wanted to know if anyone had this to trade? grows 10' tall and wide. zone 7-10 if you need a pic of it,its at van bougondien plmk what youre looking for in trade
www.dutchbulbs.com
thxs moretz
gunnera manicata-great gunnera
I had Gunnera at my old house (won't grow in my current zone) it is extremely impressive! I never had babies from mine, i don't even know how you would divide it. When mature it is HUGE.
If you can't find a trade and decide to buy it, it is available from Van Bourgondien wholesale for $36.50 for 3. To buy wholesale from them all you need is a $50. min order. Gunnera chilensis (slightly smaller) is also available from Forrest Farm in 1 and 5 gallon containers for $15 and $49. http://www.forestfarm.com/search/closeup.asp?PlantID=guch030
Good luck,
Melissa
thxs but i hope to get a trade and if not thn i know where i can get some thxs so much for your help
moretz
moretz,
I have seeds of this from last year. Don't know how viable they are, but you're welcome to them. I ordered a plant last year and it didn't make it through our hot, humid summer. The seeds were from another source. Let me know if you want them.
Digs
digs,
i would love to try them, to see how much these plants are i think i would try anything right now since i cant get them plant right now not until taxes come back thxs for the offer what would you like in exchange for them?plmk
moretz
Raintreenursery.com has the plant for $10.
kay,
i did a search on raintree and they said no item was found,do you have the link to where you found it? plmk and thxs
moretz
The link is for Gunnera tinctoria. Really neat plant! Somebody sent me one of those. :)
http://www.cloudforest.com/northwest/forum/6367.html
Find Gunnera manicata here for $12.
Digs, if you have a lot of them, can I get a few?
ok great!!!!!!! thxs,i think i am going to try the seeds for now and see wht happens,i have a rice paper plant,not sure if it is in the same family as gunnera but it comes back for me ever year and has no problem survivng our hot summers can anyone help me on this one? thxs
moretz
Woodspirit1,
Send me your addy. Have a few left.
Digs
I too have been searching for this plant - thanks for the links! I think us colder zone folks have to stick with purchasing a plant, rather than trying to grow from seed - but please post your results moretz!
Julie
jrush i will and if you get a plant please think of me hahahah lol i sure owuld like to try this plant,maybe if we put it in some shade it might survive our hot summers
moretz
All out of gunnera seeds. Wishing success to moretz, Woodspirit1, and KayJones in growing these out.
Digs
All out of gunnera seeds. Wishing success to moretz, Woodspirit1 and KayJones in growing these out.
Digs
I'd be willing to buy a bag or two and split them. I don't know how good the deal is if you pay shipping twice?
Am I correct in thinking that this plant can be dug & stored for the Winter, in colder zones? I do not see these plants in my area, but it seems I had heard this approach somewhere... They certainly are not common around here! The largest leaf plant I can think of is the Castor Bean or some Canna varieties, but the Gunnera has a completely different look to it...
This plant gets so big that I can't imagine digging it up. The leaves are larger than castor bean.
Badseed
dmailed you
It is supposed to be hardy to 7 so I am considering growing one in a huge pot and sinking it and putting one in the ground. I think I will bring the potted one into an unheated building or the crawlspace and leaving one in the ground and mulching it super well and see what happens. The only thing I am slightly worried about is having to cut it down to bring it in and if that would adversely affect it. I have the Gunnera tinctoria sitting in my kitchen and it puts out a leaf here and there but I am wondering if I should put it outside or under the house so it can experience a cool period. I don't know much about them and wonder if it NEEDS some cold time?
Hello All
Seems to be a little confusion over Gunnera Manicata, which is a member of the rhubarb family, and no relation to the rice paper plant (Tetrapanax). Gunnera Manicata must have LOADS of water in summer to support its hugh leaves and does better in shade. I have not heard of it being dug up and stored for the winter. The crown of the plant can get very big. Generally, to protect in winter, use its own leaves which have been slightly damaged by frost, and fold them over the crown of the plant. This will protect it from frost in winter. Remove the leaves when no more frost is expected. Do not let the plant dry out. Below is a pic of mine which is 7ft tall, but this is relatively small!!
Sue
Hello Sue. Thank you very much for your opinion and experience here. Have you ever heard of this plant wintering over in zone 6 with protection? I have an area that is wet naturally and I plan to fill it with ferns, and thought this would make a nice addition. I'd prefer to leave it in the ground if possible.
Hi Badseed
I wouldn't like to say for sure, but with a good mulch around and over the crown, it is possible. One thing to be careful of with these plants is that the crown must not be buried in the soil. The roots like the moisture, but the crown sits above ground.
I have never heard of anyone bringing it inside for the winter - always left in the ground and plenty of mulch (usually with its own leaves) but in zone 6, mulch could be added too.
All the best
Sue
I wouldn't recommend Van Borgondien if they were the only place on earth that had it! I've bought from them. They sent rotten moldy plants and wouldn't give me my money back, they wanted me to take more rotten moldy plants as replacements(company policy, no refunds)
Ack! Are you serious?? That is very bad news indeed. I just tried to look them up in the GWD and didn't see anything. I may have to get the zip and try that way. I'm glad you said something BEFORE I plunked down $60+ with them!
They are also dutchbulbs.com, their negative rating is about 52%. Seems like 15 people from the company tried to boost their rating by posting positive comments, but they got caught! Here is the link http://davesgarden.com/gwd/c/452/
I buy wholesale from them and have never had a problem. I bought about $300 worth of tree peonies from them and only lost 3 (same variety) which they replaced and another year for a client at the time i bought $500 worth of the biggest most magnificent dahlia i have ever seen, they were literally HUGE! And performed very, very well. The only problem i have had was with oriental poppy roots from them, which did poorly, i didn't like the quality and they offered me a refund or credit.
I wonder if the quality has gone down, it has been about 3 years since i've placed a big order, or perhaps they treat their wholesale clients better? I find their regular catalog and especially Van Dycks very expensive, their wholesale is good though, and their dahlias are unsurpassed in size... and i have spent way more than i care to admit on dahlias. LOL
Melissa
Melissa, I think that's the case, their quality has run downhill. I added that to the posts about them in the Garden Watchdog.
I am very sad to hear that. I have been very happy with them. To be honest, because of my good luck with their product in the past, i will probably place a peony order with them here soon (tax return pending...)
We moved three years ago, and our new place had NO (and i really mean NO) landscaping. We have been spending our money on accessibility modifications and trees, many trees. This year we start on the garden part. I was really counting on getting many of the tree peonies on my wish list from them...
Now i'm torn, i think i'll call them and confirm what their return / credit policy is these days.
By the way, anyone can buy wholesale from them (changed 2 years ago) all you need is a $50 min order. Maybe as their quality went down they got desperate...
Tom, we bought wholesale from them. We used to have commercial greenhouses. Most of the stuff they sent was rotten and moldy when it arrived and the rest died later. They don't give refunds, company policy now.
Wow, i am SO sad! When i was doing a bit of landscaping on the side (in CA) i used them so much. The only moldy stuff i ever got were the poppies. I have ordered literally thousands of dollars of stuff from them, with very few problems. I will say that i've never been impressed with the Van Dykes catalog, very overpriced!
I put a positive note for them in the watchdog, but i will surely change it in a second if they disappoint me with this next order. Bad service or bad quality is so much worse when it is from a company that you love. I have loved this company for years, i'm gonna cry if they send me crap :(
Calalily, what type of stuff did you buy from them? I bought mostly dahlias, lilies and peonies. I had one client where i put in about 300 of their dahlias. She has the luck of being on a nice draining hill in a temperate zone, and doesn't even dig them up (note... i am green with envy) and her dahlias three years later are just outrageous! Did i mention, i am GREEN with envy. Her lilacs are icky though, Ha ha, so there is one advantage to living in this freezing place.
Seriously, i'm gonna cry if my order from them sucks.
Melissa
The only plant I can remember right now is hellebores. I know there were a lot more varieties, but it's been at least three or four years since the last order. It was all stuff that would have grown in TN.
Melissa, I used to love Shady Oaks. But I think when they retired and their son took over, he went strictly wholesale. I think the parents started a retail business again but I can't remember the name of it. Does anyone know?
Woodspirit,
Check here. http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/341436/
Melissa
Good grief, Melissa, I am so embarressed. I can't believe I posted that myself. I e-mailed them to see if they are open and if they sell more shade plants retail. I will let everyone if it is still true. I recall that Shady Oaks was a great place to buy shade perennials.
ROFL,
I called Shady Oaks and asked them. They told me the name and when i googled them i came up with the post. I didn't even notice you were the one who wrote it! I am laughing so hard because it is SO something i would do. LOL
Melissa
I guess my dream of growing the gunnera is indeed just a dream! Us zone 6 & lower people are envious! I will have to settle for other big leaved plants...
The Garden Watchdog is amazing - it really is the most helpful & informative consumer rating system. And not much gets past it, as this thread has proven. DG'ers are on the ball, & the truth will be told here. I always check there before buying ANYTHING... Of course, I got nailed by 2 companies, when I failed to consult DG before purchasing. (When I was young & very stupid!) About 2 years ago... :)
Julie
Julie, I've started checking them more before buying now. I also started checking there when I'm just looking for a plant. I found a nice site "Easy to grow bulbs" when I was looking for tuberose. I sent them an email when I didn't see it on their site, but he said they will have them and he sent me a picture of their bulbs! They had 100% positive comments.