Is rhubarb a vegetable? A fruit? An ornamental plant? It’s a very ornamental vegetable that is usually prepared and eaten much like a fruit. All that and it’s perennial in many areas. Rhubarb is a cool season crop that is grown for its fibrous leaf stalks, which are a wonderful sweet-tart treat. Rhubarb is a big, leafy plant, growing 2-3 feet wide and tall. It is grown for its leaf stalks, but makes a beautiful, ornamental plant, especially the red and yellow varieties. Many people prefer the red varieties for their taste and tenderness, although the green varieties tend to be a bit more productive than the red. Only the stalks are edible. The leaves themselves are toxic and are removed at harvesting. The leaves contain a substance called oxalic acid crystals, which are toxic and can result in poisoning. Rhubarb does best in cooler climates, since it requires temperatures below 40 F. to break dormancy and stimulate bud growth.
Rhubarb damaged by frost may become inedible. If the stems are not firm and upright, don’t eat them. Frost damage can cause the oxalic acid crystals to move into the stalks. You can compost rhubarb leaves, even though they are slightly toxic if ingested. The oxalic acid crystals dissipate in the soil long before they are absorbed by other plants.
As with most perennial crops, don’t harvest at all the first year, to allow the plants time to get established. You can take a small harvest the second year. During the 3rd year, you can harvest for about 1 month. After the 3rd year, you can harvest whenever there are stalks ready for picking.
Harvesting Rhubarb: A top dressing of manure will keep it going. To harvest, cut the stalks at the soil line or pull out individual stalks as needed. You can harvest the whole crop at the same time or harvest in succession over a 4-6 week period. As the temperature warms, growth slows and may even go dormant, but will resume in fall as temperatures fall.
So what is your favorite dish to make with the rhubarb? Let us share on this website and see what everyone likes to make with rhubarb. Till next time, this is Becky Litterer from Becky's Greenhouse, Dougherty Iowa
Rhubarb damaged by frost may become inedible. If the stems are not firm and upright, don’t eat them. Frost damage can cause the oxalic acid crystals to move into the stalks. You can compost rhubarb leaves, even though they are slightly toxic if ingested. The oxalic acid crystals dissipate in the soil long before they are absorbed by other plants.
As with most perennial crops, don’t harvest at all the first year, to allow the plants time to get established. You can take a small harvest the second year. During the 3rd year, you can harvest for about 1 month. After the 3rd year, you can harvest whenever there are stalks ready for picking.
Harvesting Rhubarb: A top dressing of manure will keep it going. To harvest, cut the stalks at the soil line or pull out individual stalks as needed. You can harvest the whole crop at the same time or harvest in succession over a 4-6 week period. As the temperature warms, growth slows and may even go dormant, but will resume in fall as temperatures fall.
So what is your favorite dish to make with the rhubarb? Let us share on this website and see what everyone likes to make with rhubarb. Till next time, this is Becky Litterer from Becky's Greenhouse, Dougherty Iowa
