Pseudowintera

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Pseudowintera
Pseudowinteracolorata.jpg
Pseudowintera colorata
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Magnoliids
Order: Canellales
Family: Winteraceae
Genus: Pseudowintera
Dandy
Species

Pseudowintera is a genus of woody evergreen flowering trees and shrubs, part of family Winteraceae. The species of Pseudowintera are native to New Zealand. Winteraceae are magnoliids, associated with the humid Antarctic flora of the southern hemisphere. Horopito can be chewed for a hot, peppery taste. [2]

Contents

Cultivation

Horopito spreads naturally through regrowth on cleared land but may often be found in domestic gardens as a decorative plant. Planting for commercial purposes has begun in recent years. [4]

Pharmaceutical use

Horopito contains a substance called sesquiterpene dialdehyde polygodiali, otherwise known as polygodial that has a number of biological properties including antifungal, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antiallergic and insecticide effects. Polygodial has been tested as a very effective inhibitor of Candida albicans. [5] [6] Horopito was used traditionally by Maori for a variety of medicinal purposes including treatment of: fungal skin infection, stomach pain, diarrhoea and as an analgesic. Early European settlers to New Zealand also used horopito for medicinal purposes.

Culinary use

Horopito leaves are used in cooking in a variety of ways. Horopito is now being used as a seasoning in modern New Zealand cuisine. Typically the leaves are dried and then ground to form a powder. The powder may be used wherever black pepper is used and applied directly to meats, mixed with oils, used to make condiments (e.g. with mustard), in vinegars, biscuits and even ice-cream.[ citation needed ]

Related Research Articles

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<i>Magnolia grandiflora</i> Species of tree

Magnolia grandiflora, commonly known as the southern magnolia or bull bay, is a tree of the family Magnoliaceae native to the southeastern United States, from Virginia to central Florida, and west to East Texas. Reaching 27.5 m (90 ft) in height, it is a large, striking evergreen tree, with large dark green leaves up to 20 cm long and 12 cm wide, and large, white, fragrant flowers up to 30 cm (12 in) in diameter.

Winteraceae Family of flowering plants

Winteraceae is a primitive family of tropical trees and shrubs including 93 species in five genera. It is of particular interest because it is such a primitive angiosperm family, distantly related to Magnoliaceae, though it has a much more southern distribution. Plants in this family grow mostly in the southern hemisphere, and have been found in tropical to temperate climate regions of Malesia, Oceania, eastern Australia, New Zealand, Madagascar and the Neotropics, with most of the genera concentrated in Australasia and Malesia. The five genera, Takhtajania, Tasmannia, Drimys, Pseudowintera, and Zygogynum s.l. all have distinct geographic extant populations. Takhtajania includes a single species, T. perrieri, endemic only to Madagascar, Tasmannia has the largest distribution of genera in Winteraceae with species across the Philippines, Borneo, New Guinea, Eastern Australia, and Tasmannia, Drimys is found in the Neotropical realm, from southern Mexico to the subarctic forests of southern South America, Pseudowintera is found only in New Zealand, and Zygogynum has species in New Guinea and New Caledonia.

<i>Aristotelia serrata</i> Species of plant

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<i>Coprosma robusta</i> Species of tree

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<i>Dracophyllum</i> Genus of flowering plants

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<i>Buxus sempervirens</i> Species of flowering plants in the box family

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<i>Pseudowintera colorata</i> Species of shrub

Pseudowintera colorata, also known as mountain horopito or pepper tree, is a species of woody evergreen flowering trees and shrubs, part of family Winteraceae. The species is endemic to New Zealand. All Winteraceae are magnoliids, associated with the humid Antarctic flora of the southern hemisphere.

<i>Ligustrum vulgare</i> Species of flowering plant

Ligustrum vulgare is a species of Ligustrum native to central and southern Europe, north Africa and southwestern Asia, from Ireland and southwestern Sweden south to Morocco, and east to Poland and northwestern Iran.

Polygodial Chemical compound

Polygodial is chemical compound found in dorrigo pepper, mountain pepper, horopito, canelo, paracress, water-pepper, and Dendrodoris limbata.

<i>Archeria traversii</i> Species of flowering plant

Archeria traversii is a species of shrub in the family Ericaceae.

<i>Ascarina lucida</i> Species of tree

Ascarina lucida, commonly known as hutu is a species of small tree in the family Chloranthaceae. It is endemic to New Zealand, being common on the West Coast and Nelson regions of the South Island and more rarely found in the North Island. A typical plant association is within the Westland podocarp/broadleaf forests with common understory associates of Blechnum discolor, Pseudowintera colorata, Pseudopanax colensoi and Coprosma lucida. Most genus members are dioecious, producing unisexual male or female flowers on separate plants. Ascarina lucida, the only member of its genus to occur in New Zealand, is monoecious. It will grow to a height of 6m and can have a 30 cm trunk. The leaves which are in opposite pairs are simple, yellowish green in color, have a raised mid rib and are very similar to Laurelia novae-zelandiae. Their margins have prominent teeth which are dark colored at the tips. Ascarina lucida is now nearly extinct in the Taranaki region but was last reported in Oct 1969 at Mt Taranaki, near Pukeiti by Colin Ogle.

<i>Pseudowintera axillaris</i> Species of shrub

The Pseudowintera axillaris is a shrub like tree, endemic to New Zealand. They are members of the Winterace family and are known for their peppery taste, and glossy green leaves.

<i>Polygala myrtifolia</i> Species of shrub

Polygala myrtifolia, the myrtle-leaf milkwort, is an evergreen 2-4m tall South African shrub or small tree found along the southern and south-eastern coasts, from near Clanwilliam in the Western Cape to KwaZulu-Natal. It is a fast-growing pioneer plant, a typical fynbos component, and may be found on dunes, rocky places, along forest margins, beside streams, and in open grassland. It belongs to the milkwort family of Polygalaceae.

Pimelea traversii is a species of shrub in the family Thymelaeaceae. It is native to New Zealand. The specific epithet traversii is in honor of naturalist Henry H. Travers (1844-1928), son of William Thomas Locke Travers.

<i>Pseudowintera traversii</i> Species of flowering plant

Pseudowintera traversii, sometimes called Travers horopito, is a species of woody shrub in the family Winteraceae. The specific epithet traversii is in honor of naturalist Henry H. Travers (1844-1928), son of William Thomas Locke Travers.

P. traversii may refer to a two different species of shrub. The specific epithet traversii refers to someone with the surname 'Travers,' in these cases it's New Zealand naturalist Henry H. Travers (1844–1928).

<i>Dracophyllum traversii</i> Species of tree (mountain neinei)

Dracophyllum traversii, commonly known as mountain neinei, grass tree, and pineapple tree is a species of flowering plant in the heath family Ericaceae. It is a deciduous tree endemic to New Zealand. It reaches a height of 0.2–13 m (0.66–42.65 ft) and has leaves which form tufts at the end of its branches. It has a lifespan between 500 and 600 years.

<i>Dracophyllum elegantissimum</i> Species of flowering plant

Dracophyllum elegantissimum, commonly known as grass tree or slender dragon tree, is a flowering plant in the family Ericaceae. Endemic to New Zealand, it is found in the north of the South Island, in north-west Nelson.

References

  1. Heenan, P. B.; de Lange, P. J. (2006). "Pseudowintera insperata (Winteraceae), an overlooked and rare new species from northern New Zealand". New Zealand Journal of Botany. 44 (1): 89–98. doi:10.1080/0028825X.2006.9513008. ISSN   1175-8643. S2CID   84044658.
  2. "The Encyclopedia of New Zealand: Pepper trees: horopito and kawakawa".
  3. Gemmill, Chrissen; Clarkson, Bruce; Green, Allan; Beard, Catherine; Burns, Bruce; Holzapfel, Avi; Hicks, Brendan (1 March 2006). "Winteraceae". BIOL226C Flora of New Zealand. Hamilton, New Zealand: University of Waikato. Retrieved 6 February 2018. Pseudowintera traversii (Travers horopito) Compactly branched shrub up to 2m tall. Leaves are 2-2.5cm long, ovate-oblong, very thick and coriaceous, dull green above, bluish-green below. Flowers solitary or in pairs. Found only in N.W. Nelson growing on montane forest margins and scrub. Foliage of Pseudowintera traversii, note that the leaves are small and the branching is quite dense
  4. "Kaituna Farm". Archived from the original on 2012-11-09. Retrieved 2012-09-26.
  5. McCallion, R. F., A. L. Cole, J. R. L. Walker, J. W. Blunt, and M. H. G. Munro. 1982. Antibiotic compounds from New Zealand plants, II: polygodial, an anti-Candida agent from Pseudowintera colorata. Planta Med. 44:134-138
  6. Lee, S.H., Lee, J.R., Lunde, Kubo, I., In vitro antifungal susceptibilities of Candida albicans and other fungal pathogens to polygodial, a sesquiterpene dialdehyde. , 1999, Planta Medica 65, pp 204-208