The Coprosmas are members of the Coffee family. The 40 NZ species are very variable in form, their one common identifying characteristic being a stipule or pointed sheath that forms the junction of the paired leaves with the main stem.

Some Coprosmas are quite small and unpreposessing, but many of them have beautiful shiny leaves, and a great variety of cultivars have been developed with attractive leaf shapes and in some cases bronze colorings. These can often be seen in garden and municipal plantings.

Some species have the added advantage of being salt tolerant - in particular the taupata (Coprosma retusa), widely used for hedges in Wellington - see illustration below.

The Coprosma fruit is an attractive berry, which may be of various colors - often red or orange. Some of the small almost inconspicuous Coprosmas have very beautiful wine-red, translucent berries, and there is a variety with pale blue, translucent fruits - Coprosma acerosa.

Original Ink Drawing: "Coprosma retusa" NZ Broadleaf.