This year we got a surprise when Wellington City Council's Berhampore plans nursery supplied 10 large Northern Rata (Meterosideros robusta) with our usual order of 500 plants.
The 2023 plant order from the Berhampore Nursery with 500 trees to be planted this June and August.
Rata used to be fairly common around Wellington, especially on sunny slopes. It often grows as an epiphyte - that's a tree that grows on another tree! But it can start life on the ground so long as it doesn't get shaded out by other faster-growing trees. We have plenty of sunny, steep slopes where we can plant them, with our June planting sessions focusing on the downhill side of Moemoea track.
Rata produces crimson coloured flowers in summer, similar to its cousin the Pohutukawa (which is not native to Wellington). The flowers are an important food source for nectar-feeding birds such as kaka, tui and korimako, as well as for native butterflies and geckos.
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These rata have already started producing flowers and seeds before they have even been planted!