Flora of New Zealand Series

Chilean rhubarb

Giant, clump-forming, gynomonoecious, summergreen herb, with short, stout, horizontal rhizomes. Winter resting buds massive, to c. 25 cm long; scales pinnatisect with pinkish laciniate lobes extending to the broad green midrib. Lvs to c. 2.5 m high, rhubarb-like. Petiole to 100 × 2.5-4.5 cm, studded with conic, short, often reddish, prickles. Lamina to c. 80 × 100 cm, suborbicular, palmately 5-7-lobed to nearly ⅓ radius, somewhat rugose and scabrid above; veins sparingly hairy beneath, prominently raised, the main veins with soft prickles. Infl. paniculate, to 1 m long at fruiting; main axis 3-4.5 cm diam.; infl. branches 4-7 cm × 5-7 mm in central part of panicle. Fls dense, sessile, apetalous; ♀ c. 1 mm long. Sepals minute. Styles slightly < ovary. Drupes 1.5-2 mm long, subglobose or broad-oblong, orange. Seed 1-1.3 mm diam., acutely angled.

N.: Weber (near Dannevirke, Hawke's Bay), abundant along coast at Oeo (Taranaki), Waitotara (near Wanganui); S.: Okains Bay (Banks Peninsula), Leith Valley (Dunedin); St.: Halfmoon Bay.

Andes from Columbia to Chile 1968

Wet cliffs, hill country pasture, swampy areas, roadside banks.

FL Oct-Nov.

Chilean rhubarb is a widely grown waterside plant in parks, botanic gardens, and large private gardens. Its large size easily distinguishes it from all of the indigenous spp., but it has been confused with the Brazilian G. manicata Linden, which is sometimes cultivated but not wild in N.Z. G. manicata is distinguished by the well-developed membranous lamina present as webbing between the lobes of the bud scales, and the slender infl. branches 9.5-11 cm long.