Characteristics of Kanuka Tree (Kunzea ericoides) in the Wild

Kanuka or White Tea-tree (Kunzea ericoides) is a tree or shrub in the Myrtaceae family that is endemic to New Zealand. It has white or pink flowers similar to Leptospermum and from its first official description in 1832 to 1983 was known as Leptospermum ericoides.

Kanuka was first formally described in 1832 by the French botanist, Achille Richard, who gave it the name Leptospermum ericoides from a specimen he collected in New Zealand. The description was published in Voyage de découvertes de l’Astrolabe – Botanique. In 1983, Joy Thompson changed the name to Kunzea ericoides, explaining the difference between Leptospermum and Kunzea in Telopea.

Kanuka (as it was known until the 1930s) was only known in the northern part of the South Island. This tree is found north of the Buller and Wairau Rivers and is most common near Nelson. It grows mostly in shrubs and forests in coastal and lowland areas, rarely in subalpine shrublands.

Kanuka trees are found throughout New Zealand in the Three Kings Islands, Aotea (Great Barrier Island), from Te Paki (on the Aupouri Peninsula) at the northern tip of the North Island all the way south to Dunedin and Central Otago. on the South Island, and Stewart Island. In this range, the kanuka is widely distributed from coastal scrub and dunes (which can form different types of forest) to lowland and mountain forests, with one member of the complex reaching an altitude of 2,000 m asl.

Kanuka often colonize land recovering after fire and are an important part of the natural restoration of agricultural areas and disturbed open land to forest.

Common names used to refer to the species Kunzea ericoides include Kānuka, Kōpuka, Manuea, Mānuka, Mānuka-Rauriki, Mārū, Rauiri, Rauwiri, and White tea-tree.
 

Characteristics of Kanuka Leaf

The shape of the leaves varies from linear to narrowly elliptical or lance-shaped, 6.5-25 mm long and 1-5 mm wide with petioles up to 1 mm long.
 

Characteristics of Kanuka Flower

The flowers are white or pale pink, clustered on the side branches or in the axils of the upper leaves. The flower cup is covered with fine, soft hairs and sits on a 3-6 mm long pedicel. There are five triangular sepals about 1 mm long and five petals about 2 mm long. There are up to 25 stamens measuring 1-4 mm, most of which are longer than the petals. Flowering occurs between October and February and is followed by fruit.

The kanuka flower is small but abundant, it can color an entire hillside white, almost resembling a layer of snow.
 

Characteristics of Kanuka Fruit

The fruit is a capsule with a length and width of 2-4 mm and usually opens to release the seeds when ripe.
 

Characteristics of Kanuka Tree

Kanuka can grow as a shrub or medium tree 3-15 meters high with peeling bark lengthwise and young branches tend to droop.

The wood is very hard and although it does not last long in the ground, it is used for dock pilings and tool handles. It is very popular as a high-heat firewood.

The prostrate kanuka (Kunzea ericoides var. microflora) is one of the few plants that can survive in the hot soil around geothermal areas such as fumaroles and craters, for example in the “Craters of the Moon” (Karapiti), a geothermal area near Taupo, in New Zealand.