EDITORIAL

The native forest on Motutapu, planted by thousands of volunteers over the past twenty-five years, is quickly maturing and taking on a life of its own. Lots of natural regeneration is occurring amongst the plantings in the Home Bay Forest. Pioneer species such as kawakawa, mahoe, ti kouka, whau, mapou, houpara, puahou and karamu, with the help of birds, are spreading throughout the pioneer bush which is now looking very natural and is about 6 metres high in many places. Several different species of ferns are also spreading of their own accord through the bush.

In addition there is a great deal of natural regeneration of final phase or canopy trees from the few original forest remnants. Rewarewa, kohekohe, tawapou, karaka, kowhai, mangeao, totara, and puriri seedlings are popping up everywhere. There are carpets of karaka seedlings near original karaka trees and thickets of tawapou saplings elsewhere, both spread by kereru.

All this natural regeneration is very useful but what is really significant is that many of the final phase trees that were planted over the last twenty-five years, are starting to fruit. Planted puriri and rewarewa have been fruiting for some time but more recently karaka, kohekohe, kowhai, and taraire have been producing fruit and their seedlings are being found in various places in the volunteer forest.

Lately some rarer canopy species have started to fruit. Swamp maire fruit was collected last year and again more recently. This fruit is an excellent source of sustenance for birds like kereru when other food is scarce. Tree fuchsia, with its flowers rich in nectar and visited by honey-eating birds, tui, bellbird and silvereye, has also started fruiting. Bellbird, kereru, whitehead and tui like to feed on the berries which have lots of tiny seeds. Some recently planted putaputaweta trees flowered in the spring. Their black fruit will produce food for the birds in summer. Pukatea flowered in the springtime too. In addition, the fruit of several, large nikau is being spread by kereru who feast on this preferred food source.

Started by the helping hand of volunteers we are now seeing regenerating indigenous forest on Motutapu. The native planting is growing into a diverse fruiting forest providing habitat and year-round sustenance for birds, invertebrates and reptiles. The wildlife is playing a vital role in the regeneration of the indigenous forest by fertilising flowers and spreading seed. It is exciting and rewarding that gradually the volunteer plantings are becoming self-sustaining like a natural forest.