Pukatea

Laurelia novae-zelandiae

The Maori used pukatea for several medicinal purposes, it containing an alkaloid (pukateine) related to morphine although without the side effects of that drug., It was first isolated in 1910 by Bernard Aston, the first chemist at the Department of Agriculture.

Part used	Condition
Pulped inner bark	held in the mouth to ease toothache
boiled bark; decoction	ulcers and skin complaints.

Table adapted from https://www.tanestrees.org.nz/species-profiles/pukatea Photo Credit - epitree CC BY-NC-ND 2.0