farm rhubarb plant , genus Rheum rhabarbarum , is not for those who lack solitaire .
compare to something like acarrot , which you’re able to bask just 60 to 75 days after planting , pie plant read months . Often one year . Sometimes two or three .
But oh , when you finally sting into that heavenly slice of rhubarb pie , nippy , or crumble , the postponement will have been beyond worthwhile .
Photo by Laura Melchor
This intend that if you have n’t ever grown rhubarb before , you should start now . Check out ourcomplete guide to growing rhubarbto get start .
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While you thirstily waitress for your stem , or petioles , to grow large enough for pick , get ’s learn all about when and how to reap pieplant .
Photo by Laura Melchor
Here ’s what I ’ll cover :
What You’ll Learn
When to Harvest Rhubarb
There are many ways to plant : from seed , crown , unembellished root , or division . And you if you do n’t have blank in your garden , you could alwaysgrow rhubarb in containers .
We comprehend this in more item in ourguide to rhubarb varieties . But each planting method acting has different harvest specifications , so let ’s find out what that ’s all about .
From Divisions: The Quickest Way to Home-Grown Stalks
Divisions are taken from rhubarb plants that are either about to go dormant for the wintertime , or about to leave the days of dormancy behind .
If you ’re favorable enough to score a section from a supporter , you ’ll get to love your own tart stalk derive springtime .
This is because divisions are already mature plants that will produce stalks easily . The yield depends on how enceinte the solution division is .
( Hint : the larger it is , the more pie plant stalk you ’ll get to glean ! )
So do n’t be shy . Ask your rhubarb - laden horticulture supporter if you may take a nice ball home to your own garden .
You ’ll cognise stalks are mature when they ’re at least 12 inches long . Do n’t concern about the colour : a unripe stalk does not intend the plant is n’t ready .
It simply mean you select a green - stalked variety , like ‘ Victoria ’ often is , or ‘ Riverside Giant . ’
So all you need to know for now is this :
Bare Root: The Second-Fastest Way
A bare root is basically a dormant air division purchase from a nursery and it ’s usually a lot smaller than a division you ’d get from a protagonist .
For this reason , it ’s beneficial to leave bare root alone during their first season after you plant them . They ’ll create stalks , but the plants are small and often a lot younger than the massive spread in your friend ’s garden .
you’re able to begin to lightly pick rhubarb planted from unornamented roots in the 2nd time of year , and blame on a regular basis the third season after .
To make it well-situated to commend , here ’s the primal tip :
From a Crown: Also the Second-Fastest Way
A crest is a pocket-sized plant that ’s at least a year erstwhile . You ’ll often find these in your local nursery , chilling out in the planters where they were birth , quick for transplant into your garden .
While you may technically tug one or two slim , short stalks from your flora the day you bring it home , it ’s best to leave it alone for a full year after planting .
This give it the fourth dimension to get institute .
In the 2d time of year after you imbed it , go forward and take 1/4 to 1/3 of the stalks if your plant looks robust . By the third season , you ’ll be capable to pick 1/2 to 3/4 of the tasty petioles .
To sum it up …
Sowing Seeds: The Slowest Way
It may be two to three years before you get to foot rhubarb planted from seed , but do n’t knock this method acting totally because it is fun .
Here in Alaska , I ’m used to seeing vast clumps of rhubarb all over the place come summertime .
But when I start Proto-Indo European plant from come , I get to watch the transformation from papery seed , like this :
To four - workweek - old seedling , like this , and beyond :
Is n’t it miraculous that this tiny plant life acquire up to four feet tall and wide , depending on the variety ? That the humble stalking become the bedazzle wizard of so many odorous dish ?
Call me strange , but I feel a bond with these little plants . I ’ve known them for so long , and once they ’re planted against my reddened barn , I ’ll smile and remember when I held them in my medal in germ form .
retrieve of planting from seed like found from a jacket crown but with an extra year or so flip-flop on . You ’ll demand to wait until the seedlings become crown , and then another year until the crowns make big enough stems for very light picking ( 1/4 or less of the plant ) .
By the third yr , you could take 1/3 to 1/2 of the stalks . By the 4th , you ’ll be able to take a regular pick of 1/2 to 3/4 of the total leafstalk .
For a ready recap , seed - sown pieplant pauperism :
What Time of Year to Harvest
No matter which planting method you take , the existent month of harvesting season remain the same .
It all depends on yourUSDA Hardiness Zone .
In the Pacific Northwest , Alaska , and the Midwest – ƒ Zones 2 - 6 – you’re able to typically pick rhubarb all the way from April to early July .
Take the first crop when stalks age in April , leaving 1/2 to 3/4 of the petiole intact .
After another month or two , raw petioles should have mature to substitute the ones you reap . Again , take 1/2 to 1/4 of the leafstalk , leaving the residual .
For the rest of the summer , set aside the plant to grow untouched . This will help it store up nutrients for winter sustenance , insure that you get a level-headed harvest the following springiness .
In zone 7 and 8 , winter are milder . You ’ll be able-bodied to get your plants in the earth preferably , and they ’ll mature more quickly .
Pick from March through May in these Zones , leaving the works alone in their hopefully semi - shaded area to brave out out the relief of the summer and memory board energy for the winter .
Picking meter is even in the first place if you ’re maturate pieplant as anannualin Zones 9 or above .
You ’ll havesown seed indoorsin August and plant them ( or potted crowns ) outside by October . In this case , you may pluck them from about February to April .
Take just 1/4 of the stalks earlier in the season , leaving the ease behind to get strong and grown . But in April , go ahead and harvest every single stalk .
After April , your plants will probably pass away in the summertime heat . And you ’ll start the process all over again in August .
Same thing goes for those who plant divisions or stripped roots , although this can be problematic in warm climates as root rot well takes hold of the plants if the soil becomes too raging .
To summarize up harvest times by Zone :
Best Time of Day to Harvest
I have visions of heading out to my cool , early - summer garden in the morning and plucking stalks for my breakfast crumble .
Or tissue my hand through the plant to find the blue petiole in the evening for a spur - of - the - second pie .
But the truth is , you could blame rhubarb at any time of the day .
It may prefer being deplume aside from its female parent plant in the cooler hours of the morning or even , but stalk wo n’t mislay their crispness if you pluck them in the heat of the day – as long as you impart them indoors right away .
Knowing When Stalks Are Ready
Still distressed about how to know when stalks are good and quick ?
All you demand to retrieve is that they should be at least 12 inches long . It ’s also nice for your plant life if you look until there are about 10 stalks on a industrial plant , so that when you harvest about 1/4 to 1/2 , at least 5 to 7 stalks remain .
Here ’s the principle to espouse : if your plant has fewer than 10 petioles but they are all ripe , harvest no more than two to four .
It helps if you have several plants from which to take one or two stalk to each one , leave the rest to grow for a while longer before you pull in again later in the season .
How to Harvest
The only creature you want are your own two hands . While you could technically use a garden knife , stubble are often so close together that you might accidentally slit into a petiole you did n’t have in mind to chip .
If you do choose to use a tongue , ascertain the bottom of the leafstalk with your hand , deplumate it off from the other stalks , and lightly cut downward .
Or , take the easier and safer road of simply gripping the middle of the chaff with both hands and then wrestle and pull at the same fourth dimension .
The end of the stalk will have a sharpen , papery portion .
Go forward and trim that off .
While you ’re at it , crop the leaves off , too , and take them to your compost pile – or the garbage .
Just ensure they bide out of reach of children and animal , as the leaves are toxic .
Preserving Stalks
By the fourth dimension three or four year have passed since you first planted rhubarb plant , you ’ll have so much that you in all probability wo n’t be capable to use it all at once .
Freshly picked pieplant will stay invigorated in the refrigerator for about a week as long as it ’s kept in a cipher top cup of tea or other airtight container . If you just stick it in the fridge as is , it ’ll dry out .
To keep rhubarb around even longer , suspend it !
All you have to do is slice the stalks into one - inch pieces , set them on parchment composition , and place them in the freezer until they ’re firm .
Then move them to date - distinguish freezer bag , where they ’ll keep in your freezer for up to a year .
What To Do If Rhubarb Bolts
you may usually trance germ heads before they sprain into full - on flowers . They ’ll commonly come out from the base of the industrial plant , immature and bulgy .
The stalk that seeded player heads produce on are normally tougher than edible stem , so you ’ll need to take a sharp tongue and cut them as close to the base of the plant as possible .
This is the case whether you watch the seeded player head in its early stages or you terminate up want to remove a tall stalk with several seed headland .
If you lease your plant go to flower , the comestible halt will try out the same and your plant will still populate for many more eld .
But since all the zip is poured into creating semen , you wo n’t get to blame virtually as many stalks .
Now Go Make Some Rhubarbalicious Treats!
Now that you know how to pick pie plant life , it ’s clock time to design those pies . And vino . And crumbles , cakes , jam , and ice pick .
And if you require further inspiration , our baby site , Foodal , has plenty of ideas for what to do with your fresh harvest home .
We ’d love to know : what ’s your favorite pieplant kickshaw ? Mine , of course , is Proto-Indo European . But when my seedlings turn into big potent plants and I get to harvest homegrown stalks , you look I ’ll be trying every recipe I can find .
If you ’re thinking about adding morevegetables to your gardenyou’ll need these guide next :
Photos by Laura Melchor © Ask the Experts , LLC . ALL right field RESERVED.See our TOSfor more details . Originally published March 2nd , 2020 . Last updated May 16th , 2023 . ware photos via True Leaf Market . Uncredited photos : Shutterstock . With additional writing and redaction by Clare Groom and Allison Sidhu .
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Laura Ojeda Melchor
