Features:
Common name: Giant rhubarb, Gunnera
Family: Gunneraceae, Haloragidaceae
Origin: South America, Brazil
Height at maturity: 2 to 3 meters
Hardiness: -10°C
Exposure: sunny
Plant type: ornamental plant
Vegetation: perennial
Foliage: semi evergreen
Flowering: from June
Flower color: green, red
Soil type: very rich in humus
Watering: copiously in summer, normal in winter
Use: massif, waterside or isolated
Diseases and insect pests: slugs, aphids and whiteflies
Toxicity: inedible
Storage of seeds: 2 years in a dry place away from light at 3/4°C (refrigerator)
Description:
The Gunnera is the largest of the herbaceous perennials, it offers spectacular dimensions. It can reach a height of 3 meters and these leaves reach 1 to 2 meters in diameter.
In June, the plant blooms with small greenish-red flowers grouped in panicles on stems 1.50 to 2.50 meters high.
Native to humid forests, this plant needs a lot of water to grow in good conditions. These huge leaves act like funnels directing rainwater towards the center of the plant.
In winter protect the foot of the Gunnera with a good mulch in the coldest regions or cut the leaves that you will use to protect the foot.
Attention, despite its name of giant rhubarb, this plant is not edible.
