I was walking around Stanley Park today and at Lost Lagoon I spotted this interesting plant with what I thought were gigantic leaves. I was thinking - is that giant skunk weed but there was not stench. After Googling it - it kinda looks like a Gunnera Manicata.
Gunnera manicata. It eats bad little boys, according to David Tarrant, who used to be Education Co-ordinator at UBCBG.
Thanks Wendy for the confirmation. I thought that plant looked pretty cool at the edge of Lost Lagoon. There was also another section a little further down after the walking bridge but the leaves seem smaller. I am thinking of finding some Gunnera seeds and planting it on my lawn to cover up the dandelion.
This is really at the pond at Devonian Harbour Park, next to Georgia Street, right? I had a look at those last week, because the leaves looked smaller. I couldn't find any flower stalks - maybe you can - but I still thought they were G. manicata, leaves a little smoother than another species that is sometimes grown here. All the Stanley Park ones I've seen are G. manicata.
@Yo_Jo, I went by this group in Devonian Harbour Park a few days ago, and found some inflorescences. This is definitely Gunnera manicata. I think it looks so low and compact because it's on the edge of the pond, so the stems are growing from below lawn level, and the growing conditions are different from those in the Greig Rhododendron Garden. I got three people to pose with two clumps in the rhody garden today.
Wendy, I was out at the PNE grounds the other day to look at my soon to be new dream home and spotted some plants with big leaves near the Renfrew side adjacent to the skate park. Do you think these are Gunnera Tinctoria?
Yes, those infructensces that are narrow and dense like that are the key identifying feature. Thanks for posting those.
Wendy, if I asked for a cone from G. Tinctoria - can I grow a new plant from it before winter sets in?
I have no idea, but there was a thread on it quite a while ago (I'm sure it's the same for both species): Propagating Gunnera Manicata
These Gunnera manicata in posting #6 look so great in mid-summer when the leaves form a beautiful dome. But in the fall, many of the leaves have wilted, exposing the infructescences, which makes for interesting viewing. @Yo_Jo, you can see the difference in the fruit stalks of the two species.
Just for interest.... In UK where cold weather can kill them, the leaves are cut off and formed into a wigwam to protect the crown.
Thanks Wendy and Silver Surfer for the cool pics. I didn’t find any places selling Gunnera’s this year in the Vancouver area - original I was going to plant one in my front yard but now I think we might redo our broken morning glory/weed/moss covered sloped lawn with a terraced vegetable and flower garden next year.