THE TUI TREE

Our Feature this week is on Prunus campanulata 'Superba' is commonly known as The Tui Tree, due to the fact that the birds absolutely love the nectar. Tuis are a wonderful addition to a garden - especially for native bird lovers - so planting the species that they can feed on is the way to attract them on site. Countrywide, these wonderful trees are already in bloom, bringing a burst of pinkness to the wintry landscape.

When the Superba is in bloom the Tuis tend to congregate in the trees in large numbers and there is often a lot of squabbling and bickering that goes on as they jockey for position to get the best of the nectar. They tend to over-indulge in the abundance of the sweetness and can get quite tipsy. They stagger around, never quite finishing their songs, losing the plot, hanging drunkenly from one foot, and frequently falling right out of the trees! Sounds a bit like the Undie 500 in Dunedin!

Tuis are usually such dignified and somewhat shy birds, preferring privacy to public displays of drunken behaviour. As they fall out of the trees when they are in their cups, they lie about looking a bit embarrassed and much the worse for wear!

The Tui Cherry is a robust grower which came originally from Taiwan. It has beautiful and distinctive bell-shaped flowers - quite different in shape from the other flowering Cherries. They are pendulous and about 3cm in size. The flowers smother the branches from early spring, hanging in drooping clusters and the leaves start to appear towards the end of the flowering period. The tree is densely branched and bushy with a graceful, slender habit. Generally regarded as the brightest coloured and earliest blooming of all the flowering cherries, a well established specimen in full flower is an arresting sight. They can grow to 5m.

Prunus  ‘Felix Jury' must take the crown for the deeper carmine red flowers. Bred by the renowned breeder, Felix Jury, who substantially enlarged the varieties of cultivars of Magnolias and other trees, this cultivar is a tall growing specimen.

Cherry trees, or Prunus, are a huge family with about 400 different species from around the world and many more named se1ections and hybrids. But as a general rule in this country, it is the Taiwanese ones that flower now and the Japanese ones flower later in the season. The ones from Japan are generally small trees, often se1ected for their big fluffy flowers. Although they are spectacular and should be grown for their sheer beauty, they sadly they don't feed the birds.