New Zealand (South Island) - Nov/Dec 2018

[Richard Green]

I am travelling from the far south of the South Island to the north.  I arrived in Invercargill where I met Forumist Dave Toole.  It seems that 2018 has been a late spring and many of the plants are late into flower.  However here are a selection from the first day's botanising near Invercargill.

Dave Toole (excellent hat!) and I discussing the finer points of the flora surrounded by introduced weeds such as Broom, and Tree Lupin.


Drosera spathulata in the boggy places.


View of the Southern Ocean towards Antarctica.  All the small light blue-grey patches on the rocks in the foreground are cushions of Raoulia hookeri 'coastal form'.


Gunnera hamiltonii and Raoulia aff. hookeri 'costal form'.


Tomorrow we are off to see some more good plants.

[Maggi Young]

Sigh!  Just thinking how well  t00lie's yellow hat would  have looked with his old purple leggings......... 

[Matt T]

Love that wee Gunnera. Keep meaning to try it in a trough here. Happy travels, Richard!

[Richard Green]

It looks like the Gunnera should enjoy the machair conditions with you Matt.  It was growing in sandy soil, the annual rainfall is high and doesn't get very much freezing weather!

[Richard Green]

A couple more from the dunes walk:

Now who planted that there?  A small "potted" Gentiana saxosa, although there were no flowers in evidence on this or any other plants in the area yet.  Look carefully and you will see the Raoulia in the sand at the foot of the picture.


Geranium brevicaule is a nice little prostrate plant.

[ChrisB]

Really like that wee geranium Richard!

[Ian Y]

Great to see these pictures from your adventure in NZ Richard looking forward to seeing and hearing more...........

[Gabriela]

Great pictures of very interesting plant species, looking fwd to more of course!

[David Lyttle]

Hope Dave did not give you the wrong name for the Geranium; it is Geranium sessiliflorum var. arenarium, a coastal species similar to G. brevicaule,  but unlike G. brevicaule is quite rare.

[Richard Green]

Thanks, David.  No, Dave Toole was certainly not responsible, I was too busy snapping to take in (or note down) what he was telling me, and have been ever since - hence the lack of recent posts.  Mistakes are all mine - I simply guessed from "Above the treeline". Do keep on correcting me, and shall certainly not be trying to name the celmisias, of which we saw a stunning selection.

[David Lyttle]

Hi Richard,

Geranium sessiliflorum var. arenarium does not appear in 'Above the Treeline' as it is a coastal species. Similarly with Gentianella saxosa and Gunnera hamiltonii. There are a number of alpine species that descend to sea level near Invercargill. There are also a number of species that are very similar to alpine species that are found on the coast eg Euphrasia repens due to the severity of the climate in those parts.

[Yann]

Geranium brevicaule is so beautiful, thanks for sharing your photos.