Southern rātā
Photo credit: cbeem
Juicy details
M. umbellata is very common in the Ōpārara.
The flowers are full of nectar, and after rain the nectar has splashed on to the surrounding leaves and mould/fungus has started to grow. This gives a striking contrast between the dark, sometimes black leaves, and the crimson flowers.
No notch in the leaf tip
Metrosideros umbellata does not have a notch in the leaf tip. The leaves are thin and pointed (lanceolate) and very different to Northern rātā leaves.
The leaves look like and smell like Eucalyptus.
If you see leaves that are long but rounded at the tip these are probably hybrids, maybe hybrids with Pōhutukawa.
Rata is flowering like crazy this year
Southern rata is in full bloom on the Karamea bluff now. And all the way down the West Coast. South of Whataroa there are mountainsides covered in it, epic between Franz and Fox, and epic up the Haast valley. Worth the drive!