Te whiro – he hoa rānei, he hoariri rānei?

Ko te mahi matua ina whakaorangia tētahi repo, ko te whakakore atu i ngā tipu me ngā taru ‘whakararuraru’ (ko te nuinga hoki o ēnei, he tipu nō tāwāhi, he tipu rāwaho) e tipu ana i taua pūnaha hauropi. Mā konei e ora ake ai ngā tipu māori. Engari ko tētahi mea kāore pea i te kaha mōhiotia, ko ētahi tipu kua roa e tipu noa ana i te taiao, he ‘taru tawhiti’, he otaota nō tāwāhi. I tēnei mātaitanga, e tūhurangia ana te pānga o te whiro kiwikiwi (Salix cinerea), me te whakamahinga o te patu otaota hei tāmi i te whiro, ki ngā hanga tuaiwi-kore o te repo – ērā kei te wai e noho ana (ngā ika meroiti), ērā anō kei te whenua e noho ana.

Tēnei mea te whiro (arā, ngā momo Salix)

I pūtakea mai ngā whiro, arā, ngā momo Salix, i ngā whenua āhua mahana kei te raki o Ūropi, kei te uru o Āhia, me te raki o Āwherika. Nā ngā Pākehā tuatahi i tae mai ki Aotearoa i te wāhanga tuatahi o te rautau 19 i hari mai, ka whakatō ai ki ngā parenga o ngā awa hei here i te whenua. He pai ki te whiro te tupu i ngā wāhi haukū maha – ki te taha tonu o te awa, o te kōawa, ki te repo anō. He rauhoro te whiro kiwikiwi (a Salix cinerea) – ka ngahoro ōna rau i te ngahuru me te takurua, ka tupu he rau hou i te kōanga me te raumati. Tērā e tupu te whiro kia 10 mita te teitei. He tere hoki te tupu o te whiro kiwikiwi, ā, he tere hoki tana toro haere, tana urutā haere i ngā whenua kōreporepo; kia whakataetae rāua ko te rākau māori, ka hinga ko te rākau māori. Me te aha, i te mutunga iho, ka tū mai he whiro pūruru tonu, ā, ka rerekē te āhua o ngā hapori māori e ora ana i raro i tōna whakamarumaru.

He pēhea te pānga o te patu otaota? Me kimi te ara tika hei whai atu

Ki te kore e tāmia te tupu o te whiro kiwikiwi, māna e rerekē ai te whakapapa o te repo, i te mea:

• ka toa ko te whiro ina whakataetae ia ki ngā tipu māori pērā i te wīwī (ngā momo Juncus), i te pūrekireki me te pūrei (ngā momo Carex), me te harakeke (Phormium tenax). He pai ake ki ēnei tipu māori ngā wāhi āhua mārakerake, nui te mārama, engari ka tū mai ana ngā whiro hei whakaruruhau mātotoru, ka aukatia atu ngā hihi o te rā, ka raru ēnei tipu māori.
• ka uru mai ētahi atu pepeke noho whenua me ētahi atu hanga noho wai ki te repo (hei tauira, he pītara, he ngaro, he ika meroiti, ka mutu, he rāwaho te nuinga), ā, kia whakataetae ēnei ki ngā mea māori, ka hinga ko ngā mea māori. Nā konei, ka rerekē te puna kai e wātea ana ki ngā manu māori me ngā ika māori.

Ko te whakamahi patu otaota me ētahi atu tāoke hei turaki i ngā rauropi kāore e pīrangatia i ngā taiao māori, pērā i te whiro kiwikiwi, he kaupapa whakaora taiao e pupū ake ai te kare ā-roto, e tutu anō ai te puehu i ētahi wā. Whakamahia nuitia ai te patu otaota hei patu tarutaru, mātua rā ngā taru kua horapa ki te mata o te whenua. Kua riro ko te patu otaota tētahi o ngā tino taputapu whakataki i te maha tonu o ngā kaupapa whakaora repo. He glyphosate te matū matua kei te nuinga o ngā patu otaota i Aotearoa, ā, he metsulfuron kei ētahi atu. Whakamahia ai ēnei hei patu, hei tāmi i te whiro kiwikiwi i ō tatou repo.

Mō ētahi whānau Māori, ko te whakamahi paitini – ahakoa mō te patu tipu urutā te take – kāore rawa i pai. He takahi, he tūkino i te whenua, i ngā whakapapa o te whenua, tae atu ki ngā tāngata tonu o taua whenua. Engari ko ētahi atu e mea ana mā te aha i te tāmi a te patu otaota i ngā tipu rāwaho, e tutuki ai te wawata nui kia tūhauora anō ngā momo māori e kīia nei e tatou he taonga – tipu mai, ika mai, manu mai, aha mai. Heoi anō, kei tēnā rohe, kei tēnā iwi, kei tēnā hapū anō te tikanga mōna – e kore e taea te pou atu tētahi tikanga kotahi mō te iwi Māori nui tonu.

Ko te mea nui ina kawea ake tētahi mahi whakaora taiao e whai wāhi ai te iwi Māori, me mātua mōhio rātou he aha katoa ngā mahi ka mahia i runga i taua kaupapa. Ā, me tīmata mai i te āta wānanga tahi i ngā tūmanako o te whānau, o te hapū, o te iwi mō te whakaoranga ake o ō rātou repo.