North Island toetoe

Austroderia toetoe| North Island toetoe, toetoe

Austroderia, or toetoe, comprises five species of tall grasses native to New Zealand. Austroderia toetoe, endemic to the North Island (from western Waikato south to Wellington), thrives in swamps and wet ground, often found alongside harakeke. Larger than Austroderia fulvida, it features more erect stems that bear striking, "blonded" golden plumes from mid-summer, persisting into winter. Naturally forming large clumps along water margins, toetoe is ideal for mass plantings along streams, ponds, or coastlines.