Gunnera hamiltonii
Encyclopedia
Gunnera hamiltonii is a creeping herbaceous
plant in the family
Gunneraceae
, with clusters of small (2 to 7 cm) grey-brown leaves forming a dense mat. Small green flowers are followed by red berries in the autumn.
It is one of the rarest plants in its native New Zealand
, with Southland and Stewart Island/Rakiura
representing two of the suspected 5 remaining natural habitats. Natural fertilisation of these plants is now difficult as the male and female plants are separate.
Herbaceous
A herbaceous plant is a plant that has leaves and stems that die down at the end of the growing season to the soil level. They have no persistent woody stem above ground...
plant in the family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
Gunneraceae
Gunneraceae
Gunneraceae is the botanical name for a family of flowering plants. Such a family has been recognized by most taxonomists.The APG II system, of 2003, also recognizes this family and assigns it to the order Gunnerales in the clade core eudicots. The family then consists of one or two genera, Gunnera...
, with clusters of small (2 to 7 cm) grey-brown leaves forming a dense mat. Small green flowers are followed by red berries in the autumn.
It is one of the rarest plants in its native New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, with Southland and Stewart Island/Rakiura
Stewart Island/Rakiura
Stewart Island/Rakiura is the third-largest island of New Zealand. It lies south of the South Island, across Foveaux Strait. Its permanent population is slightly over 400 people, most of whom live in the settlement of Oban.- History and naming :...
representing two of the suspected 5 remaining natural habitats. Natural fertilisation of these plants is now difficult as the male and female plants are separate.