konini N.Z.
(ˈkɔːnini)
[Maori.]
A native shrub or small tree, Fuchsia excorticata, or its berries.
| 1867 J. D. Hooker Handbk. N.Z. Flora II. 765/2 Konine. Fuchsia excorticata. 1869 T. H. Potts in Trans. N.Z. Inst. II. 48 Beneath, Bell-birds..seek the konini, clinging to its brittle sprays. 1889 T. Kirk Forest Flora N.Z. 53 The settlers sometimes term it Kotukutuku or Konini, but more generally fuchsia. 1949 P. H. Buck Coming of Maori (1950) ii. i. 88 The berries of the..konini..are transient and were not important as food. 1960 B. Crump Good Keen Man 12 When a pigeon shirred up out of a konini I almost dropped by rifle. 1968 M. Johnson N.Z. Flowering Plants 57 One seldom sees now a rich display of the purple black berries, konini, that delicacy of the Maori palate of former times. |