Rhubarb

Even though rhubarb is basically classified as a vegetable, the long, red, tart-flavored stalks or stems are conventionally used as a fruit. Some uses are in pies, cobblers, jellies, and jams, or easily stewed to be served as a compote. Lovers of rhubarb will want to allow plenty of space for this vegetable, as the foliage is as attractive as the stems are tasty.

Rhubarb is a long-lived perennial plant, and the cultivation of this plant is similar in many aspects to that of another prized perennial vegetable, the asparagus. Similar to asparagus, rhubarb is planted in beds that need a lot of preparation, but after the plants are established, they need a minimum amount of care and will produce a crop for many years. Like the asparagus, rhubarb also needs a dormant time and grows best in areas where the winters get cold enough to freeze the ground for at least 2 or 3 inches in depth.

Like asparagus, rhubarb will grow well in almost any type of soil, but it is a heavy feeder and should not be planted in poor soil, where you the gardener, will have to find the extra time to add extreme quantities of organic material and fertilizer.   

Rhubarb is very seldom started from seed. Instead, it is propagated by planting crowns, the root division that carry the buds from which new plants will grow. The rhubarb crowns can be ordered from seed catalogs, or purchased from your local garden nursery or home and garden center.




Forcing in Winter
If you would like to enjoy rhubarb in the winter, you can try this easy forcing method: In the fall, after the tops of your plants have died down, you can dig up a whole plant and place in it an 18 inch diameter tub which you have already filled with topsoil, compost, and manure. The tub should be left outside for several weeks of during freezing weather, at which time you can move it to a cool, dark place. Remember to keep the soil moist. About a month before your harvest time, move the tub into a warm area, about 60 degrees F is best, and still in the dark, if possible. The dormant roots will soon begin to sprout, and you can harvest when the stalks reach roughly 18 inches tall.

What Can Go Wrong
Generally, rhubarb is relatively free from pests or diseases. The rhubarb curculio, which is a short, yellow, juice-sucking beetle, will thrive in weedy patches, however. Once you keep the area free of weeds, you will cut down on this beetle; in the meantime you can just pick them off the plants.