🌱 Rhubarb

Rhubarb is one of the easiest and longest-lived perennial crops, giving stems for puddings from March to July for ten years or more with minimal care. It is among the first fruit-like crops of the year, and forced rhubarb gives pink stalks in midwinter.

The plant is large, with big leaves, so allow plenty of space and use it as a feature at the back of a border. It tolerates part shade. The leaves are toxic and should never be eaten, but they are safe to compost.

Varieties to try

Timperley Early (early, forces well)Victoria (late, reliable and vigorous)Champagne (early, sweet pink stems)Raspberry Red (red, sweet)Glaskins Perpetual (grows from seed, long cropping)

Plant dormant crowns from November to March in a sunny or lightly shaded spot, in fertile, well-drained soil enriched with a bucketful of well-rotted manure or compost. Dig a hole big enough for the crown, and plant so the buds are just at or just below the surface. Space plants 75–90 cm apart.

Water in well and mulch with compost, leaving the buds uncovered. Avoid harvesting in the first year so that the plant establishes. Buying crowns from a reputable nursery or dividing an established plant is more reliable than seed. Rhubarb also grows in a large pot (40 cm or more).

Top tips

• Plant crowns with the buds at soil level.
• Enrich the soil with manure.
• Allow 90 cm between plants.
• Do not pick in the first year.

Each spring, mulch around the crown with well-rotted manure or compost, and feed with a general fertiliser. Water in dry spells, and remove any flower stems as soon as they appear, by pulling or cutting at the base, so that energy goes into the stalks.

Divide the crowns every five to seven years in winter, when they become congested and produce thin stems: lift, cut into sections with at least one bud each and replant. Crown rot occurs in waterlogged soil, so ensure good drainage.

Top tips

• Mulch each spring.
• Remove flower stems promptly.
• Divide every 5–7 years.
• Avoid waterlogged soil.

Watch out for

Crown rot in wet soilSlugs on young shootsHoney fungusWeak stems from overpicking

Pick stems from the second year, lightly, and from the third year onward from March to July. Hold a stalk near the base and pull and twist it to detach it, rather than cutting, which can leave stumps that rot. Never take more than half the stalks at once, and stop picking by mid-July to let the plant recover.

Cut off the leaves and discard or compost them; they contain oxalic acid and are poisonous. For early pink stems, cover a crown with a bucket or forcer in January and pick in about 6–8 weeks.

Top tips

• Pull and twist, don’t cut.
• Leave at least half the stalks.
• Stop picking by mid-July.
• Never eat the leaves.

Stew chopped stalks with sugar and a little orange juice for 10 minutes until soft, and use in crumbles, fools, pies, tarts, jams, chutneys and compotes. Rhubarb is tart, so it pairs well with ginger, orange, strawberry, custard and cream. Forced rhubarb is sweeter and less stringy.

Fresh stalks keep for a week in the fridge. To freeze, chop into chunks, spread on a tray, freeze and pack in bags for up to a year; no blanching is needed. Rhubarb jam, chutney and cordial preserve a glut.

Top tips

• Freeze chopped stalks raw.
• Pair with ginger and orange.
• Discard the leaves.
• Make cordial from a glut.