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Tree Information x

Identifier: WTR/G2059
Tree Type: Group
Registered By: Lloyd, M.
Registration Category: General tree/s
General Notes:
This group of five Cook pines, an uncommon tree in New Zealand, are found interspersed among Oriental Bay’s iconic Norfolk Island pines, the first of which were planted in 1921 [1]. The Wellington City Council has all the trees along Oriental Parade in its register of protected trees, including the Cook pines, but has them incorrectly listed as Araucaria heterophylla. A. columnaris are distinguishable from their close relative by the narrowness of the branches, the foliage appearing in whorls, and their most distinguishing feature, a noticeable lean. Large sample research has shown that in over 90% of cases for trees in the southern hemisphere there is a distinct lean to the north [2], with less than 9% of trees leaning in a different direction. When seen against the perpendicular and pyramidal Norfolk Island pines the lean is very noticeable (see the photos). In this group of five, three definitely show a north lean, one definitely has a south lean, and one is a mixture of the two showing a corkscrew like form. There is no accepted explanation for this lean phenomenon, it being rare amongst trees, and even the 13 other araucarians likewise endemic to New Caledonia do not display the same lean pattern [2]. The five trees seem to be of a similar age, nowhere near as old as the 103 year old Norfolk Island pines [Lloyd, M., 2025].

References
1. ‘Oriental Bay Parade’, Evening Post, 20 April 1921, p. 6.
2. J. Johns et al. 2017, 'Worldwide hemisphere-dependent lean in Cook pines', Ecology 98(9): 2482-2484.

Group Details

Group Type: Single species
Feature Tree Genus: Araucaria
Feature Tree Species: columnaris
Feature Tree Common Names: Cook pine, New Caledonia pine
QE II Covenanted: No
NZ Indigenous Bush type: Default Value
Actual Planting Date: actual date not specified
Approx. Planting Date: not known
e.g. circa. 1860
Current Age: not known years
Tree Health Description: very good
Local Protection Status: Yes
Tree Present: Yes
Number of Trees: 5
Area Covered: (none)
Group of Tree Type: Amenity Planting

Observations

Date Observer Action
13 Apr 2025 Lloyd, M.

Location

Lat/Long: -41.28811897560062 / 174.79959863424298
Location Name: Oriental Bay
Address: Oriental Parade
Suburb: Oriental Bay
City/Town: Wellington
Region: Wellington
Location Description: The 5 trees are interspersed within the row of Norfolk Is. pines.
Public Accessibility: Public Walkway
Local Authority: Greater Wellington Regional Council

Images

Preview Credit Date
Michael Lloyd 04 Apr 2025
Michael Lloyd 04 Apr 2025
Michael Lloyd 04 Apr 2025
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