User:Grahama28/sandbox

Calystegia tuguriorum has many common names including Pōuwhiwhi, the climbing convolvulus, or the New Zealand Bindweed. C.tuguriorum is a perennial vine that is found throughout New Zealand in coastal to lowland areas, usually in shrubland or along the forest margins.

Description
C.tuguriorum is easily identified by its white flower. The peduncles, which are the stalk of a flower, terete to slightly but very narrowly winged sepals, with (30-)110 mm long leaves. Inside the flower, the capsules are 8-12mm and shaped broad-ovoid and the seeds are orange and smooth.

The plant produces many twining, scrambling perennial vines that are slender and often form dense patches where it grows. The vine is high climbing or prostrate in absence of support.

Another identifying feature of C.tuguriorum is its leaves. The leaves are heart-shaped and undivided, with a leaf size of 4-8cm. They are heart-shaped with an acute tip and are arranged singly along the stem. The leaves are thin and hairless with a smooth leaf margin. The leaves appear to be matte rather than glossy, with petioles up to 40mm.

Distribution
Other than New Zealand, C.tuguriorum is also found in Chile as well as the Juan Fernandez Islands. C.tuguriorum is indigenous in the North and South Islands of New Zealand as well as in the Stewart and Chatham Islands. It is occasionally found in the margins of wetlands but is more likely to be found in the shrubland and along forest margins. C.tuguriorum often favors scrub land and bare lava or open rock-strewn ground depending on its location and surrounding environmental factors.



Life Cycle
C.tuguriorum flowers from September to March in New Zealand and presents its fruit throughout the year. C.tuguriorum is extremely invasive due to its propagation techniques which is the process of creating new plants. The germination process is quick from seed to rooted pieces and once established can be quite difficult to eradicate.

The capsules of C.tuguriorum are most commonly water dispersed but may be wind-dispersed. It is common in plants to use a range of motive forces to achieve dispersal. Wind and water dispersal techniques are environmentally pervasive which is why C.tuguriorum can perform extremely well in its habitat.

Interactions
As stated before C.tuguriorum is found throughout New Zealand, but more specifically in the coastal to lowland areas. This is due to the shrubland and forest margins creating a perfect habitat for C.tuguriorum to thrive. As part of C.tuguriorum propagation technique, it flourishes excellently through hedges or dense bush and the vines have lots of branches for support so that the creeping stems are efficiently contained. C.tuguriorum is so invasive that it causes problems in many New Zealander's gardens. It can strangle or flatten other prized plants as it is so fast growing and very difficult to eradicate.

Further Information
The plants scientific name Calystegia tuguriorum derives from Greek history. Calystegia is a word that derives from the Greek words kalyx ‘cup’, and stege ‘a covering’, meaning ‘a covered cup’, the calyx of some bindweeds being enclosed in two bracts. The second part ‘tuguriorum’ is defined as growing around huts.