Gunnera manicata

Gunnera manicata, known as Brazilian giant-rhubarb,[1] or giant rhubarb[2] is a species of flowering plant in the Gunneraceae family from Brazil.[3][4]

Gunnera manicata, Devon, England

Gunnera manicata
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Order:	Gunnerales
Family:	Gunneraceae
Genus:	Gunnera
Species:	G. manicata
Binomial name
Gunnera manicata Linden

It is a large, clump-forming herbaceous perennial growing to 2.5 m (8 ft) tall by 4 m (13 ft) or more. The leaves of G. manicata grow to an impressive size. Leaves with diameters well in excess of 4 ft (122 cm) are commonplace, with a spread of 10 ft (3 m) by 10 ft (3 m) 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.[4]

This plant grows best in damp conditions such as near garden ponds, but dislikes winter cold and wet.

It has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.[5]

Despite the common name, this plant is not closely related to rhubarb. 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.[6]