Skip to main content

Growing Your Own Rhubarb: Growth and Cultivation

Rhubarb is commonly eaten as though it is a fruit, although in fact it is a perennial vegetable. It is simple to grow, produces a good crop, and if tended with care, can last for up to twenty years. It prefers either full sunlight, or partially shaded areas.

Varieties of rhubarb include ‘Victoria’, ‘Cawood Delight’, ‘Ruby’, ‘Champagne’, and Timperley Early’.

Planting Out Your Rhubarb

Growing Your Own RhubarbRhubarb can be planted out in sets/crowns anytime between November and early April, and can survive temperatures as low as minus fifteen degrees centigrade, as it is virtually frost resistant. The sets are usually around 10cm in diameter.

Before planting, ensure that you have a clear, well-weeded, open patch of well-drained soil, and that the soil is well fertilized. Dig down between two and three ft deep, place the set into the hole, cover with soil, gently firm out the surrounding soil, and ensure that the rhubarb is watered well. If you are planting more than one plant, you must space them approximately 4 ft apart.

Rhubarb can be grown without being forced, but will yield a better crop, which is more tender and is ready for picking earlier, if it is forced. Being ‘forced’ means that once the set has been planted in fertilized soil, it is covered with a large pot or container to encourage it to grow quicker. The pot keeps the set in complete darkness, and encourages growth. The pot/container can be removed after about two weeks.

Rhubarb can be grown directly from seed, but this does not always guarantee good results. To grow from seed, plant the seeds from March to April outdoors approximately 3cm deep and 30cm apart. In Autumn, or the following Spring, select the strongest plants and place in their permanent positions in well-drained, fertilized soil 15-20cm apart.

Care and Attention

Rhubarb should be kept dry in the Winter by covering the plant with leaves. Any leaves should be removed in Summer and Autumn, and the rhubarb should be regularly watered during the Summer months.

Any flowering stems of rhubarb should be removed and disposed of.

The green/pink stems of rhubarb can grow up to 2 ft long, and should be ready for picking in Spring to Summer. When picked, the rhubarb stems can be cooked and can be used in many dessert recipes.

To pick rhubarb, hold each stem at the base, twist the stem, and pull firmly upwards. Do not eat the rhubarb leaves – they are poisonous; instead recycle or compost them. Only eat the stems of the rhubarb.

To keep rhubarb plants in good condition, they need to be divided every 5 – 6 years (ideally during the Winter months) when dormant. To do this, dig the set out of the soil, firmly separate into 2 – 3 sections with a sharp spade, ensuring that each section has at least one shoot/bud. Then plant each individual section separately, making sure that the roots are still pointing downwards, and the top of the shoots are at least 4cm under the surface of the soil.

The post Growing Your Own Rhubarb: Growth and Cultivation appeared first on Downtown Homestead.



from Downtown Homestead http://downtownhomestead.com/growing-your-own-rhubarb/
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Air Condition Your Garden

July, it is the time of the year when air conditioning is as important in the garden as it is in the home. You, as the temperature rises, can cool off with an electric fan, a cool drink or by hiding away in a cool spot. Your plants are not quite that lucky; yet certain gardening techniques can be employed to help your plants through the summer months. The benefits of air conditioning in your garden will show up in the form of increased production, greater resistance to disease and pests and, in general, a more attractive vista. An improper over-heated environment during the warmer months often leads to wilt, dropping of buds and yellowing of foliage. Aeration of the soil is concerned with its exposure to the air. If this is lacking then your plants very likely will suffer this summer. Believe it or not but there are millions of tiny spaces between the soil particles and this is where air resides. Soils that become water-logged force out this air, a condition that leads to souring of ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Plumbing Noises In Your Home: Your Pipes are talking to you

To diagnose plumbing noises, it is important to determine first whether the unwanted sounds occur on the system’s inlet side-in other words, when water is turned on-or on the drain side. Noises on the inlet side have varied causes: excessive water pressure, worn valve and faucet parts, improperly connected pumps or other appliances, incorrectly placed pipe fasteners, and plumbing runs containing too many tight bends or other restrictions. Noises on the drain side usually stem from poor location or, as with some inlet side noise, a layout containing tight bends.   Common Plumbing Noises Hissing Pipes Hissing noise that occurs when a faucet is opened slightly, generally signals excessive water pressure. Consult your local water company if you suspect this problem; it will be able to tell you the water pressure in your area and can install a pressure reducing valve on the incoming water supply pipe if necessary. Thudding Pipes Thudding noise, often accompanied by shuddering pipe...
Post a Comment
Read more

How to Save Your Own Set of Seeds

Saving seeds doesn’t have to be a frightening task and can even be absolutely easy, according to Fred Bove of the San Francisco Permaculture Guild . Instead of waiting for the last riffraff plants to flower, he instructs to look for the biggest, most colorful specimens that were among the first few plants to become ripe. He urges to resist harvesting the first beautiful flower, vegetable or herb of any one planting, and allow full maturity. “You want to save the best characteristics (of any plant) and pass them on,” explained Bove. Depending on the plant, you may want to select for size, flavor or how quickly it takes for the crop to reach maturity. “That way, you’re promoting the desired characteristics in the next generation of seeds.” The next important challenging task is identifying a seed that’s ready for saving. There are different ways to save seeds, depending on the variety. Plants in the apiaceae family, which includes parsley, fennel and cilantro, will bloom and form umbr...
Post a Comment
Read more