Paenga-whawha
The Eleventh Lunar month – April-May
The haul of the crops is now piled on the borders of the fields.
The kumara would grow until the star Poutu-te-rangi (Altair) appeared. The leaves of the kumara became brown when the crop was mature. When the mata-paheru tohunga(priestly expert in charge of digging) was sure that the kumara were fully developed, the rua (storepits) were readied.
When the star Whanui (Vega) appeared, the lifting of the crop would be begun. In the dawn, the tohunga would carry out the necessary priestly rites. The first puke (mound) was the mauri (symbol of the life force) of the rua (kumara store pit). When the crop was dug, that puke was the first lifted by the tohunga. The kumara tubers were taken to the tuahu (altar) and there buried as an offering to Rongo-marae-roa .
The digging was not commenced until the sun was well up, and ceased when it reached the zenith (noon), when the products were carried to the rua.
When the
crop was dug, the tubers to be taken to the rua were placed in one
awa (space
between the rows) while the korae (those to be eaten at
once), were put in another awa. They were placed in baskets, and when the
baskets were filled, they were carried to the paenga whawha
(margin of the field). They were put
into wicker baskets for carrying to the rua, but care was taken not to
bruise the tubers.
On arriving at the rua kumara, the sorters took charge of them. The more compact tubers were saved as seed for the next season, because have more whatu (eyes), and produce more shoots.
The floor of
the storehouse was level, but slightly raised toward the door end. Gravel
was strewn over the floor, right back to the rear wall, to the depth of
about 4cm. Some puka (soft decayed wood of
rimu,
pukatea or
totara
) was dried, crumbled up, and
spread over the layer of gravel. The tubers were stacked on this bed.
Two people stacked the kumara tubers into the store, one on either side of the pit. As they stowed the kumara they examined them carefully, so as to detect any damaged, bruised or broken ones, which were put aside as food for the workers. They would spread rot throughout the store. The tubers were packed very carefully in rows overlapping each other, with the remu end (that lacking eyes) downwards toward the dark.
The tubers to be used for food were stacked first, near the door of the pit. A barrier was erected between the food tubers and the seed tubers. The barrier was made of manuka bush, laced on to wooden rods. When the seed tubers had been stacked, then the screen or barrier of the takuwai (water barrier) was spread over the entire crop.
When the kumara had been safely stored, then a feast was held.
Glossary
| Kumara | sweat potato |
| Rua | storepit |
| Mata paheru tohunga | a priestly expert who dug the fist kumara |
| Tohunga | a priestly expert |
| Puke | mound. Kumera were earthed up the way potatoes are. |
| Awa | space between the rows |
| Paenga whawha | margin of the field |
| Mauri | life-force, or a symbol of the life force (such as a stone or tubers) |
| Tuahu | altar or sacred area where rites were performed |
| Rongo-marae-roa | “Rongo of the vast marae”. Rongo was the god of all cultivated foods and the kumara in particular. He was also the god of peace. |
| Korae | Kumara tubers that were to be eaten at once before they spoiled. |
| Whatu | eyes. The shoots grow from the eyes. |
| Puka | Soft decayed wood |
| Rimu | Dacrydium cupressinum, a tree |
| Pukatea | Puka can be: |
| Meryta sinclairii, a tree | |
| Griselinia lucida, a shrub | |
| Eugenia maire, a tree | |
| Muehlenbeckia australis, a climbing plant | |
| Since it was the rotten wood that was used, it was probably one of the trees that is being referred to. | |
| Totara | Podcarpus totara, a tree |
| Remu | End of the kumara tuber without eyes |
| Manuka | Leptospermum ericoides, a shrub which can grow into a small tree |
| Takuwai | water barrier made of brushwood. |
| Related words | |
| Mara | garden |
| Tawaha kumara | kumara garden |
| Mara kumara | kumara garden |
| Mara tautane | Ritual kumara garden |
| Rua taranga | Storepit for food supplies |
| Rua kopihia | Well-like storepit for food supplies |
| Rua korotangi | Well-like storepit for food supplies |
| Rua Tahuhu | Semi-subterranean storepit |
| Rua whakaahu | Store pit for seed tubers |
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