Pittosporum eugenioides
Common names
tarata, lemonwood
Biostatus
Native
Category
Vascular
Structural class
Trees & Shrubs - Dicotyledons
Simplified description
Tree bearing light green wavy-edge oval leaves and with a contrasting pale green central vein, dense sprays of yellow flowers and small dry fruits. Leaf buds covered in dark-edged scales. Fruit pointed, 5-6mm long which splits into two to show a papery layer covering black sticky seeds.
Flower colours
Yellow
Detailed description
Gynodioecious tree up to 12 m tall but usually much less. Trunk 0.6-1 m diam, stout, clad in persistent pale-grey bark, branches numerous, erect then spreading. Leaf buds sticky, resinous. Leaves borne on slender petioles 10-20 mm long, alternate, 50-100(-150) x 25-40 mm, yellow-green, green, more or less blotched and mottled with paler green or yellow-green (sometimes white), somewhat leathery, glossy, smelling strongly when crushed of ivy or resin, elliptic to elliptic-oblong, apex acute to subacute; leaf margin undulate (very rarely not so), midrib pale green. Inflorescences terminal, numerous, subcorymbose compound umbels. Flowers pale yellow to yellow, very fragrant. Peduncles 10-20 mm, pedicels 5 mm, both sparsely hairy. Sepals 2 mm, ovate to narrow-ovate, pale caducous. Petals 5, 5-7 mm long, narrow-oblong. Capsules 2-valved (rarely 3), 5-6 mm, ovoid to elliptic, caducous, seeds immersed in dark yellow viscid pulp, whole structure covered in long persistent papery endocarp.
Similar taxa
Well marked from all other indigenous and exotic Pittosporum spp. in New Zealand, by the yellow-green, mottled lanceolate leaves with undulating margins, and pale-yellow to yellow flowers arranged in subcorymbose compound umbels.
Distribution
Endemic. Common in the North and South Islands.
Habitat
Common tree of regenerating and mature forest in coastal to montane situations.
Current conservation status
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2022-2023 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS) – more information about this can be found on the NZTCS website. This report includes replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Previous assessments can be found here.
Please note, threat classifications are often suggested by authors when publications fall between NZTCS assessment periods – these interim threat classification statuses has not been assessed by the NZTCS panel.
- Conservation status of vascular plants in Aotearoa New Zealand, 2023. 2024. Peter J. de Lange, Jane Gosden, Shannel P. Courtney, Alexander J. Fergus, John W. Barkla, Sarah M. Beadel, Paul D. Champion, Rowan Hindmarsh-Walls, Troy Makan and Pascale Michel Department of Conservation. Source: NZTCS and licensed by DOC for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.
2023 | Not Threatened
Detailed taxonomy
Family
Pittosporaceae
Synonyms
Pittosporum elegans Raoul, P. microcarpum Putt.
Endemic taxon
Yes
Endemic genus
No
Endemic family
No
Ecology
Flowering
October - December
Fruiting
October - January
Propagation technique
Easy from fresh seed. Can be grown from semi-hardwood cuttings.
Other information
Cultivation
Commonly cultivated and available from most garden centres, and then often as a variegated form rather than the pure plant. Occasionally seen for sale in European and English garden centres.
Etymology
pittosporum: Pitch seed
eugenioides: Like Eugenia, a species of myrtle
NVS code
The National Vegetation Survey (NVS) Databank is a physical archive and electronic databank containing records of over 94,000 vegetation survey plots - including data from over 19,000 permanent plots. NVS maintains a standard set of species code abbreviations that correspond to standard scientific plant names from the Ngä Tipu o Aotearoa - New Zealand Plants database.
PITEUG
Chromosome number
2n = 24
Previous conservation statuses
2017 | Not Threatened
2012 | Not Threatened
2009 | Not Threatened
2004 | Not Threatened
Referencing and citations
References and further reading
Cooper, R.C. 1956: The Australian and New Zealand species of Pittosporum. Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden 43: 87-188
Attribution
Fact sheet prepared for NZPCN by P.J. de Lange 30 August 2006. Description adapted from Cooper (1956).
NZPCN Fact Sheet citation
Please cite as: de Lange, P.J. (Year at time of access): Pittosporum eugenioides Fact Sheet (content continuously updated). New Zealand Plant Conservation Network. https://www.nzpcn.org.nz/flora/species/pittosporum-eugenioides/ (Date website was queried)