About Typha orientalis C.Presl
Typha orientalis C.Presl is a perennial herb that can grow up to 3 m (9.8 ft) tall, and its rhizome can reach up to 40 mm (1.6 in) in diameter. Its long, sausage-shaped flower spikes measure between 300–500 mm (12–20 in) in length.
This species is native to East Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia, and New Zealand. Māori introduced the plant to New Zealand's Chatham Islands.
In New Zealand, this plant is known as raupō, and it had many uses for Māori. Its rhizomes were cooked and eaten, while its pollen was collected and baked into a type of cake called pungapunga. Its leaves were used to build roofs and walls, occasionally made into canoe sails, and used as a material for constructing kites. Many of the first shelters built for 19th-century European settlers in New Zealand were constructed from raupō.
