Gunnera

[JWH]

I think Gunnera is my favorite plant after bamboo.

Gunnera Tinctoria's bloom is getting bigger.


Gunnera Manicata is also going to bloom.


I wonder if Manicata & Tinctoria can produce hybrid seed?

[Jeff: Igor's Apprentice]

I really like the look of these. I'd love to grow them if I were in a better region for them.

[JWH]

Not sure why some of the stems have cracks. First time it's happened, or i've noticed it.



Can't wait to see how big these leaves will get.

[JWH]

Gunnera is enjoying the cool rainy weather. Largest leaf so far is just under 3 feet wide. The bloom has turned reddish-pink.

[JWH]

Grabbed the yard stick, and my camera for some new photos. Perfect gunnera growing weather 60f and rainy. Largest leaf is 40 inches when flattened out.

[stevelau1911]

My gunnera manicata doesn't seem to appreciate growing at the base of a pine tree in full sun.

I think they absolutely need an area that has a lot of water, and perhaps filtered sunlight to thrive. It's not even up to its max size last year with no signs of improving so I might have to move it once we get past the heat wave later this week.

[JWH]

Hey Steve,

The first year I grew gunnera I had mine planted in "full sun", figuring full sun in Western Washington is pretty wimpy compared to other parts of the country. They grew great until the first cloudless day that was 85f+ and then they started getting leaf scorched all around the edges and between the veins. Humidity could have been a factor also since it was under 20%. I immediately moved them to part shade and after a couple months they looked good again with new leaves.

I've never had leaf scorch since, now when it gets hot and dry they get a bit droopy and limp looking but recover after a deep watering or in evening when it cools off.

These were the instructions I was given when I purchased mine.

[johnw]

This was the state of my friend's Gunnera a week ago. The temps have been very cool 8-12c and damp and miserable until today. That sort of weather should be to the Gunnera's liking but it has been the slowest ever.

All our local Gunneras are in full sun but we're relatively cool and humid here. If they get shade they get weak and cannot support the leaves. No scorch that I've ever seen.

[JWH]

Looks good JohnW! Several nice fat crowns there.

Mine start waking up in January cause of the mild winters, one of these years it's gonna get zapped in a late freeze I just know it

Currently watching a massive Tinctoria stalk here, thickest i've had so far, wish my bamboo's would get this thick more often!


Flipped it over to the metric side for our neighbors to the...well everywhere else!

[JWH]

Big leaf!

[JWH]

This gunnera is getting quite large. Largest leaf so far is about 4ft across. The oldest bloom is turning brown and appears to be dropping seeds. I'm going to try and germinate some, hopefully they are viable.



Largest leaf so far:


Oldest bloom:


I'm assuming these are seeds:

[johnw]

JWH - Looking good. The flower top looks a bit like G. manicata. Or this a different plant to the previous one you showed? Those attached are supposed to be G. tinctoria; some say they can tell them apart by the leaves but damned if I can and I wonder if they hybridize just to complicate matters. I'm sure I've seen two types of flowers on some plants.

Here's a rather late update of my friend's and the last at the Historic Gardens in Annapolis Royal. Pix taken 5th & 6th of June. Should be sizeable now with all this wet weather and more on the way - 3" over 3 days. This is highly unusual weather as usally we have a dry stretch from about the first week of June right through the mid to late July.

[JWH]

Johnw-I've also been thinking that flower stalk looks an awful lot like Gunnera Manicata. It was sold to me as G.Tinctoria, but I'm thinking it was mislabled/misidentified and is really G.Manicata.

From what I understand manicata's flower stalk is more open looking, while tinctoria's is more compact. This site shows a good comparison: http://www.rnzih.org.nz/pages/Gunnera_t ... nicata.htm

Oh...and to confuse things further these two plants were purchased as G.Manicata but the one thats blooming this year looks just like tinctoria's more compact flower stalk...also the leaves on these two have a slightly different shape and texture than the other plant i've been showing pictures of.





This one didn't bloom this year, and is quite a bit larger than the plant right above.



Being the science nerd that I am, online research suggests some species of Gunnera will hybridize, but I cannot find any information on whether Manicata and Tinctoria are compatible. I did dust pollen from one plant onto the other, so i'll see what happens.

[JWH]

Another site showing the differences in Manicata & Tinctoria flowers.
http://www.arc.govt.nz/albany/app_templ ... imgId=1174

[johnw]

I'd say those two are G. tinctoria.

We have some real messy ones here that fall smack dab between the two species and I've given up trying to id them. Bad as juvenile green-culmed bamboos........