Gunnera in the Arboretum
Moving into my eighth decade with frayed foot tendons, time called for photographic exploration with easy parking. I ventured into unknown territory as I explored a clump of gunnera tinctoria, located on the south edge of Seattle’s Washington Park Arboretum Graham Visitors’ Center parking lot. Passersby, including arboretum groundskeepers, asked what I was doing as I photographed. They scattered snippets of information that fertilize the project.
Meanings accrued to this “wild” and beautiful urban place as I navigated through seasons of decay/death, healing/hope, and resilience.
Gunnera dies back in winter to its root and rapidly reaches skyward with palpable vitality and vibrancy in spring. Some plants grow over 10 feet tall with leaves spanning 5 feet, sprouting fast and propagating so readily, primarily through its root system but some by seed, that several countries have banned it. In summer and into fall, leaves turn orange and brown, become dry and brittle, and crumble as they return again to soil. Come first frost, this tropical plant is prepared for winter when cut to the root and covered with cedar boughs to protect it from wind chill.
