The Noble Rhubarb: Himalayan Marvel of Nature’s Ingenuity

At almost two meters tall, the Noble Rhubarb (also known as Sikkim Rhubarb) stands out – just a little - in its Himalayan habitat. While nature has designed its neighboring herbs and shrubs to grow short and stumpy, this species of rhubarb has other ideas. It towers above the other local plant life and is often visible from miles away.  How does this strange, ethereal plant survive – let alone thrive – in this inhospitable environment? Its secret is simple but ingenious: it is its own greenhouse.

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You might mistake what you can see as a rather peculiar flower (once you get over the momentary panic that the triffids are having another day).  What you see is not a flower. The conical tower that is visible to the passing traveler is made up of translucent bracts. A bract is a specilaized leaf associated with the reproductive structure of a plant and they come in a multitude of shapes and sizes (often dependent on the plant’s pollinator).  In the case of noble rhubarb, these bracts create a translucent curtain which surrounds the stem and flowers contained within.