It is not a tree. Raupō is tall, reed-like wetland plant. Distinctive brown, sausage-shaped flower spikes. Grows in dense stands in swamps, marshes, and along lake margins. Leaves reach up to two metres in height. Long, narrow, sword-shaped. Rising straight from rhizome. Flower spikes are most distinctive feature. Thin male spike at top. Thick, brown, velvety female spike below. What makes it special? Its usefulness. Raupō was one of most important plants for Māori. Pollen (pungapunga) collected by shaking male spikes over mat. Then baked into cakes. Cakes were sweet and nutritious. Delicacy shared during gatherings. Rhizome (underground stem) provided starchy food. Roasted or boiled like potato. Leaves used for weaving mats, baskets, and roofing. Harvested, dried, and softened before being woven into whariki (sleeping mats) and kete (baskets). Fluffy seed heads used as tinder for starting fires. Catching spark from flint or friction. Biologically, Raupō is pioneer of wetland. Colonises disturbed sites. Stabilising mud with spreading rhizomes. Reproduces by seed and by vegetative spread. Forming dense stands that exclude other plants. Seeds tiny. Attached to fluffy pappus. Carries them on wind. To see Raupō stand is to see green wall rising from black water. Leaves sway in wind. Brown spikes nod on stems. Plant of edge. Of boundary between land and water. Of places where wetland meets world. Raupō is not king. Not warrior. Plant of swamp. One that feeds and clothes. One that holds mud together. Has been here for millennia. Will be here as long as wetlands remain wet. Habitat loss from wetland drainage and land development is primary threat. Water pollution and nutrient runoff. Competition from invasive wetland weeds. Climate change affecting water levels. Populations have declined significantly due to widespread wetland drainage for agriculture and urban development. Remaining stands often small and fragmented. Wetland restoration projects have helped protect some populations. Found in wetlands throughout New Zealand from Northland to Stewart Island. Most common in lowland swamps, marshes, and lake margins. Also found in Australia and throughout Pacific and Asia. Freshwater wetlands, swamps, marshes, lake margins, and slow-moving streams. Prefers shallow, still or slow-moving water with muddy bottoms. Often forms dense stands in nutrient-rich wetlands. Tolerates seasonal flooding. No one told it otherwise.