Botanical name:

Haloragis erecta 

Common name(s):

Toatoa, fire weed, shrubby haloragis

About:

A prevalent plant found along roadsides and rocky areas, this species features square reddish stems and small oval leaves with toothed edges and reddish margins. Its growth habit is slightly spreading and bushy. The most desirable variant displays a bronze-purple hue, providing a striking contrast in foliage. Often marketed as "Wanganui Bronze" or "Wellington Bronze," it serves as a beneficial filler and effective revegetation plant, thriving in diverse conditions. To promote more compact growth, pinching out the shoot tips is recommended.

Natural habitat: 

Coastal to montane in forest or scrub up to 500m. Often on slip scars or colonising recently cleared ground. Often appearing following fire (hence one of the common names).

Growing environment:

Frost, Sun, Wind, Coastal & Free draining tolerant.

Endemic distribution:

New Zealand’s Kermadec, North, South, Stewart and Chatham Islands.

Height: 1m

Flowering:  

Throughout the year with a reddish pink / yellow coloured flower/s 

Fruiting:

Throughout the year

Uses: 

Bird food / Attractant, Bee food & Riparian plantings.

How to grow:

Easily grown from fresh seed and by cuttings. A somewhat weedy species which often appears following disturbance within forest and scrub, and which can at times appear within unkept gardens and wasteland within urban areas. Some forms are dark purple-red or maroon in colour.

** Seed germinates without pre treatment. Sow seed direct & keep moist until germination is complete.