Garden Centre

Thursday, April 10, 2008

Right now I'm on the Rosneath Peninsula, where there is still snow on the hills, but down at lochside, the conditions are damp and much more temperate - the evidence is this Gunnera manicata which is obviously getting to its full rainforest size in conditions that it loves.

By late srring it will have immense rhubarb-like, prickly leaves up to 6 feet across but don't let its tropical origins fool you, this Brazilian plant, once established, is very hardy and clearly makes an imposing feature even this early in the year. The crowns are best shielded from frost in winter, and a lot of folk cut last year's leaves to lay over the top, but as you can see, new leaves start into growth early in the year and seem to cope with almost every weather condition except arid soil.

Labels: garden tropicals, gunnera

The All Seasons Gardener at 2:21 AM

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