Pohutukawa Christmas Tradition

Pohutukawa grows on cliffs and beaches through the upper North Island, roots gripping bare rock, leaning out over the water, and for a few weeks from about mid-December it covers itself in crimson stamens. That timing is the entire reason it became the New Zealand Christmas tree - a country celebrating a northern-hemisphere midwinter festival in high summer took the tree that happened to flower then. It appears on cards, in carols and in the standard image of a New Zealand Christmas: red flowers, a beach, and no snow anywhere. Individual trees carry weight beyond that. Te Reinga at Cape Reinga is the tree from which, in Maori tradition, the spirits of the dead depart for Hawaiki, and it is estimated at eight hundred years old. Elsewhere, possums have done severe damage to coastal stands, and much of what survives does so because of trapping. The flowering varies year to year and by latitude.

What to look for

• The December flowering - crimson along the northern coasts.
• The cliff-gripping habit - trees rooted in bare rock over the sea.
• Te Reinga - the ancient tree at Cape Reinga in the departure tradition.
• The Christmas association - a northern festival matched to a southern bloom.

When to go

Mid-December to January. Flowering shifts by a couple of weeks with latitude and varies between years - some seasons are far heavier than others.

Things to know

Flowering is not uniform; a poor year is noticeably thinner. Coastal stands have been badly damaged by possums outside trapped areas. This is something you drive past rather than visit.

Nearby

The Coromandel, Northland and Auckland coasts carry the best stands.