Common Name: Lancewood
Scientific Name: Pseudopanax ferox
Height at Maturity: 15m
Time To Maturity: 15-20 year+, changes form ~ above 6m tall
Max Altitude: 750m
Habitat: A common plant found throughout lowland and montane forests and shrublands on the North, South and Stewart Islands. The juvenile form is particularly abundant in regenerating bush and along forest edges, especially in lowland areas and dry sites.
Domesticated Uses: A good additional to any garden.
Flowering: Small, greenish-yellow flowers, pollinated by insects, flowers
Fruiting: The purplish-black ripens in late winter/early spring
Birds Life: A winter fruiting tree, it is very important for whitehead, tūī and wood pigeon/ kererū
Planting Instructions: naturally grows along forest edges, especially in lowland areas and dry sites.
Uses: Occasionally used as a source of timber, mostly in Otago, but the wood is not as durable as some other species.
The juvenile lancewood stage lasts for between 15 to 20 years. It is very distinctive pointy leaves for climbing through the canopy, until the crown breaches and the reasonable different mature tree form. It is rumoured that the juvenile tree form came as a defensive mechanism to allow the tree to mature in the face of predation by the Moa.
