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Pittosporum crassifolium

Common name:	Karo	Family:	Pittosporaceae
Author:	Banks.&Sol. ex A.Cunn.	Botanical references:	11, 44, 200
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	This plant contains saponins[153]. Saponins are found in many foods, such as some beans, and although they are fairly toxic to people they are poorly absorbed by the body and most pass straight through without any problem. They are also broken down if the food is thoroughly cooked for a long time. Saponins are much more toxic to some creatures, such as fish, and hunting tribes have traditionally put large quantities of them in streams, lakes etc in order to stupefy or kill the fish[K].
Range:	New Zealand. Naturalized in Britain in the Scilly Isles[17].
Habitat:	Forest margins and by streams on North and Kermadec Islands[44].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	0	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	0

Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Stiff-leaf Cheesewood [B], Stiffleaf Cheesewood [P],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	crassifolium = thick leaved;
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Rosales. Pittosporum family

Physical Characteristics

An evergreen shrub growing to 5m by 3m . It is hardy to zone 9. It is in leaf all year, in flower in May. The scented flowers are monoecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but both sexes can be found on the same plant). The plant is self-fertile. We rate it 0/5 for edibility and 0/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires dry or moist soil. The plant can tolerate maritime exposure.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Hedge, Woodland, Sunny Edge, Dappled Shade.

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

None known

Other Uses

Dye; Hedge; Soap; Soil stabilization; Wood.

A dark blue dye is obtained from the seeds[169].
The plant is a potential source of saponins. Saponins can be used to as a soap and, because of their bitter taste, they also have potential as a bird deterrent by spraying them over the plants. The bitterness can be easily removed by washing (or by the next rainfall!).
Very tolerant of pruning and maritime exposure, this plant can be grown as a protective hedge by the coast in mild maritime areas[11, 29, 49, 75].
The plant has an extensive root system and can be used for binding sandy soils, dunes etc[153].
Wood - very tough. Used for inlay[46, 61].

Cultivation details

Succeeds in any well-drained soil[182, 200], including dry soils, preferably in a sunny position[182] but also succeeding in light shade[200]. Plants are very resistant to maritime exposure[11, 29, 75, 200].
This species is not very cold-hardy in Britain, succeeding outdoors only in the milder areas of the country[11]. Plants grow very well on the Scilly Isles but have not been proved on the mainland[29].Other reports say that it grows well in south-western England[11, 49].
Very amenable to pruning, plants can be cut right back into old wood if required[200].
The flowers are sweetly scented, they are borne in terminal clusters of either up to 10 males or up to 5 females[219]. Plants only flower freely in mild areas of the country[219].
The species in this genus are very likely to hybridize with other members of the genus[200]. When growing a species from seed it is important to ensure that the seed either comes from a known wild source, or from isolated specimens in cultivation.
Plants in this genus are notably resistant to honey fungus[200].

Propagation

Seed - sow when ripe in the autumn or in late winter in a warm greenhouse[78, 200]. The seed usually germinates freely. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle, move the plants to a cold frame as soon as they are established and plant out late in the following spring[78]. Consider giving them some protection from the cold during their first winter outdoors.
Cuttings of half-ripe wood, 5 - 7cm with a heel, July/August in a frame. Poor to fair percentage[78].
Basal ripewood cuttings late autumn in a cold frame[200].

Scent

Flowers: Fresh: The flowers are sweetly scented, though they are not often produced in this country[245]. The scent is strongest in the evening[260].

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

PFAF Web Pages

This plant is mentioned in the following web pages

Web References

[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[C] Taxon data. from the CalFlora database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for the family Pittosporaceae.

[CHINA] Draft Data Very detailed botanical/identification info. from the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[11] Bean. W. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. Murray 1981
A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.

[17] Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962
A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.

[29] Shepherd. F.W. Hedges and Screens. Royal Horticultural Society. 1974 ISBN 0900629649
A small but informative booklet giving details of all the hedging plants being grown in the R.H.S. gardens at Wisley in Surrey.

[44] Allan. H. H. Flora of New Zealand. Government Printer, Wellington. 1961
The standard work, in 3 volumes though only the first two are of interest to the plant project. Very good on habitats.

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[49] Arnold-Forster. Shrubs for the Milder Counties.
Trees and shrubs that grow well in &ndndndnd and other mild areas of Britain. Fairly good, a standard reference book.

[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.

[75] Rosewarne experimental horticultural station. Shelter Trees and Hedges. Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food 1984
A small booklet packed with information on trees and shrubs for hedging and shelterbelts in exposed maritime areas.

[78] Sheat. W. G. Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. MacMillan and Co 1948
A bit dated but a good book on propagation techniques with specific details for a wide range of plants.

[153] Brooker. S. G., Cambie. R. C. and Cooper. R. C. Economic Native Plants of New Zealand. Oxford University Press 1991 ISBN 0-19-558229-2
An interesting and readable book on the useful plants of New Zealand.

[169] Buchanan. R. A Weavers Garden.
Covers all aspects of growing your own clothes, from fibre plants to dyes.

[182] Thomas. G. S. Ornamental Shrubs, Climbers and Bamboos. Murray 1992 ISBN 0-7195-5043-2
Contains a wide range of plants with a brief description, mainly of their ornamental value but also usually of cultivation details and varieties.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[219] Grey-Wilson. C. & Matthews. V. Gardening on Walls Collins 1983 ISBN 0-00-219220-0
A nice little book about plants for growing against walls and a small section on plants that can grow in walls.

[245] Genders. R. Scented Flora of the World. Robert Hale. London. 1994 ISBN 0-7090-5440-8
An excellent, comprehensive book on scented plants giving a few other plant uses and brief cultivation details. There are no illustrations.

Readers Comments

Pittosporum crassifolium

david nicholls (davidni@xtra.co.nz) Wed Feb 14 07:28:48 2001

Pittosporum crassifolium I'm very fond of this plant as it is very tough in my high wind area & have spend a bit of time trying to find uses for it

I've tried shaking the leaves in a jar of water, some bubbles as would be expected of saponins but only about one tenth as much as Aloe saporana or Pomaderris, a nice lemony smell though. Stock don't care about the saponins and eat it, hares too.

I've used the unripe seeds as an ink, nice purple colour, faded to brown after a few months.

The wood is supposed to be difficult of combustion (L.H.Bailey standard cyclpaedea of horticulture (a beautiful book from 1947). I find a little odd that I've only ever seen international references to the timbre use of P. crassifolium, none here in N.Z. perhaps I've been looking in wrong places, the national obsession with Pinus radiata and attitude that using natives for anything at all is anti-conservation (even if planted rather than taken from the wild which is silly) may have more to do with it.

The roots contain an acetylenic alcohol & ketone.(N.Z medicinal plants, Cooper, cabie, Brooker) Whatever they are.

Cheers, hope things are going well david

Details of Growing Condition: Hills facing sea, frost free, gales

9 out of 10 for sea gale tolerance.

Pittosporum crassifolium

David N (davidni@xtra.co.nz) Tue Aug 27 06:33:35 2002

Pittosporum crassifolium nectar is quite tasty strait from the flower, much better than New Zealand flax nectar which was used by the Maori and still today by some people but which I find usually tainted with a bitter flavor as well as sweetness. I break the bottom off the small purple flower and suck, the amount is tiny but it is very nice. Have never heard of anyone else doing this,

I tried it after reading in Cheddar Valley Nurseries catalogue that Pittosporums are good nectar sources for bees and have since seen them on P.crassifolium.

I expect the nectar is safe since it is recommended for beekeepers but cant guarantee it.

Not a stunning use but not bad for something so coastal tol.

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Bibliography

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
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