Kohuhu

Pittosporum tenuifolium, a New Zealand native. It can be an attractive small tree, or be trimmed into a bush or hedge. The leaves are wavy and have a light silvery appearance.

These flowers are 10mm (3/8in.) across. They will darken to black as they age. Because of their dark colour against dark branches and their position under the leaves, they can bloom unnoticed. However, at dusk they fill the garden with a sweet vanilla-like perfume.

The flowers on this bush are female. Seven of the ten bushes or trees that are flowering in my garden at present have female flowers, while the rest have both male and female parts. In the latter, bright yellow anthers cluster around the stigma (the green dot in the centre of the flower). None of my lot have exclusively male flowers, though this is another variation.