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Kōrero: Fire and agriculture

Grasslands in 1840 and 2002

  • 1840

    1840
  • 2002

    2002

European farming methods transformed the vegetation of New Zealand. Much of the North Island’s forest and fernlands have been replaced by non-native grasses and legumes. In the South Island, burning and grazing created the tussock grasslands that varied in type according to altitude, rainfall and soil. These were later transformed by cultivation, or modified by oversowing with non-native grasses and clovers.

Te whakamahi i tēnei tūemi

Te Ara - The Encyclopedia of New Zealand

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Me pēnei te tohu i te whārang

Robert Peden, Fire and agriculture – South Island sheep runs: tussock and scrub, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/mi/interactive/15209/grasslands-in-1840-and-2002 (accessed 4 June 2026).

He kōrero nā Robert Peden, i tāngia i te 1 March 2009.