FOREWARD by author Christina Macdonald

My interest in the herbal lore of other countries turned my thoughts to the considerable use the Maori people made of their trees and shrubs for this purpose. Most of this recorded information is housed in the Turnbull Library, or in Museum pamphlets, but much has been passed down in verbal form known only to the older Maori women, most of whom live in remote areas, and with whose passing much of this knowledge will be lost.

So I thought it might be a useful contribution to collect as much material as I could find of their valuable and fast vanishing herbal lore. Some of the foods the Maori people obtained from these plants have also been included, as they are closely related to the main subject. The short historical section has been written with the aim of showing their way of life in pre- European times; when they had to rely on their own ingenuity to discover, and learn to use, the plants of the country for their food and medicine.

The use of botanical terms, except in naming the plants, has been purposely avoided, as I think that by describing them in non-technical language, it will make a book of this nature of more interest to a wider range of readers, more especially those whose activities take them into bush and mountain country.

The internal use given of these remedies should be treated as of only historical interest, except where their use has been proved by medical testimony. The value of the external application of these herbs has been proved to be so reliable in many instances, that they continue to be used today.

Christina Macdonald