Mystery pine joins the known

Have you ever wondered where new cultivars come from and how they get a name?

An unnamed pine located in the Ashburton Domain caught the interest of a conifer collector in the United States who had spotted the photo of the tree in a conifer tree book stating the photo was taken in ‘‘Canterbury, New Zealand’’. I was working at Ashburton District Council at the time and managed to get the book from the National Library Service to confirm the specific pine at the Ashburton Domain.

With further research I discovered the tree was a seedling from the former Ministry of Works nursery in Christchurch. The seed was collected at Lake Coleridge Coniferous Arboretum, and the late Ian Bonish who at the time was the parks superintendent at Ashburton Domain picked it out as different among a line of seedlings and planted it. Live material was then passed to Blue Mountain Nurseries to propagate. The attraction of the tree is at the base of each needle is a yellow flare variegation which becomes more prominent on new needles, giving the impression that the tree has a halo. As it was unique, Blue Mountain Nursery gave it the name Pinus patula ‘Dragon Eye’.

The Dunedin Botanic Garden planted one of these fine species around 2002 and yes, ours is named to ensure future interested collectors have an easier time finding out what the species is. You will find Pinus patula ‘Dragon Eye’ tucked in near the lower garden carpark entrance to the garden. — David Askin, Teien collection curator