GUNNERA. Scattered in the Southern Hemisphere; those described below are natives of Chile. An odd group of herbaceous perennials, grown primarily for their decorative foliage. They range in scale from small-leaved mats to heavy stemmed giants with individual leaves 6’ or more in height. The flowers are tiny but sometimes borne in large, thick spikes. They are ideal subjects for poolside or streamside. The plants require porous, non-alkaline soil and plenty of moisture, plus some summer shading away from the coast. Their hardiness varies.
chilensis. A truly incredible plant at first sight. It has thick, hairy, more or less prostrate stems. Set along them are leaves up to 6’ long and 4’ broad, sometimes with stalks of nearly equal length. The leaves are conspicuously lobed and sharply toothed. Both leaves and stalks are covered with bristly hairs. Reddish cone shaped flower clusters rise 1-3’ from the ground, mostly in summer. Not a plant for the postage-stamp garden. Ultimately hardy to 15oF or less, though the leaves are damaged by sudden hard frosts.
killipiana. Mexico. This is a novelty even among the gunneras. It has nearly round leaves with a heart-shaped base, already 3’ broad at the nursery and undoubtedly larger on old plants. The leaves are deep green above, paler beneath. The flowers are borne in large sprays of narrow individual spikes, rather than in the dense cones of G. chilensis, and are quite interesting. Its hardiness is unknown, though it has passed through the middle ‘20s without direct frost unscathed. Our thanks to Edward Hawkins, who has brought us a continual stream of interesting plants to try in recent years.
magellanica. This species represents nearly the opposite end of the gunnera scale. It makes tight, though widely ranging, carpets. The stems are closely set with 1-3" scallop-edged, bright green leaves, shiny on their upper surface. The white flower clusters are held just above the leaves, giving way to red berry-like capsules. A beautiful ground cover for moist places. Probably 10oF or less.