Nīkau
Scientific name
Rhopalostylis sapida
Physical Features
Height - 10-15m
Width - Fronds can grow up to 3m
Description - Only palm native to New Zealand. It has a round green trunk which has grey-green leaf scars.
Location - coastal to lowland forest in warmer regions.
Uses
Pre European arrival, Māori would use the leaves to thatch houses, to wrap food before cooking, and to weave into hats, mats, baskets, and leggings for travelling through rough undergrowth. The growing spikes can be taken from the tree about every eight months without killing it.
Planting
March to May.
Purakau
Some say that when Māori came to New Zealand, they looked in vain for a familiar tree and seeing the nīkau, compared it to the coconut tree of their Pacific homeland. One translation of ‘nīkau’ is ‘without nuts', in remembrance of the coconut. An alternative translation is ‘only leaves’, referring to the fact that the tree has many leaves that originate from a single stalk.