while caring for wai māori
As a kid, my dad used to pull kōwhitiwhiti (watercress) out of the ditches around Tuahiwi Pā, between Rangiora and Kaiapoi, north of Christchurch.
You just boil it up and eat it, he’d say. Cheap Ngāi Tahu meal.
He doesn’t do that any more. Not because he’s pushing 60, he’d be right in there if he spotted any watercress growing in the waterways. It’s because we’d get sick if we’re not careful where we harvest from.
We’d swim in there and catch fish over there, Dad would say, indicating with his arms all the places where the water used to run clear.
Link to video and article: How one iwi is navigating farming while caring for wai māori | Stuff.co.nz
