Inhaling the aroma of bark and wood shavings has been used for head colds. Leaves have been applied to reduce irritations, and sap from short lengths of stem has been blown onto wounds. The vine has also been included in a decoction with certain other native species for blood disorders. Women made wreaths and garlands for their hair.
Where can you find puawānanga?
Look for it in Ōtari-Wilton's Bush, most mature Wellington bush reserves and secondary growth, Regional Parks and in the Remutaka, Aorangi, Akatarawa and Tararua ranges.
Notes:
Clematis vitalba, old man’s beard, can be distinguished from the native species by having five leaflets on each petiole and by being deciduous. Puawānanga is one of ten Te Reo Māori names for the species.
In The Hills 2023-11 < Index chronological > In The Hills 2024-02