Gunnera manicata
Gunnera manicata, known as Brazilian giant-rhubarb, or giant rhubarb is a species of flowering plant in the Gunneraceae family from Brazil.
, England
It is a large, clump-forming herbaceous perennial growing to tall by or more. The leaves of G. manicata grow to an impressive size. Leaves with diameters well in excess of are commonplace, with a spread of by on a mature plant. The underside of the leaf and the whole stalk have spikes on them. In early summer it bears tiny red-green flowers in conical branched panicles, followed by small, spherical fruit. However, it is primarily cultivated for its massive leaves.
This plant grows best in damp conditions e.g. by the side of garden ponds, but dislikes winter cold and wet.
It has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.
Despite the common name, this plant is not closely related to rhubarb and it is thought to be around 150 million years old. It was named after a Norwegian bishop and naturalist Johan Ernst Gunnerus, who also named and published a description about the basking shark.
It is native to the Serra do Mar mountains of Brazil, where it is used in traditional medicine for sexually transmitted diseases.
