# Kōwhai (Sophora microphylla)

> New Zealand's best-loved flowering tree, a small tree to 25 m (usually much less) with tiny leaflets and hanging golden flowers in late winter and spring that tūī and bellbirds flock to. Young plants pass through a tangled divaricating stage. It is semi-deciduous, dropping leaves at flowering. All parts, especially the yellow seeds, are poisonous. Sophora tetraptera, the large-leaved kōwhai, is the other common planted species and nursery plants are often hybrids.

Source: https://treerm.org/trees/sophora-microphylla · Updated 2026-11-08 · License CC BY 4.0

## Facts

- Also called: Kowhai, Weeping kōwhai, Small-leaved kōwhai
- Family: Fabaceae
- Type: Broadleaf, loses its leaves in winter
- Mature height: 15 m; spread 8 m
- Growth: Medium growth
- Light: Full sun
- Water: Moderate water
- Soil: Well-drained soils of most types; riparian and coastal sites in the wild
- Native range: Endemic to New Zealand, on both main islands (scarce in parts of Northland); WCVP also records it on the Chatham Islands and in central and southern Chile.

**Benefits:** Flowers, Birds, Pollinators, Fixes nitrogen, Fits small spaces, Wildlife

**Good for:** Small yard, Street tree, parks, Streambanks, Reforestation

**Watch out for:** Toxic parts

## Care

Plant in sun on drained soil; it can be planted on open sites without nurse cover. Water the first summer; stake in windy places. Prune lightly after flowering if needed. Kōwhai moth caterpillars defoliate trees in summer but they recover. Seed germinates easily if the hard coat is nicked. Keep seeds away from children.

## Where it stands

- **Native:** Chile (Recorded native in central and southern Chile by WCVP); New Zealand (Endemic; Not Threatened nationally (2023) but Regionally Vulnerable in Auckland and Declining in Northland)
- **Adapted:** United Kingdom (Garden tree in mild areas; introduced per WCVP)

## Sources

- https://www.nzpcn.org.nz/flora/species/sophora-microphylla/
- https://toolkit.tanestrees.org.nz/growth-yield-calculator/species-information/
- https://www.gbif.org/species/2959082