PLATE XIX. 
RHEUM NOBILE, wy ¢ 7. 
Nat. Ord. PotyGonrz. 
Herba elata 3—5-pedalis columnaris, radice elongato-fusiformi, rhizomate crasso brevi, caule erecto sulcato simplici bracteis 
reflexis deorsum imbricatis membranaceis omnino velato, foliis radicalibus rosulatis breve crasse petiolatis ovato- 
oblongis obtusis integerrimis basi cuneatis nervis flabellatis, caulinis orbiculatis brevius pedicellatis recurvis in 
bracteis repente desinentibus, bracteis stramineis translucidis convexis bullatis marginibus roseis, stipulis maximis 
membranaceis rubris, paniculis brevibus axillaribus compositis e basi flabellatim ramosis intra stipulas nidulantibus 
et bracteis omnino velatis, floribus viridibus pedicellatis, sepalis 6 eequalibus oblongis obtusis, staminibus 6, ovario 
breviter stipitato compresso v. trigono, stylis 2—4, stigmatibus capitatis, acheenio 2—4-alato lateribus tuberculatis. 
Has. In rupibus abruptis alpinis Himalaye orientalis: Sikkim, alt. 13-15,000 ped. #7. Jun. 
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The present is certainly the most striking of the many fine alpine plants of Sikkim; and though in 
every botanical character, as also in the acid juice of the stem, a genuine Rhubarb, it differs so remarkably 
in habit and general appearance from any of its congeners, that at first sight it could not be recognized as 
one of them. I first saw it from a distance of fully a mile, dotting the black cliffs of the Lachen valley at 
14,000 feet elevation, in inaccessible situations, and was quite at a loss to conceive what it could be; nor 
was it till I had turned back the curious bracteal leaves and examined the flowers that I was persuaded 
of its being a true Rhubarb. 
The individual plants of Rhewm nobile are upwards of a yard high, and form conical towers of the 
most delicate, straw-coloured, shining, semi-transparent, concave, imbricating bracts, the upper of which 
have pink edges; the large, bright glossy, shining green radical leaves, with red petioles and nerves, 
forming a broad base to the whole. On turning up the bracts, the beautiful membranous, fragile, pink 
stipules are seen, like red silver-paper, and within these again the short branched panicles of insignificant 
green flowers. The root is very long, often many feet, and winds amongst the rocks; it is as thick as the 
arm, and bright yellow inside. After flowering the stem lengthens, the bracts separate one from another, 
become coarse red-brown, withered and torn; finally, as the fruit ripens, they fall away, leaving a ragged- 
looking stem, covered with panicles of deep brown pendulous fruits. In the winter, these naked black stems, 
projecting from the beetling cliffs, or towering above the snow, are in dismal keeping with the surrounding 
desolation of that season. 
The stems of this plant (called “ Chuka” by the inhabitants) are pleasantly acid, and much eaten; the 
hollow of the stem contains a good deal of limpid water. 
The accompanying drawing is taken from a sketch of the whole plant, of the natural size, which I took, 
