There's immense enjoyment to be had from snapping free a stalk or two for an impromptu desert. For those who haven't yet had the pleasure, home-grown rhubarb is quite delicious and it's those stems grown in darkness that are the most desirable of all. Growing plants in the dark, often with the addition of a little warmth, is known as 'forcing'. It's a simple way of tricking nature into early growth. And the results are sublime.
Rhubarb will naturally break its fat, overwintering buds in early spring, as soon as temperatures are consistently mild. The stems (also known as rhubarb 'sticks') that result can be harvested as soon as they are big enough, from mid spring right up to the middle of summer, when the plants should be left to recharge for the remainder of the growing season. Forced stems, however, can be enjoyed a whole month sooner and even earlier if you lift sections of your rhubarb crown (roots) and bring them under the cover of a greenhouse or other warmer place.
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For the gardener these stretched stems have far less of the bitterness associated with traditional, non-forced rhubarb. The pale stems need less sugar to balance their tartness, while the taste is all together more delicate. Combined with their tender texture, it makes forced rhubarb a king among early crops.
The easiest way to force rhubarb is to do it in situ, without disturbing the crown, while the plants are still dormant in late winter. The object is to cover promising buds so that light is completely obstructed and, ideally, warmth is introduced. I use a large upturned pot for this. The drainage holes of the pot are covered with thick black gaffer tape to prevent the slightest chink of light from reaching the buds. I then bank straw up against the pot to create a snug microclimate within. You can pack the straw directly around the buds inside the pot but I've always shied away from this for fear that the slugs might find the warm, dank atmosphere that results irresistible.
If you have a greenhouse or relatively warm outbuilding or garage you can dig up a portion of your rhubarb to enjoy an even earlier crop. Pot up pieces of crown, complete with healthy buds, into large pots of compost. Exclude light as above. Keep the roots slightly moist (but never wet!) so that they don't dry out and stop growing. The warmer it is the quicker the stems will reach upwards, with a temperature of around 18-20C (64-68F) producing the speediest crop. Your forced rhubarb is ready to pick as soon as the stems touch the top of their pot or forcer.
Forcing rhubarb isn't a natural process. It's a bit like running a marathon: you get to the end faster but it doesn't half take it out of you! Crowns that have been forced should be left to recover the following year or else you risk weakening the plant and making it susceptible to disease. For this reason it's best to have two or more plants on the go so that one can be forced while the other is having a rest.
Don't be in a hurry to bring in rhubarb for forcing. The crowns need a period of chilling to get them in shape before they are ready to break their dormancy. This conditioning ensures plants have had a proper rest period and will result in stronger growth and thicker stems. It's the same reason why apples and other temperate fruits need a certain amount of cold weather to guarantee full fruiting potential.
Rhubarb adds sculptural beauty to the garden with its blocky stems and large leaves. While leaves offer textural beauty, they're not part of the harvest package. Rhubarb leaves contain high concentrations of oxalic acid and shouldn't be eaten. When growing rhubarb, harvest the stems, then remove leaves and add them to the compost pile. Rhubarb grows best in zones where the ground freezes in winter. Plants require an extended chilling period with temperatures below 40 degrees to produce a crop of stems. As a result, rhubarb is commonplace in gardens throughout the coldest sections of the country, although it can be grown as far south as zone 7.
A true perennial, rhubarb plants can yield harvests 5 to 8 years or longer. Once plants are established, they don't transplant easily, so choose your planting site carefully. It will also help to start with the best plants you can get. Young Bonnie Plants rhubarb plants are strong and vigorous, so you're already ahead of the game when you plant. Rhubarb thrives in full sun but will yield to light shade. Select a location that gives plants ample room; individual rhubarb plants can measure up to four feet wide and tall.
Plant crowns in spring as soon as soil is workable. Tuck plants into slightly acidic soil rich in organic matter; blend in plenty of well-rotted manure or compost, or improve the soil with aged compost-enriched Miracle-Gro Performance OrganicsAll Purpose In-Ground Soil . Rhubarb crowns require shallow planting (around 4 inches deep), but because plants are such heavy feeders, you should dig planting holes at least a foot deep. If your soil is heavy clay, you may want to consider planting rhubarb in raised beds filled with soil designed especially for that kind of growing environment, such as Miracle-Gro Performance Organics Raised Bed Mix.
Water newly planted crowns, and keep soil moist throughout the growing season. As summer heat arrives, mulch plants with a 2-inch-thick layer of organic mulch, such as compost, straw, or shredded bark. Replenish mulch throughout the growing season as needed to maintain 2-inch thickness. Best growth comes from using plant food that works in concert with the soil to provide just the right nutrition for your rhubarb plants. Miracle-Gro Performance Organics Edibles Plant Nutrition feeds plants continuously for up to 6 weeks, plus also feeds the beneficial microbes in the soil that help make nutrients available to your plants.
Few problems plague rhubarb. Crown rot settles in when soil drainage is poor. This disease damages terminal buds, which results in spindly, weak stems. The cure is to dig out and burn infected plants. Don't replant rhubarb in areas where crown rot has damaged plants before.
Forget harvesting the year that you add rhubarb to the garden. In the second year after planting, harvest lightly, removing only a few stalks from each plant. From the third year on, harvest stems freely. To ensure continued production, take care not to remove more than one-third to one-half the stalks from any one plant during any one harvest.
The rule of thumb is not to harvest rhubarb the year you plant it. Give plants time to produce a sturdy root system. The second year after planting, pick only a few stems from each plant. By not picking heavily, you're allowing leaves to generate energy that enhances root growth. The third year is when you can start picking rhubarb by the armload.
Those stalks are the flowering stems. Remove them as soon as they appear. Allowing rhubarb to bloom takes energy that the plant might otherwise shift toward root growth, which will help fuel next season's harvest.
Grab stems near the base and pull gently while applying a slight twisting motion. Take care not to injure the central bud, which will yield many more stems in the course of the growing season. Harvest up to one-third of stems from one plant at any one picking.
As long as clumps do not flower, you can continue to pick stems well into summer. Stop harvesting when stalks remain small and short. From this point on, the plants are storing energy for next year's harvest season. Keep rhubarb well watered until frost.
You're dealing with crown rot, a fungus disease that sometimes attacks established clumps of rhubarb, especially those that need dividing. Once it attacks a plant, you'll need to dig it up and destroy it. Do not re-plant rhubarb in the same spot where crown rot has affected a plant. The best way to avoid crown rot is to plant rhubarb in well-drained soil. Raised beds also help, as does dividing clumps when necessary.
Many gardeners divide rhubarb every 4 to 5 years. You'll know it's definitely time to divide when stems are short, stringy, and dry. Use a sharp spade to slice a start from a rhubarb crown in early spring, before growth begins. Dig up as much root as possible. Divide the clump so that starts each have two buds. Plant buds 1 inch below the soil surface. If possible, try to leave the part of the original plant undisturbed, so you'll be able to harvest from it this season.
Delicious. We also tried a banana, rhubarb and blueberry (wild Alaska blueberries, of course) version but preferred the straight rhubarb and banana version, which is saying a lot because I LOVE Alaska blueberries. I froze a bunch more rhubarb cooked with apple juice and plan to continue making these smoothies this winter and maybe even save a bundle on frozen fruit. And anytime bananas are about to go bad, I throw them in the freezer and most often use them in smoothies.
I love rhubarb. I love its flavour and I love how easy it is to grow. I always recommend planting rhubarb before anything else if you plan to grow your own food for these reasons. As a perennial edible, it will keep coming back better than ever year after year, it is fantastic value for money.
There is a large number of cultivars of rhubarb on the market and as with any food, taste is in the mouth of the eater. My recommendation then is to try before you buy if you can. Easiest way to do this is look at the cultivar names on the sticks you buy in shops. However, you might want to consider growing something different to what is widely sold, something more unique.
Pulling the leaves out or cutting them, may seem like the obvious way to pick a rhubarb leaf but there is a special trick to doing it right. If you pull or cut, you leave the base of the stem which is a) a waste and b) can lead to rotting that can harm the plant. Instead, what you need to do is grip the stem near the base and then slide and twist it out until it snaps clean off.
The stalks are the only edible part of the rhubarb plant. These have a rich, tart flavor when cooked. The leaves of the rhubarb plant are toxic. They contain an irritant called oxalic acid, so be sure that they are not ingested. 589ccfa754
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