Introduction

Forest practices and policy did not take root and develop to their present comparative strength in New Zealand until the formation, in 1920, of a separate Department, the State Forest Service, and the passing of the Forests Act 1921–22. Nevertheless, the way had been paved for these two important events from about the 1870s and a Forest Act was passed even as early as 1874. Long before the 1870s, timber had become an important commodity in the developing colony. It quickly acquired pride of place as the main building material, was used almost exclusively for fuel, for the fencing of farmlands, and, most important, provided a commodity for early overseas trade. For a brief period – in the early 1850s – it was the major export, thus assisting in no small measure the young colony. It was mainly the need to conserve and regulate the supplies of these important native timbers and, later, to supplement or replace them with plantation-grown timbers that led to the policy and administrative measures referred to above.

The timber needs of the country, a thriving wood utilisation industry, and forest policy and practice are now integrated to a marked extent. It was not always so, for in the early days of sparse settlement and ample forest, it was a long time before the Crown assumed adequate control over milling.

(1869–1947).

Farmer-politician and Prime Minister.

A new biography of Forbes, George William appears in the Dictionary of New Zealand Biography on this site.

George William Forbes was born in Lyttelton on 12 May 1869, the third son of Robert Forbes, ship's chandler. He was educated at the Lyttelton Borough School and at Christchurch Boys' High School (1882–83). He worked for a Christchurch merchant and then for his father. Forbes was a good athlete and played halfback for the celebrated Canterbury rugby team of 1892, leading the side against Otago. Forbes retained a vivid boyhood memory of Sir George Grey speaking in Christchurch, and was greatly influenced by George Laurenson, left-wing Liberal member (1899–1913) for Lyttelton, a town with radical traditions. Forbes joined a Christchurch debating society, showing some promise as a speaker. In 1893 he drew a section in the Cheviot ballot, but found it too small. He was lucky enough to draw another section in the homestead block and thereafter began to interest himself in local affairs. Forbes was for two years president, and for eight years secretary, of the Cheviot Settlers' Association. He was also a foundation member of the Cheviot County Council, and played a prominent part in the campaign for the Waipara-Cheviot railway. Several men, including Forbes, sought the Liberal candidate for Hurunui in 1902, but Seddon placed his “hallmark” on A. W. Rutherford, a shrewd, popular runholder. The Premier told Forbes he must bide his time, but the young Cheviot farmer went to the ballot, running a poor fourth. Possibly as a consolation, Seddon appointed him to the 1905 Royal Commission on land tenure and settlement, Forbes being well-known as a staunch leaseholder. In 1908 Rutherford did not stand, and Forbes was elected Member for Hurunui, holding the seat until his retirement in 1943. In his maiden speech, Forbes linked land settlement and the relief of unemployment, demonstrating his position as one of the small and diminishing band of rural Liberal “leasehold” members. When the Mackenzie Ministry was formed (March 1912), Forbes became Liberal whip, a position which he held till 1922.

In the general election of 1919, Forbes's party suffered a severe setback and the loss of its leader, Ward. After W. D. S. MacDonald's brief tenure, T. M. Wilford was elected Leader of the Opposition (1920). There were now strong advocates for Reform-Liberal fusion, but Forbes resisted any attempt to break with the party's more radical past, and would not allow that left-wing votes must be abandoned to Labour. He supported the change of title to “Liberal-Labour” in 1922. The party, however, lost further ground, and in 1925 the decision was taken to make fresh approaches to Massey for the formation of a National party. Forbes led the Liberal delegation at the final unsuccessful conference (June), after which Wilford accused Coates, Massey's successor, of having “banged, bolted, and barred the door”. The Liberal leader then announced that his party would take the title of “National”, but soon after resigned. The party caucus thereupon elected Forbes as head though T. K. Sidey had strong claims. The Christchurch Press summed up the general reaction: “The people of Canterbury have reared him, they like him, they have seen him play magnificent football. But they have not begun to think of him yet as a political leader … and Mr Forbes will have to help.” In his first election campaign, however, Forbes was quite overshadowed by Coates and Holland. His party was reduced to nine, and seemed on its last legs. Yet the swift decline of Coates's popularity and the suspicion of Labour left a political gap which was, in the event, exploited by the formation of a new third party, United. To bring varied and incompatible elements together for just long enough was the remarkable feat of A. E. Davy, Coates's 1925 organiser. Forbes came forward in February 1928 as “Leader” of the new party. A formal ballot held in September resulted in a deadlock between A. E. Ransom and Forbes. Davy then engineered an invitation to the ailing 70-year-old Ward. On his acceptance, Forbes gracefully stepped down. He had lost his party and then his leadership, and his political star seemed in eclipse.

Yet the paradoxical election of 1928 in fact opened the way for him to reach the highest political office. In December 1928 Ward became Prime Minister with Labour support. Forbes was his deputy and Minister of Lands and Agriculture. Ward was only intermittently capable of work, and Forbes was de facto head of the inexperienced Cabinet from about October 1929 until Ward's retirement in May 1930. The United caucus then elected Forbes as leader, and he formed his ministry on 28 May. Mindful of Forbes's Liberalism, Labour continued its conditional support, but while Forbes was in Britain for the 1930 Imperial Conference, a controversial Unemployment Bill was passed in ambiguous form. Forbes returned to find New Zealand staggering under the full impact of depression (January 1931). In one blunt statement he broke with Labour on the unemployment issue: there would be no sustenance payments without work. He then put forward economy proposals which were opposed by Labour but supported by Reform. Forbes offered party union to Coates, but the latter resisted until the eleventh hour (September 1931), when Forbes dug his toes in and virtually compelled the Reform leader to join a Coalition Government. Of their final manoeuvres, James McCombs said: “(Coates) laid a trap for the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister laid one for the Leader of the Opposition, and the Prime Minister has caught his bird.” Forbes remained as Prime Minister but had to sacrifice some United colleagues to Reform, which took the most important portfolios.

The new ministry was faced with an economic crisis, and its record remains a matter of historical controversy. It is agreed that its constructive achievements were the work of Coates and his advisers, and that Forbes was supervisor rather than leader. He was not the man to devise bold, imaginative policies, and his chief function was to act as political shield for orthodox and unpopular policies of deflation. His inflexibility both surprised and infuriated Labour members who had not expected such flintiness in the mild and friendly Forbes. Nor did they expect that the old Liberal of Lyttelton and Cheviot would strike down the twin pillars of Liberalism – the graduated land tax and compulsory arbitration. Forbes attended the World Economic Conference in 1933, and the Dominion Prime Ministers' Meeting in 1935. His conservative imperialism was of the order of Bell and Coates. He went to the country in 1935 as leader of the National Political Federation. A crushing electoral defeat, which reduced his party from 51 to 19, was widely interpreted as a vote against Forbes and Coates, the two leaders, and the symbols of depression government. Forbes took his place as Leader of the Opposition in 1936. There was pressure in the National Party (formed in May 1936) to choose a new leader, and Forbes resigned at the end of the session (October). Adam Hamilton defeated C. A. Wilkinson, candidate of the ex-United group. Forbes then retired into the background, though he stood once more in 1938.

Forbes died at his home, Crystal Brook, Cheviot, on 17 May 1947. His name is honoured in the George Forbes Memorial Library at Lincoln Agricultural College, Canterbury.

Forbes's career to 1928 was that of a politician of the second rank with less than average luck. In a party other than Liberal, he might have enjoyed some years of junior Cabinet rank. Like Massey, he was prepared for leadership by a long period as party whip, but Massey's ship sailed with an electoral tide, while Forbes's was left almost high and dry. A unique set of circumstances transmuted the leader of a party in decline into the head of a State in crisis. Historians have expressed wonderment and even derision at the change, but Forbes possessed some of the necessary attributes of a leader of government. Genial, conciliatory, and straightforward, he earned the trust and liking of his colleagues. As political halfback behind a beaten pack, he was thoroughly hardened to going down in the face of dangerous rushes, and revealed his greatest talent for defence in 1932–35. Fraser paid tribute to his rare debating skill, to his ability in gauging the feeling of the House, and to his humour and tremendous memory. Though not possessing Massey's great industry, Forbes had a good deal of his skill in summing up the issues in a situation. Forbes's reputation still lies in the shadow of the depression. As “Honest George” he was held up in 1931 as a kind of New Zealand Stanley Baldwin, but the succeeding years rather harshly tarnished this image of courageous integrity into one of short-sighted stubborness. Forbes was neither as good as he was painted in 1931, nor as bad as his enemies made him out to be in 1935. New Zealand in those years needed a wise political general: Forbes was only a brave one, promoted by default. He would have deserved better of his country as the defender of wise but unpopular policies, but many of those over which he presided were both unwise and unpopular.

by William James Gardner, M.A., Senior Lecturer, History Department, University of Canterbury.

• New Zealand, Beaglehole, J. C. (1936)
• New Zealand Parliamentary Debates, Vol. 276 (1947) (Obits)
• Press (Christchurch), 19 May 1947 (Obit)
• Evening Post, 19 May 1947 (Obit)
• New Zealand Herald, 19 May 1947 (Obit)
• Otago Daily Times, 19 May 1947 (Obit)
• Greymouth Evening Star, 19 May 1947 (Obit).

(Cypselurus lineatus).

This, the largest of our flying fishes, grows to 15 in. in length and is generally distributed in East Coast waters from the Bay of Plenty northwards. The colour is dark steely-blue on top and lighter below. The body resembles that of a mullet except for the so-called wings, which are greatly enlarged membranous fins. These enable the fish to accomplish planing flights of up to 100 yds at speeds of between 20 and 30 miles an hour. The reason for these flights is to elude fast-swimming predacious fish.

by Arthur William Baden Powell, Assistant Director, Auckland Institute and Museum.

Flounder or flatfish are represented in New Zealand by several species of Rhombosolea and these are much in demand on account of their excellent flavour and delicate texture. The species commonly marketed are the “yellow belly”, leporina, from mud flats and estuaries, and the “green back”, tapirina, which is known up to 20 in. in length and frequents both shallow and deep waters either in harbours or off the open coast. The Maori name for a flounder is patiki. Thirteen species of flatfishes are known from New Zealand waters, and these include such species as soles, turbots, and megrims. The soles are distinguished by the fins extending almost all the way around the body, the turbot by its large size and thick body, and the megrim by its extreme thinness, which renders it unsuitable as a marketable fish. The megrim is especially abundant in the big lagoon at Chatham Island.

by Arthur William Baden Powell, Assistant Director, Auckland Institute and Museum.

The Wildlife Branch of the Department of Internal Affairs was established in 1945 to deal with all problems concerned with wildlife. Two of its functions are the preservation of native birds, and the conservation and management of stocks of game birds. The Wildlife Act of 1953 marked a great forward step in administration. Close liaison was established between the Wildlife Branch and the Freshwater Fisheries Section of the Marine Department, as it was realised that the control of wildlife was a cooperative venture. At the same time the Department of Agriculture was given authority over the importation of all mammals, birds, and plants, in efforts to regulate the entry of pests. In 1956 the Forest Service was given control over deer, opossums, and other browsing animals. The Rabbit Destruction Council works through various rabbit boards, and the Animal Ecology Division carries out research. The Forest and Bird Society are active in all problems concerning preservation of flora and fauna.

The Wildlife Branch has carried on a policy of conservation, has exterminated goats, pigs, and sheep from various islands, and has planted native trees to speed up regeneration (as on Stephens Island, the haunt of the tuatara). With the cooperation of the Forest Service a portion of the Mount Bruce reserve, near Masterton, is being developed as a station for research on native birds. Here were reared the chicks of the Notornis brought from Takahe Valley, Te Anau, a species long thought to be extinct. It is the function of the Wildlife Branch to consider conflicting interests of sportsman, farmer, and naturalist, to stimulate interest in the conservation of natural resources, and to endeavour to obtain cooperation on all problems connected with the preservation of our indigenous flora and fauna.

by Olive Rita Croker, M.A., Botanist, Wellington.

Besides the national parks scenic reserves, and domains which form habitats where native flora and fauna have a chance of survival, by 1962 twenty-eight reserves, with a total area of nearly 450,000 acres, had been set aside for the special purpose of preservation of flora and fauna, by the Department of Lands and Survey which retains control of access by the public. These comprise mainly off-shore and outlying islands, with the recent addition of Snares, Bounty, and Antipodes Islands which are ideal sanctuaries for sea birds and marine mammals. Sub-Antarctic Islands are now under this control and are uninhabited, with the exception of Campbell Island where there is a meteorological station. A study of the Chatham Island group, especially of Rangatira Island (now a reserve) has shown that, where previously most of the vegetation has been destroyed by sheep, regeneration of the former plant covering is now taking place. Caretakers at these sanctuaries report on the numbers and species of birds as well as growth of plants. Visitors are allowed only by special permit, and are usually persons who are keen naturalists. On Kapiti Island a certain amount of recent planting has resulted in good cover and food supply for the birds.

Little Barrier Island, in the Hauraki Gulf, is an area of nearly 7,000 acres where tuis, parakeets, kakas, and stitch birds are common. Kiwis and even tuataras, sea birds on the coast, and many insects live unmolested. Though most sanctuaries are islands there are important mainland areas: at Cape Kidnappers, Hawke's Bay, there are 32 acres set aside as a gannet colony; and the white heron colony at Waitangiroto, South Westland, is an area of nearly 2,000 acres where herons and spoonbills have been successfully hatched and reared.

An area of approximately 150 acres at Wilton was purchased by the Government in 1907 and proclaimed a scenic reserve, the area in 1918 being vested in the Wellington City Council. In 1927, largely at the instigation of Cockayne and J. G. Mackenzie, then Director of Parks, it was set aside as a reserve for the planting of as complete a collection as possible of the indigenous plants of the New Zealand Botanical Region, and for the protection and improvement of the forest already there. Known today as the Otari Open Air Plant Museum, this area now includes plants brought from all over New Zealand. These are all clearly labelled with reference to a register giving particulars of each plant. The establishment of the fine rock garden at the main entrance to Otari has been the work of W. B. Brockie. Hundreds of species have been collected, or sent in by enthusiasts, from hills and alpine regions. Here are to be found Raoulia (vegetable sheep), the sweet-scented Myosotis traversii, the tiny white Pimelia prostrata, the pygmy pine (Dacrydium laxifolium), and many species of Hebe and other genera.

In an effort to curb to some extent this spoliation of the landscape, the Scenery Preservation Act was passed in 1903, by which three islands were set apart for the preservation of birds and plants: Little Barrier in the north, Resolution in the south, and Kapiti to cover the central districts. Since then, however, much greater destruction has been caused by deer, goats, opossums – animals introduced for sport and other reasons. To offset this there has been agitation from a persistent few to preserve more of our native forests, as, for instance, in the fencing off of a large area by Guthrie Smith at Tutira.

Leonard Cockayne was an ardent advocate of the setting aside of further areas for the preservation of plants and birds, and in his detailed reports on plants in many areas he constantly urged the adoption of preventive measures. He advocated the growing of native plants in public and private gardens and showed what could be done in his large garden of 4 acres at New Brighton, Christchurch, and, later, in the area at Wilton, Wellington, which has since become well known as the Otari Plant Museum, a living monument to the memory of this great man. Though there are now 28 sanctuaries supervised by the Department of Lands and Survey, as well as many municipal and private parks and areas set aside where the public are asked not to destroy flora or fauna, there is still much destruction occurring outside these areas, either as a sacrifice to the cause of progress, or as the result of depredations of deer and opossums and other feral animals.

The indigenous vegetation of New Zealand is considered to be unique as it consists of a very large number of endemic species. It is fortunate that on the early voyages of discovery there were men who were keenly interested in plants. On his first voyage Captain Cook was accompanied by Joseph Banks, who made the voyage for the purpose of observing the plants of new countries, and had spent many thousands of pounds of his own money on equipment and assistants. Also on Cook's other voyages, as on the voyages of d'Urville and others, were men who collected and described the plants they found. We are fortunate that so many surveyors and geologists of this early period were keen botanists. Before long there appeared comprehensive descriptions of the plants of New Zealand, and at Kew Gardens was established a very extensive herbarium of the specimens they collected. Since then there have been many changes in the vegetative pattern. The original vegetation had flourished free from the depredations of mammals but the arrival of the European settler saw the introduction of domestic animals, many of which escaped to the bush and became feral. They fed on native plants and trampled the undergrowth. Further changes took place with the destructive burning of the bush, large-scale felling of trees for timber, and clearing the land for farming.

In our forests there were very great numbers of birds which were disturbed by the coming of man, both Maori and European. The introduction of rats, stoats, weasels, and cats has greatly reduced the numbers of birds, with the result that some species have become extinct or almost so. The armies of rabbits which for a time threatened to overrun the country have changed the aspect of vegetation in many areas. Moas have disappeared, and the kiwi (Apteryx), the kakapo (Strigops), the takahe (Notornis), the flightless birds, are now seldom found. The tui (Prosthemadera) with its bell-like notes; the huia with the long curved bill of the female; the kea, accused of killing sheep, and the wry-billed plover are in some districts in danger of extinction. So in a less noticeable way are many of the native plants.

Nelson Area

Although the flora of the Southern Alps is much better known than that of any other parts of the South Island some differences are seen in northern areas on the Dun Mountain in Nelson and the Kaikoura Ranges.

The Dun Mountain is part of the “Mineral Belt”, the rocks of which are peridotite and serpentine. A luxuriant forest of southern beech suddenly ceases on the serpentine and is replaced by tall tussock grassland and short, stunted trees. That there are differences in the soil is shown by the growth of trees such as the broadleaf (Griselinia littoralis) and southern beech (Nothofagus fusca). The ground is stony and vegetation is sparse. Cassinia vauvilliersii (mountain cottonwood); the tangled woody branches of Hymenanthera dentata; a grass tree, Dracophyllum rosmarinifolium; all appear to be able to live in these dry conditions. Of smaller plants are the prostrate shrubby Pimelia suteri, the yellow forget-me-not Myosotis monroi, and a rosette plant Nototholapsi australe, similar to the “penwiper” plant of the shingle slips.

In the Kaikoura Mountains three species of Heli-chrysum are common: H. microphyllum, H. selago, and H. coralloides. Geum uniflorum and G. avens are found in pockets of peaty soil among rocks. The yellow-flowered Ranunculus lobulatus is known as the “Kaikoura buttercup”. There are many parts of these mountains which have not been explored from a botanical point of view. On screes in these northern parts of the South Island is the dwarf succulent, with its dark leaves, Wahlenbergia cartilaginea, seldom found elsewhere; also Hebe epacridea, H. pinguifolia, and H. decumbens.

The Southern Alps

In the South Island ecological factors are much more apparent than in the north, and there is a marked difference between the vegetation growing on the eastern and western sides of the Southern Alps. On the former, the rocks in the main break easily, hence the many barren screes. It is probable that the eastern slopes may have been covered by forest, later destroyed by fires both by Maoris and early Europeans. Sheep and cattle have no doubt destroyed other vegetation. The alpine vegetation on the western side has changed but little. There is still the luxuriant rain forest, with the beech forest further south. The tree limit varies but in the Southern Alps the forest reaches to over 4,000 ft; above this are the snow tussocks and the herbfields. Flowering plants have been recorded at 9,000 ft, and in sheltered crevices have been found Hebe haastii, Celmisia discolor, and Ranunculus sericophyllus and, above Lake Hawea, Raoulia youngii. It is difficult to find these plants among the shifting stones at these great heights as the general colouring blends with that of their surroundings. Two plants of matted growth-form and tiny leaves are Donatia novae zealandiae, found where there is trickling water, and Phyllachne clavigera both growing in places where it would seem plants could not live. At lower levels are other species of Phyllachne, often covered with masses of snow-white flowers. Hectorella caespitosa is a perennial dwarf shrub of cushion habit found in high altitudes from Arthur's Pass southward, and of similar distribution is Parehebe birleyi, which grows on exposed crags at very great heights. Closely related to the Hebes is Pygmea, two species of which are found in high altitudes. P. pulvinaris forms very small, grey-green rounded cushions in the northern parts of the Southern Alps. It flowers as the snow retreats, at 4,500 ft in November, but later in the season at a much higher altitude. P. tetragona has a more open habit of matted woody branches and large flowers and is found on barren stony summits towards the south.

Mountain Screes

Among the shifting mass of stones on steep slopes it is amazing that plants manage to survive; these have long rhizomes penetrating to damp spots, and succulent leaves covered by hairs. The individual plants are widely scattered but it is interesting to note that of nine species recorded, each belongs not only to a separate genus but also to a distinct family, quite unrelated to the others, though most of the genera are represented by other species in the surrounding country. These species are: Stellaria roughii (Cary-ophyllaceae), Ranunculus haastii (Ranunculaceae), Anistome carnosula (Umbelliferae), Acaena glabra (Rosaceae), Notothalpsi rosulatum (Cruciferae), Cotula atrata (Compositae), Epilobium pycnostachyum (Ona-graceae), Lobelia roughii (Lobeliaceae), and Poa sclerophylla (Gramineae). There are other plants which grow on screes but are not confined to them, being found also between and on rocky crags. Among such plants are Craspedia incana, which appears as a white mass with yellow flowers, Myosotis traversii, Hebe epacridea, and Senecio glaucophyllus; species of Haastia grow at the edges of screes but their roots penetrate firmer substratum. Shingle gives place to more stable substratum, sometimes called a fell-field, where growth-forms are prostrate shrubs, cushion and rosette plants, semi-woody thick stemmed shrubs, and tussock grasses. Among such plants are several species of Celmisia – C. laricifolia, C. discolor, C. viscosa, C. sinclarii, C. haastii; some species of Dracophyllum, Hebe pinguifolia, and similar species of this large genus; broad green mats of Ourisia caespitosa; the creeping mountain foxglove; large cushions of Raoulia grandiflora; and the mountain totara, Podocarpus nivalis. On the western side of the Southern Alps and on mountains of the North Island a similar area with much more dense vegetation is known as a herbfield. There the conditions are better and there is a more plentiful supply of water; the plant covering is thicker and the growth more luxuriant. In addition to the foxglove, buttercup, and bog celmisia of the Egmont herbfields, and the alpine astelia and edelweiss of the Tararua-Ruahine mountains, the South Island herbfields have the beautiful Ranunculus lyallii, often acres of it which when in full bloom is a glorious sight. There are more species of Celmisia and Ourisia with showy flowers. Further to the south the species are slightly different but the main types still flourish.

Sub-alpine Scrub and Bog Species

Between the herb fields and the forest are belts of sub-alpine scrub which often becomes impenetrable owing to the interlacing branches of shrubs and stunted trees. There are great numbers of species found in various plant associations and these belong mainly to the genera: Hebe, Olearia, Senecio, Nothopanax, Dracophyllum, and Aciphylla, along with manuka, tussock grasses, bracken fern, and stunted beech trees. Cushion and matted forms of growth of Raoulia and Haastia, as well as of other plants, are common on slopes exposed to the wind.

On some mountain slopes are areas of bog. In these and in areas of peat, at edges of streams and similar places, are Donatia novae-zelandiae, Senecio lyallii, species of Ranunculus, Carex and Drosera, and cushions of Celmisia argentea. A very common plant in damp peaty soils, at moderate altitudes, is the Maori onion, Chrysobactron hookeri, which produces masses of yellow flowers. This, like the two Cassinias sometimes found in sub-alpine regions, C. leptophylla and C. vauvilliersii (cottonwoods or tauhinu), is not attractive to sheep which avoid also the wiry stems of Cyathodes spp., common among the tussock and providing a patch of colour when covered by white and red berries unusually large for the size of the flowers. In similar places are some of the smallest Coprosmas, C. petriei and C. pumila, forming mats which bear tiny, almost colourless, unisexual flowers but bright orange-red berries. On the edges of moraines and in river beds the willow-herb, Epilobium, is represented by E. microphyllum, E. tenuipes, E. erubescens, and E. melanocaulon. Here also are Muehlenbeckia axillaris, Discaria toumatou, Helichrysum microphyllum, H. selago, H. coralloides, Craspedia minor, and a few species of yellow-flowered forget-me-not (Myosotis). Cyathodes fasciculata mingimingi), C. fraseri, and C. empetrifolia are found in rocky places, together with Euphrasia monroi, E. revoluta, E. petrei, the profuse-flowering tiny Pimelia prostrata (New Zealand daphne), the large, very hardy, and more erect species, P. traversii, and P. aridula, particularly common in Marlborough and Otago.

Southernmost Regions

Lacking the long backbone of the Southern Alps, the ecological factors in areas of Otago, Southland, Fiordland, and Stewart Island are somewhat different, resulting in different plant associations and in each of these areas are a few species confined to a particular locality. The genera with which we are familiar are represented in these southern parts by different species. For example, here are Ourisia macrocarpa, O. caespitosa, and O. gracilis (var.), and in Fiordland and Stewart Island is found O. sessilifolia.

In the dry alpine areas of North Otago are certain species seldom found elsewhere: Acaena buchananii, Hebe buchananii (with thick bluish-green leaves), Carmichaelia petriei, and two other unusual species of Carmichaelia. This is a barren-looking area as there is no forest, only a few trees in sheltered gullies, and large areas are covered by snow grass. Much damage has been done in these parts by rabbits. This area merges into Southland where localities with a southerly aspect receive some heavy rains. Most of this area was covered by forest, mainly of rimu, kamahi, and some southern rata (Metrosideros lucida), with tall tussock and some hebes. There are also extensive sphagnum bogs.

Cushions of Pygmea myosotoides, P. thomsonii, and P. tetragona are common. Celmisias in these southern areas are Celmisia hookerii, C. thomsonii, C. coriacea, and C. verbascifolia; while of Hebes those of southern distribution are H. laingii, H. haastii, and Parahebe canescens. These extend to Stewart Island. Species found only in South Otago are H. poppewellii, H. annulata, and Celmisia poppewellii. The South Otago area has many species in common with Fiordland such as Ranunculus buchananii, Aciphylla pinnatifida, Dracophyllum menziesii. In Fiordland there are extensive beech forests of Nothofagus fusca and N. menziesii, and two buttercups not found elsewhere, Ranunculus matthewsii and R. baughanii, also an abundance of R. buchananii. The genera Ourisia, Olearia, Celmisia, and Senecio are each represented by local species. Putaputaweta (Carpodetus serratus), and Olearia oporima, O. angustifolia, and O. avicenniaefolia are common about Bluff and Stewart Island. Though there is little ground rising above 3,000 ft in altitude, much of the vegetation of Stewart Island is of the high-mountain type, such as Celmisia argentea, Donatia novae zelandiae, and Senecio lyallii.

In the southern alpine areas snow lies long. Cold rain and gales and cloudy days are frequent and these conditions are reflected in the vegetation; plants which are high-mountain plants further north are here found at much lower levels. Many species are seen growing under a great variety of conditions, and so many variations of growth form are found that the classification and identification of species and varieties are difficult. But from the viewpoint of the New Zealand botanist, the flowers of the mountains are both a delight and a rewarding study.

by Olive Rita Croker, M.A., Botanist, Wellington.

• Rock Garden Plants of the Southern Alps, Phillipson, W. R. and Hearn, D. (1962)
• The Flora of Mount Cook, Arnold Wall (1925)
• New Zealand Plants and their Story, Cockayne, L. (1927)
• Plants of New Zealand, Laing, R. M. and Blackwell, E. W., 3rd ed. (1927)
• Manual of New Zealand Flora, Cheeseman, T. F. (1906)
• New Zealand Flora, Allan, H. H. (1961).