Kohia is in the genus Passiflora, along with more than 500 other species. Almost all are vines found in the tropics and subtropics. Passiflora includes the commercially cultivated passionfruit and the introduced and invasive banana passionfruit, which threatens indigenous ecosystems.
Kohia, Passiflora tetrandra, is the only passionfruit native to Aotearoa, and it is endemic. It grows naturally in forests from the Far North district to the middle of the South Island, climbing high into trees, the fruit providing food for birds but are also eaten by rats and possums.
Kohia can be a useful and attractive plant for the garden. Given reasonable soil and a cool root run, it will quickly form masses of glossy, dark green leaves. If you are looking for dense coverage, perhaps to screen a wall or clothe a fence, Kohia is ideal, a much better choice for this purpose than other native climbers such as Clematis or Parsonsia, which tend to concentrate most of their leafy growth and flowers at the top with bare stems below.
At the Botanic Garden in front of the propagation buildings on Lovelock Ave, wires on the slatted wooden screens support a variety of climbing New Zealand native plants. Passiflora has been by far the most successful of these, so much so that they require a yearly haircut to keep them in check. These curtains of green provide a lovely backdrop for the shrubs and trees in front and the bright orange autumn fruits stand out against the dark foliage.
Garden Life is produced by Dunedin Botanic Garden
For further information contact Kate Caldwell
