Matai, Black pine
Podocarpus spicatus

Family: Podocarpaceae

What it is like

A large tree. It grows to 25 m tall. The trunk is straight. The bark is dark greyish-brown. The leaves are bright green, but can be dark bluish-green in mature trees. The leaves are narrow. They are 1.5 cm long and grow together thickly on the branch. Male flowers or catkins grow in spikes about 5 cm long. The fruit grow the following year. The fruit is a purple-black fleshy fruit with a hard stone inside.

Where it is found

It is a temperate plant.

Countries/locations it is found in

New Zealand (country/location of origin)

How it is used for food

The fruit are eaten. The sap is drunk. The young shoots and sap are used for a drink like spruce beer.

Edible parts

Shoots, fruit, sap

How it is grown

Trees mature in 300-600 years.

Its other names

Local names

Synonyms

Podocarpus spicata R.Br.; Prumnopitys taxifolia;