In an effort to bolster our ability to identify some of New
Zealand’s most widespread and commonly cultivated trees, Leon
Perrie, Curator of Botany and I attended a workshop for
identifying Eucalyptus, Corymbia and Pinus species this month.
The workshop was presented by Chris Ecroyd, a long standing
member of New Zealand’s botanical community who worked as
Curator of New Zealand’s Forest Research Institute Herbarium
(NZFRI) at Scion NewZealand, before retiring last year. The
workshop was also supported by Scion and Wellington City
Council. Eucalyptus and Corymbia are part of the family
Myrtaceae. Commonly known members of this family native to New
Zealand include rata and pohutukawa (Metrosideros species),
kanuka (Kunzea species) and manuka (Leptospermum scoparium).
However the Australian members of the Myrtaceae family are much
more difficult to tell apart, principally because there are so
many of them.Mallee is the term used to describe a gum that is a
shrub or tree less than 10m in height and is multi-stem