Talk:Ōtari-Wilton’s Bush: Difference between revisions

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===A few more notes===

===A few more notes===

* I reworked the lead a bit. There’s still some things that should be mentioned ie another sentence on the history, another on tracks/access etc.

* I reworked the lead a bit. There’s still some things that should be mentioned ie another sentence on the history, another on tracks/access etc.

* In the first paragraph, it mentions the maori name means “place of snares”. It seems obvious, but it might be good to explicitly state that the word it is referring to is “Otari”.

* In the first paragraph, it mentions the maori name means “place of snares”. It seems obvious, but it might be good to explicitly state that the word it is referring to is “Otari”.

* Is it known which iwi it was brought from?

* Is it known which iwi it was brought from?

* The chronology of the history section is confusing. In the second paragraph it describes it being purchased in 1906, then again in the fifth paragraph.

* The chronology of the history section is confusing. In the second paragraph it describes it being purchased in 1906, then again in the fifth paragraph.

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* Canopy walkway could mention that it is mostly a bridge.

* Canopy walkway could mention that it is mostly a bridge.

* Ref 55 (“Application for incorporation – Otari-Wilton’s Bush Trust”) doesn’t work. Neither does its archived link.

* Ref 55 (“Application for incorporation – Otari-Wilton’s Bush Trust”) doesn’t work. Neither does its archived link.

* “”The area was known as a good place to catch birds”” the source doesn’t actually specify birds at all.

[[User:AxonsArachnida|AxonsArachnida]] ([[User talk:AxonsArachnida|talk]]) 06:49, 8 February 2026 (UTC)

[[User:AxonsArachnida|AxonsArachnida]] ([[User talk:AxonsArachnida|talk]]) 06:49, 8 February 2026 (UTC)

Most of the references are now dead links. I will completely update the article with new references, and particularly make use of the citation for Otari Wiltons Bush at the website of Botanic Gardens Conservation International. I will also undertake copyediting to try and eliminate the extensive passages in the present article that violate copyright. Marshelec (talk) 21:14, 15 May 2021 (UTC)[reply]

@Schwede66: Thanks for the tidy up of this article. I am keen to get this article into a good state, because we have reached agreement with the Otari-Wilton’s Bush Trust for them to host a field trip during the Wikipedia:WikiCon Aotearoa/Wellington 2021. I still have quite a bit more to do on improving the article. Marshelec (talk) 20:52, 18 May 2021 (UTC)[reply]

Great. I see whether I’ll make it to Wellington. Meanwhile, it would be good if you could delete all the copyvio parts ASAP and then let us know. Diannaa or I will then do a revision deletion so that the copyvio disappears from the article’s history. Schwede66 21:21, 18 May 2021 (UTC)[reply]

• Trails have all changed names. – Ambrosia10 (talk) — COMPLETED by Stitchbird2
• Fauna section needs improvement – Ambrosia10 (talk) — COMPLETED by AxonsArachnida
• Main photo seems a bit dark. It could be adjusted to be brighter. AxonsArachnida (talk)
• An image of the Troup Lawn would be good. AxonsArachnida (talk)
• Fauna section needs much more detail. Rough stats of number of bird species would be great. Notable invertebrate species in the bush would be good as well (the tree trapdoor spider Migas otari is only known from the bush). AxonsArachnida (talk)– COMPLETED by AxonsArachnida
• The research section could discuss more about the orchid growing stuff as that’s quite notable. AxonsArachnida (talk) DRAFTED by Stitchbird2, see next subsection below (note I have COI so I am asking another editor to help with this)
• Images need alt text. AxonsArachnida (talk) — COMPLETED by AxonsArachnida
• The lead needs more detail to fully summarize the article. AxonsArachnida (talk) — (sorta) COMPLETED by AxonsArachnida. Will need more information.
• It would be great to have a new bio article for John Gretton Mackenzie, Director of Parks & Reserves in Wellington from 1918 to 1947. Mackenzie was one of the key people in the creation of the Ōtari native plant museum. I have asked one editor if they are interested._Marshelec (talk)

Topics for additions or expansion – from Dawson (2022)

Here are some further suggestions for topics that may warrant brief additions or expansion. The page numbers are from Ōtari: Two hundred years of Ōtari-Wilton’s Bush (2022 ed.) (Q115477025) but other sources may exist:

• history of name changes [p152]
• The Leonard Cockayne Centre [p184]
• Kaiwharawhara stream (including the eels) [multiple pages]
• Scheme for the Open-Air Museum (1926) [p60]
• Control of pest animals [pp156-161]
• Revegetation along the Kaiwharawhara stream esp (2001) [pp162-166]
• Kauri plantings [pp98-101]
• Moko – the 800 year-old rimu [p187, 198]
• the plant conservation laboratory [pp190-195]

It would be great if others in the Wellington group could help, but this will depend on them getting access to a copy of Dawson (2022). The National Library has a copy, see [1], plus Wellington City Libraries has multiple copies – and at different branches, so it may be possible.
_Marshelec (talk) 19:23, 19 January 2026 (UTC)[reply]

Expanded section on orchid research

• I’ve written an expanded section on orchid research happening at the Lions Ōtari Plant Conservation Laboratory. I have a conflict of interest since I work at Te Papa. Could another editor please take what I have written below and edit/incorporate it into the article if you agree? It could go in the Research section, after the two paragraphs that are already there. Thanks.

The Lions Ōtari Plant Conservation Laboratory has been an important component in several research projects studying the relationship between multiple threatened New Zealand orchids and their mycorrhizal fungal partners.^{[1][2][3][4][5]} These studies have been collaborations between Ōtari researchers Karin van der Walt and Jennifer Alderton-Moss with Te Papa botanist Carlos Lehnebach and others.

For example, research in the laboratory was critical to understand the nutrients and mycorrhizal fungal partners needed to germinate seeds of the onion orchids Microtis oligantha and M. unifolia.^[1] In that study and others, a closely-related non-threatened species (such as M. unifolia) is studied as a proxy to learn or perfect techniques that can be used on the threatened species (such as M. oligantha).^[1] In another study, researchers propagated individuals of the greenhood species Pterostylis montana and P. paludosa in the lab using in vitro plant tissue culture (also called asymbiotic germination) as a pathway to restore threatened populations with the resulting seedlings.^[4]

Work in the lab is also contributing to identifying the mycorrhizal fungal hyphae of spider orchids in the genus Corybas (including the threatened swamp helmet orchid Corybas carsei) by culturing their fungi in the lab and later sequencing their DNA.^[2][3] In 2025, seedlings of Cooper’s black potato orchid (Gastrodia cooperae) that were reared in the Lions Ōtari Plant Conservation Laboratory were planted in the wild population at the type locality for that species.^[5]

P.S. Here are some more references that could/should be incorporated into the above section. They are not in Wikidata and do not have dois:

Alderton-Moss J, Lehnebach CA, van der Walt K (2024). Mycorrhizal relationships and germination of New Zealand Corybas. New Zealand Native Orchid Group Journal 175: 6-10.

Alderton-Moss J, van der Walt K , Lehnebach CA (2024). The secret life of orchid seed germination. New Zealand Native Orchid Group Journal 1169: 30-32.
https://www.nativeorchids.co.nz/site/assets/files/2103/journal_169.pdf

Alderton-Moss J, Lehnebach CA, van der Walt K (2023). Lehnebach CA, van der Walt K (2024). First insights into the propagation of Gastrodia cooperae, an elusive orchid with unusual eating habits. https://www.nzpcn.org.nz/site/assets/files/0/73/498/trilepidea_may_2023_final.pdf

I’ve checked and then incorporated the above section with minor copy edits into the article. Thanks for your work! Ambrosia10 (talk) 17:03, 22 January 2026 (UTC)[reply]

A few more notes

• I reworked the lead a bit. There’s still some things that should be mentioned ie another sentence on the history, another on tracks/access etc.
• In the first paragraph, it mentions the maori name means “place of snares”. It seems obvious, but it might be good to explicitly state that the word it is referring to is “Otari”. Sorted.
• Is it known which iwi it was brought from?
• The chronology of the history section is confusing. In the second paragraph it describes it being purchased in 1906, then again in the fifth paragraph.
• For the chronology section I’m a bit unclear: Was Wilton’s bush part of the land purchased in 1906? If not, when was it acquired?
• A lot of the sentences in the history section are one sentence only. They could be merged with other paragraphs to make it tidier.
• Alt text for images is still needed for visually impaired people. Done.
• Kaiwharawhara stream isn’t linked in its first usage.
• For species of fauna/flora, it might be a good idea to decide whether species/genus names will be consistently given or not after the common name. So far its a bit of a mix throughout the text.
• Canopy walkway could mention that it is mostly a bridge.
• Ref 55 (“Application for incorporation – Otari-Wilton’s Bush Trust”) doesn’t work. Neither does its archived link.
• “The area was known as a good place to catch birds” the source doesn’t actually specify birds at all.

AxonsArachnida (talk) 06:49, 8 February 2026 (UTC)[reply]