Rhododendron of the Forgotten Highway
In a title that may conjure the vision of the same Asiatic mountain passes where many of the Rhododendron species were found, one might be disappointed that this concerns their occurrence in a central North Island farmland setting. Early European plant-hunter surnames were latinised and thrust into the taxonomy of the Rhododendron genus with such species as davidii, forrestii, fortunei and hookerii. Despite the translation of rhodo-dendron as rose-tree, they are members of the Ericaceae and more closely related to blueberries than roses. Heading past the rose which is the self-declared republic of Whangamōmona pub and passing infrequent van-lifers, you might find yourself in the bottom of Te Wera Valley.
The fifth of September was the perfect day that year for this flowering cluster of Rhododendron around a derelict farm-house. The flowers were just past their prime as many petals lay carpeting the ground in a vibrant pink swathe. Decades ago when the area was expanding with the construction of the railway, these trees would have been planted along the farms’ driveway cutting as ornamentals. Luckily, I caught this place at the right time as the old farmhouse has gone now. Many years of neglect, overnight stays of local birds, hooves and people had left the house punctured with holes and the excrement of limbed life.
Away from the crumpled cans of Woodstock and Bourbon, these Rhododendron wrestle orange branches from the ground and into neatly trimmed umbellate forms with the help of grazing animals. Their sunken existence in this hollow makes for a spectacular show, navigating the writhing branches and walking under this long pink cloud is akin to some strange colourful dream. Rusty farm equipment and barns have succumb to weight of these trees too, the shearing shed has grown a floral bucket-hat roof where the corrugated iron has failed. The plum tree in the front yard has become host to a healthy coat of Pyrossia elaeagnifolia (leather-leaf fern) and the passing Kererū who sit in its crown.
The case for exotic trees in New Zealand is sometimes made by encounters such as this. The passage of time often renders what would be a fairly domestic scene in farm and garden settings into a unique experience in the landscape. If trying to replicate the effect with native plants one might look to Fuchsia excorticata (Kotukutuku) or in cooler parts of the country Olearia ilicifolia (mountain holly). These will give similar branching structures, bark and dissimilarly beautiful flowers.
