Coprosma robusta, commonly known as karamà «, is a flowering plant in the family Rubiaceae that is endemic to New Zealand. It can survive in many climates, but is most commonly found in coastal areas, lowland forests, or shrublands. Karamà « can grow to be around tall, and grow leaves up to long. Karamà « is used for a variety of purposes in human culture. The fruit that karamà « produces can be eaten, and the shoots of karamà « are sometimes used for medical purposes.
Karamà « is a large bushy shrub that grows up to tall. Branches are stout with no hair. Domatia (small holes on the back of the leaf at the intersection of veins) and stipules are significant characteristic features of Coprosmas. Karamà « stipules are black, hairless and obtuse with slightly serrated margin that are united at the base
The glossy leaves of karamà « range from long, with elliptic-oblong shape and acute or obtuse leaf apex and with obvious veins. Leaves are dark green on the blade and light green on the back, are thick, and the midrib is not raised on the upper surface.
Flowers are small and white, axillary, dense, have four lobes and have a different appearance in male and females. Male flowers are dense, glomerules with a campanulate shaped corolla and have four stamens; female flowers are compound with a tubular shaped corolla. Stigmas are obvious. The best flowering period is between August and September.
Fruit are often dark orange-red to red, oblong to narrow ovate drups. The best fruiting period is between April and May.
The species was one of the first Coprosma species that were collected by Joseph Banks during Cook's voyage to New Zealand, who used the name Pelaphia lata in his notes. The species was first formally described by French naval surgeon ÃÂtienne Raoul in 1844.
The species epithet robusta means strong or sturdy. The MÃÂori language name karamà « has unclear etymological origins, but may be linked to the word kakara (scent).
Karamà « is endemic to New Zealand. However, it is gradually becoming naturalised in areas of the south-east coast of Australia such as Victoria and Tasmania and has been rated as a weed threat there.
It is widely distributed across New Zealand in both the North and South Islands. On the Chatham Islands between Waitangi and Owenga, there is a small area where karamà « has become naturalised. They can often be observed naturally in lowland forest. Judging from the distribution map on New Zealand Plant Observation, the distribution of karamà « increases with the differentiation in lower altitude which means more karamà « in the North Island.
In Canterbury, karamà « is found on Banks Peninsula in fragments of regenerating native bush and bush remnants. Additionally it is also found in forest margins and edges of the montane and lowland forests in the southern alps at the start of the Canterbury planes. Karamà « can also be found in the urban environment of many Christchurch city green spaces, such as Riccarton Bush.
Karamà « can be widely found near coastal, lowland and lower montane areas. It can also grow within shrub lands and expansive areas within dense trees such as lowland forest. However, the population decreases in lowland forest such as beech and kahikatea forests. Normally karamà « is a hardy plant that can adapt to infertile soils, poorly drained and exposed lands. It can also grow in a large range of altitude varying from under full sun to shady, windy and frosty circumstances.
In New Zealand the flowering season of karamà « is from winter (approximately from July) to summer (ends around December). Male and female flowers are separated which is called dioecious. Seeds mature by about April and start germinating soon afterwards and doesn't leave a long lasting seed bank.
The seed is largely dispersed by birds which eat the fruit. Due to its hardy characteristics, it is easy growing from seed even on open sites. Again, as mentioned before, the best season for C. robusta fruiting is between April and May. It would finally grow up to six meters high and will normally act as a secondary succession plant during this process.
Karamà « is an extremely hardy plant that can grow in a large range of environmental conditions from full sun to shady, from dry to moist, and can tolerate frost and wind. The mature fruit can endure a minimum temperature to and the leaves can endure a minimum temperature before they get irretrievably damaged. It grows best in a moist soil which is not too acid, although they have the ability to live in poor soils. They can also be found in coastal conditions, lowland scrub, swamps and rock associations.
Karamà « is noted for its quick bushy growth and for this reason is commonly cultivated and frequently used for native bush regeneration projects.
Herbivorous mammals such as goats (Capra hircus) and deer (Cervus elaphus) have a severe impact on karamà «, and hares (Lepus timidus) and rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) eat the seedlings.(Brockie, 1992). Additional consumers of karamà « are Batracomorphus, Batracomorphus adventitiosus, leafhoppers and Membracoidea.
Birds which disperse karamà « seeds include native bellbirds (Anthornis melanura) and tà «Ã« (Prosthemadera novaeseelandiae), indigenous silvereyes (Zosterops lateralis), and introduced blackbirds (Turdus merula), and song thrushes (Turdus philomelos). Seeds can be dispersed a long way and into areas of more mature forest. According to the database in Encyclopedia of Life, additional species that interact karau are Acalitus, Acalitus cottieri, Eriophyid mites, European greenfinch, and goldfinches.
Karamà « and mycorrhizal fungi can make a symbiotic mutualism in roots system. Because mycorrhizal fungi can supply water and nutrients to the plant. Experiments with karamà « shows its growth is assisted by the presence of mychorrhizal fungi assuming there is sufficient phosphorus in the soil.
Karamà « will sometimes act as a host plant to support other plants including podocarp, totara and yellow-wood family.
In recent years, there is a report showing the sex ratio of karamà « in the Riccarton Bush in Christchurch. The sex ratio of population of is female-biased with 70% of the flowering plants being female. This female-biased ratio differs from the few other counts of sex ratios in New Zealand species of Coprosma. That could be influenced by a number of factors, including the pollen and seed fecundity of the two sexes and factors affecting their sexual maturity and mortality. That is interesting because karamà « is often male-biased in sex ratios. This differential survival of the sexes in long-lived species is usually attributed to differences in reproductive effort between male and female plants. In particular, the energy cost of producing ovules and fruit in female plants is greater than the cost of male flowers producing pollen. Female-biased sex ratios also occur as a consequence of differential fertilization and genetic differentiation of sex chromosomes.
Karamà « is often associated with spirituality in traditional MÃÂori culture, and is often a feature of birthing ceremonies and funerary rites. Baptists used the leaves in a ceremony and green karamà « branches will be held by tohunga in tohi for newly born babies.
The plant is used in traditional RongoÃÂ medicinal practices. Juvenile shoots can be applied to release inflammation or bladder problems if boiled and then the liquid drunk. The leaves are believed by MÃÂori to have the ability to deal with kidney troubles and bark can be and used to treat stomachache and vomiting.
The mature berries of karamà « are a traditional MÃÂori food, and karamà « leaves can be used to line hÃÂngë pits to impart flavour into food. The berries have a bitter-sweet taste, and their flavour is highly variable across different individual plants.
Karamà « is rich in dying properties including alizarin and purpurin. Traditionally MÃÂori used it to dye flax (Phormium) fibers yellow. Sometimes leaves of karamà « were put on stones and dye the food and preserve them after a hÃÂngë.
Boiled karamà « leaves were used by early European settlers in New Zealand as a substitute for tea. In 1877, Coutts Crawford investigated the use of karamà « berries to create coffee.