Agathis australis Species Information

Family: Araucariaceae Species

Common Name: New Zealand Kauri

Scientific Synonymy:
Dammara australis, Salisburyodendron australis, Dammara brownii, Agathis brownii

Common Synonymy:
southern kauri

Cold Hardiness Zone: 9a View the UK and US zone maps

Agathis australis Information

Identification

Closely related to both Araucaria (Monkey Puzzle) and Wollemia nobilis. This is a prehistoric tree originating during the Jurassic period (between 190 and 135 million years ago). Leaves are 3 to 7 cm long and 1 cm broad, tough and leathery in texture, with no midrib; they are arranged in opposite pairs or whorls of three on the stem. The seed cones are globose, 5 to 7 cm diameter. The trunk has a flaking bark.

General Information

Agathis australis can grow to heights of 40 to 50 meters and trunk diameters big enough to rival Californian Sequoias at over 5 meters. Growth is fast and large trees are generally aged between 500 and 1000 years old. It can survive temperatures down to -7Â°C and is quite happy growing in Cornwall in the UK.

Distribution

Native to: New Zealand

New Zealand: N Island, Northland and Coromandel Peninsula, south to about lat. 38°, the southern limit was bounded by a line from Raglan Harbour through Hamilton to a little south of Tauranga. 0-600 m elevation.

Location: New Zealand (-37.175491°N, 175.166016°E)

Observations

Map may not represent the complete natural distribution. (Markers display observation data).