Growing Rhubarb
Rhubarb
Is Rhubarb a vegetable or is it a fruit? We believe it should be
called a vegetable because the stems of Rhubarb are eaten rather than the fruit.
Rhubarb originates from Siberia, and is a very hardy, frost resistant
plant - in fact it needs a period of frost in the winter to produce the best stalks.
Because rhubarb is so hardy and will survive almost total neglect, it is
often left to its devices in preference to other more demanding
vegetables. This is a pity, because with minimal treatment at the correct time it will flourish and provide you with delicious
stalks at a time when little else is cropping in the garden.
One word of warning - do not eat the leaves of rhubarb - they
contain oxalic acid which is definitely poisonous to humans. |
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RHUBARB
QUICK GUIDE
Folklore
Latin Name
Rheum rhaponticum
Type
Hardy perennial
Site and Soil
Full sun or partial shade, water retentive soil
Plant to Harvest Time
18 months
How Many?
2.5kg (5.5lb) per plant. |
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Where To Grow Rhubarb
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If possible, it's best to grow rhubarb in full sun, but is fairly tolerant of
partial shade. They will remain in the same position for up to 10 years
and the soil immediately surrounding the plant cannot be dug, so position it with this in mind. |
Soil
Preparation
Tolerant of most soil conditions, rhubarb grows best in a neutral soil
which has been dug to a depth of 60cm (2ft) or more. Incorporate as much
organic matter as possible during the digging because it must last the
life of the plant - rhubarb will not tolerate soil disturbance once
established. The site should be prepared about 4 weeks in advance of planting to give it time to settle.
Be especially careful to remove all weeds at the preparation stage - once
rhubarb is planted, it will be very difficult to get rid of them.
When To Plant Rhubarb
Rhubarb can be grown either from seed or as plants purchased from
your garden centre. The problem with rhubarb grown from seed is that it
takes a year longer to produce stalks and even then, the plants are not
guaranteed to be true to type - it's a gamble which takes three years
before you know if you have succeeded or failed. For this reason,
GardenAction do not recommend the 'seed' route.
Rhubarb plants are available all year round at some garden centres, although by
far the best time to plant rhubarb is late autumn to early winter -
December
is a good month.
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