How fast does a Titoki tree grow?

500 mm per year
The Titoki will grow to 4-8m but responds well to trimming and shaping and in suitable conditions will grow approx 300-500 mm per year. As another rough guide you would expect a Titoki to be about 5m high after 10 years.

Is Titoki tree Evergreen?

Uses: Titoki have been used extensively as street trees but make a bold evergreen shade tree in the garden. Titoki respond well to trimming and shaping and can be used as a pleached or stilt hedge or as large topiary subjects.

Are Titoki trees native to NZ?

Alectryon excelsus, commonly known as titoki (Māori: tītoki), is a shiny-leaved tree native to New Zealand, where it occurs in coastal and lowland forests. It is found throughout most of the North Island and from Banks Peninsula to central Westland in the South Island.

Is a Titoki tree poisonous?

Poison potential Titoki is known to liberate hydrocyanic acid. However there is only one instance where this was suspected of killing animals and that occurred over 60 years ago. The oil of titoki has been investigated and is found to contain cyanolipeds which release hydrogen cyanide.

Are titoki frost sensitive?

The damage to the titoki tree from the Poor Knights was clearly intermediate to that seen in the mainland trees and Three Kings tree. The southern and altitudinal limits of titoki are strongly influenced by its sensitivity to frost.

Can you eat titoki berries?

The seed capsule splits open to reveal a bright, shiny black seed perched in a fleshy red base that looks like a ripe raspberry, and almost good enough to eat. Historical records tell us Māori children did eat this fleshy fruit, but it had a very bitter taste and its nutritional value is doubtful.

How do you grow titoki seeds?

Propagation: Soak the capsule in water to soften so it can be broken open to reveal the seed. Sow the black seed as soon as it is collected and cover with about 5 mm of seed raising mix. The seedlings germinate quickly and are frost tender when young.

Does New Zealand have palm trees?

Although a number of palms have been introduced to New Zealand and are planted around our towns and gardens, the nīkau palm is our only native palm species.

How long do pohutukawa seeds take to germinate?

In seven days they’ll be like a lawn. As soon as the seedlings are up and green, remove the bag and reduce watering to avoid fungal attack.

Can you grow trees from seeds?

Seeds have been sprouting into trees for an extremely long time without any help from humans. The “natural way” to germinate tree seeds is to allow nature to take its course. Most seeds, when sown in autumn without any pre-treatment, will begin to germinate the following spring.

How fast do Nikau palms grow?

Nikau are very slow growers. It takes a good 15 years for them to form the beginnings of a trunk, so a two-metre specimen may be 20 or 30 years old. It can take them the best part of a century to reach 10 m.

Can coconuts grow in New Zealand?

Coconuts regularly wash up on Kermadec shores, but none have germinated. Fossil coconuts of another species (Cocos zeylandica) have been found in Northland. They flourished around 20 million years ago, when northern New Zealand was almost tropical.

How tall will a titoki tree grow?

It is conservatively estimated that reasonably sheltered titoki, growing on good soil, should be able to reach 17 to 19 metres height and 40 cm diameter in 50 years. It is difficult to understand why, given the timber qualities and potential for use of titoki, there is no information about timber quality available.

Where does Titoki grow in New Zealand?

Titoki is found in lowland forest throughout the North Island, especially on alluvial ground and volcanic loams. In the South Island it grows as far south as Banks Peninsula; further south on the West Coast.

What are the timber qualities and potential for use of Titoki?

It is difficult to understand why, given the timber qualities and potential for use of titoki, there is no information about timber quality available. The wood is light red in colour and straight grained and hard, with great strength, elasticity and toughness. Titoki is known to liberate hydrocyanic acid.

How tall is the Otumoetai tree?

A big multi-stemmed tree growing at Otumoetai, Tauranga, has a height of 14 metres and a diameter (at 50 cm) of 2.23 metres. This is an historic tree and was well established in 1845 when the local tribes made peace beneath it after ten years of warfare.